Andrew Rice

Thiopeptides are a class of ribosomally-synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs) that are heavily modified, incorporating thiazol(in)es, dehydroalanines and dehydrobutyrines, and a formal aza-Diels-Alder reaction to form a nitrogenous heterocycle. Recently, bioinformatic efforts have highlighted the incredible structural diversity that remains to be explored within this class. My research will involve the bioinformatics-guided discovery of novel thiopeptides, as well as interrogating the mechanism of the formal aza-Diels-Alder reaction.