Sir David Klenerman (born 1959) is a British biophysical chemist and a professor of biophysical chemistry at the Department of Chemistry at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

and a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

. He is best known for his contribution in the field of

next-generation sequencing Massive parallel sequencing or massively parallel sequencing is any of several high-throughput approaches to DNA sequencing using the concept of massively parallel processing; it is also called next-generation sequencing (NGS) or second-generation ...

of DNA (that subsequently resulted in Solexa, a high-speed DNA sequencing company that he co-founded), nanopipette-based

scanning ion-conductance microscopy Scanning ion-conductance microscopy (SICM) is a scanning probe microscopy technique that uses an electrode as the probe tip. SICM allows for the determination of the surface topography of micrometer and even nanometer-range structures in aqueous me ...

, and

super-resolution microscopy Super-resolution microscopy is a series of techniques in optical microscopy that allow such images to have resolutions higher than those imposed by the diffraction limit, which is due to the diffraction of light. Super-resolution imaging techni ...

Education

Klenerman was educated at the

where he was an undergraduate student of

and received his BA degree in 1982. He earned his

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...

degree in chemistry in 1986 as a postgraduate student of

Churchill College, Cambridge Churchill College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It has a primary focus on science, engineering and technology, but still retains a strong interest in the arts and humanities. In 1958, a trust was establis ...

and was supervised by

Ian William Murison Smith Ian William Murison Smith (15 June 1937 – 8 November 2016) was a chemist who served as a research fellow and lecturer in the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge from 1963 to 1985 and Professor of Chemistry at the University ...

Career and research

After his doctorate, Klenerman went to

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

as a

Fulbright scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...

to work on high-overtone chemistry, with

Richard Zare Richard Neil Zare (born November 19, 1939, in Cleveland, Ohio) is the Marguerite Blake Wilbur Professor in Natural Science and a Professor of Chemistry at Stanford University. Throughout his career, Zare has made a considerable impact in physical ...

. After his

postdoctoral research A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to pu ...

at Stanford, he returned to United Kingdom to work in BP Research for seven years. Then, in 1994, he joined the University of Cambridge, as a faculty member of the Department of Chemistry and a fellow of Christ's College. Klenerman, along with

Shankar Balasubramanian Sir Shankar Balasubramanian (born 30 September 1966) is an Indian-born British chemist and Herchel Smith Professor of Medicinal Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, ccessed 4 April 2013 Senior Group Leader ...

, invented a method of next-generation

DNA sequencing DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine. T ...

which is commonly known today as the Solexa sequencing or Illumina dye sequencing. The method is based on the detection of

fluorophore A fluorophore (or fluorochrome, similarly to a chromophore) is a fluorescent chemical compound that can re-emit light upon light excitation. Fluorophores typically contain several combined aromatic groups, or planar or cyclic molecules with se ...

labelled nucleotides as they get incorporated in the DNA strands. This sequencing by synthesis method gained popularity, and is currently regarded as the most widely used platform to replace conventional

Sanger sequencing Sanger sequencing is a method of DNA sequencing that involves electrophoresis and is based on the random incorporation of chain-terminating dideoxynucleotides by DNA polymerase during in vitro DNA replication. After first being developed by Fred ...

technique, despite its comparatively low multiplexing capability of samples, as it offers several key advantages: it is automated, quick, highly accurate, capable of sequencing multiple strands simultaneously via massive parallel sequencing, and economically cheaper in case of whole genome sequencing. He is also known for exploring nanopipette-based (instead of conventional micropipette-based)

methods. His research group was successful in achieving very high resolution topographic images of live-cells, in hopping mode imaging, in precise delivery of small molecules to cell, and in studying real time detailed cell-functioning. Most recently, his group is focusing on 3D

to develop new insights on protein misfolding and

neurodegenerative diseases A neurodegenerative disease is caused by the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, in the process known as neurodegeneration. Such neuronal damage may ultimately involve cell death. Neurodegenerative diseases include amyotrophi ...

Commercial activities

Klenerman and

commercialised their invention on the single-molecule-fluorescence based high-speed DNA sequencing and jointly founded Solexa in 1998. Later, in 2007, this company was acquired by Illumina for $600 million. In 2004, Klenerman co-founded another spin-out company, Ionscope, to supply assembled scanning ion-conductance microscopes to the research community that looks for high-resolution 3D images of live cells. As per the

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation, is a non-departmental public body (NDPB), and is the largest UK public funder of non-medical bioscience. It predominantly funds scientific re ...

, as of February 2014, Ionscope sold 35 SICM units worldwide.

Awards and honours

The major awards and honours that Klenerman received in recognition of his research work: * 2007 awarded RSC Interdisciplinary Award by the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Royal Inst ...

. * 2008 delivered the

British Biophysical Society The British Biophysical Society is a scientific society that exists to encourage and disseminate developments in the application of physical and chemical concepts to biological systems. It was founded in 1960 following a report from a Working Par ...

Lecture at the

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

. * 2012 elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemati ...

(FRS). * 2015 elected a

Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) is an award for medical scientists who are judged by the UK Academy of Medical Sciences for the "excellence of their science, their contribution to medicine and society and the range of th ...

(FMedSci). * 2018 awarded the

Royal Medal The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal and The King's Medal (depending on the gender of the monarch at the time of the award), is a silver-gilt medal, of which three are awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important ...

by the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

. * 2019

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

in the

2019 New Year Honours The 2019 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

for services to science and the development of high-speed DNA sequencing technology * 2020 Won Millennium Technology Prize along with Professor Sir Shankar Balasubramanian on their innovation of Next Generation DNA Sequencing * 2021 Won 2022

Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences The Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences is a scientific award, funded by internet entrepreneurs Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan of Facebook; Sergey Brin of Google; entrepreneur and venture capitalist Yuri Milner; and Anne Wojcicki, one of the ...

along with Professor Sir Shankar Balasubramanian and Pascal Mayer on their innovation of Next Generation DNA Sequencing

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klenerman, David Fellows of the Royal Society Members of the University of Cambridge Department of Chemistry Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge British chemists Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom) Fellows of Christ's College, Cambridge Knights Bachelor Living people 1959 births