Jesús Angulo, researcher at the Institute of Chemical Research, has been appointed vice-president of the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Specialized Group of the Royal Spanish Society of Chemistry.

Dr. Angulo’s laboratory at the IIQ focuses its research on the characterization of the structure and dynamics of biologically active molecules, with a particular focus on glycans, as well as the molecular recognition of ligands by receptors, both natural (proteins, nucleic acids,…) and non-natural (“soft matter”). His research is based on NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) spectroscopy and computational techniques, and recently his research group has developed new relevant advances in the so-called STD NMR spectroscopy to characterize at high resolution the structure, dynamics and interactions of small molecules with receptors of biological or biotechnological interest.

The areas of application of Magnetic Resonance are within the field of chemical, biological, pharmaceutical and medical research, as well as in the field of the rubber, petrochemical, pulp and paper, agri-food industries, etc. What makes this technique remarkable and different from others is its ability to provide information on the three-dimensional structure of different molecules, such as proteins, which are found in an aqueous medium in nature and whose three-dimensional structure in this medium can only be “seen” by NMR. NMR can also give us information to see the degree of purity and possible adulterations in oils and wines.

Technological development has allowed the use of solid-state NMR for the structural study of poorly soluble substances, such as polymers, glass, ceramics, resins, etc., being a very interesting alternative for low crystallinity materials that cannot be studied by diffraction techniques.

Currently, Jesús is Scientific Director of our center’s “Biomolecular Interactions Platform”, and also holds a position as Honorary Associate Professor at the University of East Anglia.