A Nobel Achievement Retired professor Dr. George Smith was honored with the in Chemistry NOBEL in October for his work in the ‘80s on the phage SMITH display technique. He is MU’s rst Nobel Prize winner. The award ceremony was held Monday in . Below, the technique is explained for science fans — and everybody else.

MATTHEW HALL/Missourian

Phage Display Technique OR Fishin’ with Dr. Smith in scienti c terms Phage display in layman’s terms

After inserting genetic material Binding Phase Dr. Smith casts his line into into a phage, the phage the ocean, and a sh eats the creates a peptide on its shell. bait and is now attached to Phage The virus is mixed with a library the hook. (virus) of antibodies, each only 1 latching onto speci c peptides. Peptide Antibody

The library is washed to Wash He pulls the sh out of the remove any unbound water, separating it from sh antibodies from the mix, not attracted to the bait. leaving the bonded peptides 2 Unbound and antibody mixture. antibodies

Elute The bond between the antibody The shing line is cut, removing and phage is destroyed with the sh from the line. an enzyme, leaving the phage free to infect new 3 bacteria.

Amplify Phase The antibody-peptide Dr. Smith places the sh back combination is placed in a into a new body of water to ask to isolate the mixture separate the selected sh from other nonbinding 4 from the rest. antibodies.

Repeat process 2-3 Repeat 2x He continues shing until he times until almost all of the catches more sh with his bait. solution is of the correct peptide-antibody combination. 5 Repeat 2x Repeat 2x

The remaining peptide-antibody Analyze Phase Each sh is examined solution is sequenced individually to fully individually, and data is understand the bait- sh extrapolated. 6 relationship.

Innovations from Phage Display Technology Studying - Tumor cell Protein-DNA Humira arthritis Peptide-mediated protein interactions targeting interactions drug drug delivery systems

On the path to achievement

V E R I SMITH TAS

1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s

March 1941 1959-63 1970 1975 1983-84 2007 2018 George Pearson Smith is Smith attends Haverford Smith receives a Ph.D. Joins University of Takes sabbatical from Receives the Promega Dr. George Smith born in Norwalk, Conn. College and graduates degree in bacteriology and Missouri faculty. MU and begins phage Biotechnology becomes the rst with a degree in biology. immunology from Harvard display research at Research Award for Nobel Prize winner University. . developing phage from the University display technology. of Missouri. 300 Phage display citations: 250 200

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Sources: Interviews with George Smith, Ph.D., and Marjorie Russel, Ph.D. 0 ‘91 ‘00 ‘10 ‘18