Professors Jonathan Clayden, Alessio Ciulli and Dek Woolfson
Each of these distinguished scholars has made pioneering contributions to their respective fields, with a lasting impact on both the scientific community and future generations of researchers. Their election to the Royal Society reflects the Department’s long-standing tradition of fostering excellence and innovation in chemical research.
What does being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society mean to you?
Professor Jonathan Clayden, University of Bristol
It is an immense honour to be elected FRS and I feel very proud to be part of such a scientifically overarching organisation. In a way, it makes me feel very ‘at home’ in the approach I have always taken to the search for knowledge and understanding something multifaceted, reaching beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries. It is also a tribute to the immensely creative and dedicated colleagues I have been privileged to work with over the last 30 years of my career.
Professor Alessio Ciulli, University of Dundee
Being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society is a deeply humbling recognition that my work has made a meaningful impact. Science should be driven by curiosity and the desire to discover, not to win awards, but this honour affirms that our research matters beyond the lab, influencing wider communities and improving people’s lives. It acknowledges the collective effort, sacrifices and dedication involved in the journey of discovery. More than a personal achievement, it instils a sense of a greater responsibility to continue advancing knowledge, pushing boundaries and using this privilege to contribute positively to society and inspire future generations.
Professor Dek Woolfson, University of Bristol
I was completely bowled over to learn I’d been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. It’s a personal honour, but more importantly, recognition of research done with many exceptional co-workers over the past 30 years, much of it at Bristol. I’m deeply grateful to colleagues in Chemistry, Biochemistry and across the University for their collaboration, collegiality and friendship over the past 20 years. The foundations were laid earlier: my undergraduate project in Oxford with Chris Dobson; PhD in Cambridge with Dudley Williams and Phil Evans; and postdocs with Janet Thornton in London and Tom Alber in Berkeley. They were all great mentors. The 10 years I spent at Sussex were also formative. I learnt how to teach, run a group and my wife and I had our three wonderful kids. Being elected FRS means a great deal, but it reflects a journey shaped by many others.
Can you describe the focus of your research in a way that a general audience can appreciate?
Jonathan Clayden
I have always been interested in designing and building molecules that can ‘do things’—and for many years, my group has explored the way that molecular flexibility can be designed in as a useful structural feature. It has been known for many years that molecules can bend and twist and what we have managed to do is choreograph this ‘molecular dance’ to build new structures as potential drug targets, to trigger unexpected new reactions, or to persuade even relatively simple molecules to do things more characteristic of biology, such as communicating and processing information.
Alessio Ciulli
My research focuses on developing novel chemical tools to study cellular processes and identify new therapeutic opportunities. Specifically, I study proteins — the tiny, essential molecules that do almost everything in our bodies. Just like people in a city, proteins are constantly moving, interacting and performing different tasks to keep our cells and organs working properly. When proteins malfunction, they can cause diseases like cancer. Traditional treatments aim to block these harmful proteins, which however often adapt and become resistant. Instead, my team designs special molecules that can completely remove the “bad” proteins — essentially deleting the problem rather than just managing it. This innovative approach opens the door to more effective treatments, especially for conditions where existing medicines fail, by targeting the root causes at the molecular level.
Dek Woolfson
Proteins are the workhorses of biology, performing many vital functions – from transporting oxygen in our blood to powering muscles and defending against infections. These functions depend on the shapes formed by linear protein chains, which are determined by the chemical information encoded in their sequences. Protein design aims to write new chemical instructions to create novel proteins from scratch, potentially enabling functions not found in nature. Despite advances in AI for predicting and generating protein structures, design remains challenging because we still don’t fully understand the complex links between protein chemistry, structure and function. My journey began by deciphering chemical rules for small peptides, which I used to program sequences that self-assemble into various shapes, laying the foundation to design larger, functional proteins by combining rational and computational approaches including AI.
How did your time in the Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry at Cambridge shape your scientific outlook?
Jonathan Clayden
Stuart Warren was an immensely inspiring character to work with. He never ‘directed’ research – instead he always encouraged curiosity and open-ended questions – a ’what happens if?’ way of thinking. I think I carried that with me throughout my career. The scientifically inclusive Cambridge approach to the natural sciences – which encourages students to think holistically across discipline boundaries – was also immensely influential in building my outlook on science.
Alessio Ciulli
My time at Cambridge, particularly in the Department of Chemistry and under the mentorship of Professor Chris Abell, was transformative. It taught me the importance of strong mentorship, independent thinking and scientific leadership. Chris provided the rare combination of freedom and guidance, encouraging collaboration and inter-disciplinarity, always linking research to real-world impact. His entrepreneurial mindset and humility deeply influenced my approach to science. Cambridge offered an environment rich in opportunity, exposing me to world-class researchers and fostering both my confidence and resilience. It was during this period that I truly learned how to think and act like a scientist, translate ideas beyond the lab and value the human connections that shape a scientific career. These lessons continue to guide me today.
Dek Woolfson
I moved to Cambridge in 1987 to begin my PhD with Dudley Williams. As many will remember, Dudley was a wonderful man, brilliant, generous and inspiring both in and outside the lab. He encouraged us to look for the chemical principles underlying even the most complex biomolecular systems, a way of thinking that continues to shape my own group today. Dudley had wide-ranging interests and gave us the freedom to pursue our own ideas. When I met Phil Evans in the summer of 1988, Dudley encouraged me to explore a collaboration in protein folding and design. He was happy for me to spend increasing time in Phil’s lab. Together, Phil and Dudley were an outstanding mentoring team. My nearly five years in Cambridge were among the happiest and most formative of my early life and I look back on them with real fondness.
What’s one piece of advice you’d offer to someone starting their scientific journey within an academic environment like Cambridge?
Jonathan Clayden
Don’t follow the crowd – seek out something that no one else is doing and when others start following and doing it too, find something new! Always keep an open mind – unexpected results are far more important than expected ones. Build your own science and then use it as a ladder to climb over walls into other disciplines.
Alessio Ciulli
Be open – with yourself and with others. Build meaningful relationships, stay humble and proactive and engage fully in the community around you. A scientific journey is not a competition, it's a privilege to explore ideas that excite you. Enjoy what you do, act with honesty and integrity and remember: growth often comes from failure, so don’t be afraid to make mistakes; they’re part of the learning process. Value the process and outputs over perfection and never lose sight of the joy in discovery. You are part of something bigger, so contribute, connect and let curiosity lead the way.
Dek Woolfson
Be brave, curious and passionate in research. Take advice, but pursue your own ideas – even if they seem risky. When I returned from the US in the mid-90s to start my group, many advised me against pursuing protein design, urging me to focus on natural protein folding, which was rapidly advancing, especially in Cambridge. But I’m glad I didn’t follow that advice. Designing proteins from scratch to explore assembly, structure and function has been rewarding and fruitful. And don’t fear making mistakes, some of our best discoveries came from serendipity and investigating unexpected results from our “design failures”.
