Currently, Dr. Taylor is working on three different atomic structures, all to achieve at least the same level of resolution as Dickerson's work.
TALLAHASSEE, FL, February 09, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Kenneth Allen Taylor, PhD, has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
As a young scientist wondering where to direct his research career, he was inspired by a lecture by biochemist Richard Dickerson, who solved the atomic structure of an essential protein component in the mitochondria using X-ray crystallography, thereby contributing groundbreaking work in the field of protein structures. Dr. Taylor was motivated to follow in Dickerson's footsteps and determine the 3-D structure of proteins. In 1971, Dr. Taylor entered a PhD program at the University of California at Berkeley, where he joined a laboratory interested in protein crystallography but using electrons instead of X-rays. Together, he and Professor Robert M. Glaeser developed a method to preserve protein crystals in the vacuum of an electron microscope and capture high-contrast images and high-resolution diffraction patterns, both requirements for visualizing protein structures using electrons.
After completing the PhD program and graduating in 1976, he moved to Cambridge, England, and the prestigious Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, joining the research group of the late Dr. Hugh Huxley, where he began a lifelong study of muscle structure and function. Leaving England in 1980, Dr. Taylor took a faculty position in the Department of Anatomy at Duke University Medical Center, where he continued for the next 15 years to pursue the structure of muscle and how it functions. His final career move in 1995 took him to the Department of Biological Science at Florida State University. For nearly 30 years as the Donald L. D. Caspar Professor of Biological Science, Dr. Taylor has devoted himself to his life-long research into the atomic structure of muscle proteins while teaching students the cellular organization of tissues and organs and the technique of 3-dimensional, cryogenic electron microscopy. Though he divides his time into teaching, research, and service, his primary focus is furthering research into atomic structures using electron microscopy, the technique he started in the early 1970's.
Currently, Dr. Taylor is working on three different atomic structures, all to achieve at least the same level of resolution as Dickerson's work. He is immensely proud of the progress made in the field started by his doctoral research and the many individuals that have made it happen. Along with his fearless pursuit in uncharted territories, he cites the tremendous support of his work by his late wife, Dianne, who was also a scientist and key asset to his work, his many collaborators, and the efforts of numerous graduate students he has mentored as the keys to his success.
Throughout his distinguished career, Dr. Taylor has delivered numerous lectures at the Microscopy Society of America, where he earned a fellowship in 2016 and the Distinguished Scientist in Biology Award in 2022. He is a member of the Biophysical Society, the American Chemical Society, and the American Heart Association. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Structural Biology. He has received several awards for his contributions as a researcher, including the Distinguished Research Professor Award from FSU in 2002. Along with his doctorate, Dr. Taylor holds a Bachelor of Science in Textile Chemistry and Chemistry and a Master of Science in Physical Chemistry from North Carolina State University.
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