How Are We So Good at Folding Proteins? - With David Balchin

Join David Balchin, a group leader at the Crick, as he describes the fascinating ways our cells make sure proteins fold correctly, and what happens when it goes awry. Proteins carry out almost every important function in our body, from copying our DNA to turning the food we eat into energy. These tiny ‘molecular machines’ are first made by our cells as straight chains, like long pieces of string. Then, to work properly, each protein must fold up into an intricate 3-D shape. The sheer scale of protein folding within our cells is staggering. Ribosomes, the molecular machines within our cells that make proteins, make around one protein every 80 seconds. Given there are over five million ribosomes in a cell, every single one of our cells makes four to eight million proteins a minute. The remarkable process of microscopic origami is the focus of David Balchin’s lab at the Crick. *About David Balchin* David studied proteins and protein folding at the university of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Germany before starting his lab at the Crick in 2020. His team are driven by curiosity to understand the intricate workings of cells at the molecular level. #ProteinFolding #Science #Biochemistry *In this video:* 00:33 How does a biochemist think about protein folding? 04:34 Key moments in the history of protein folding research 06:46 What can go wrong i 10:18 How does protein folding work? 11:25 Ribosomes and the scale of protein folding in cells 24:48 The role of chaperone proteins *The Francis Crick Institute* Based in the heart of London, the Crick is one of Europe’s largest labs, home to more than 2,000 scientists and a free public exhibition space. We’re an independent charity and biomedical research institute bringing together people with different expertise to answer some of the biggest questions about life and health. At the Crick, we believe that everyone should have the chance to explore and shape science. That’s why we’re a place for engaging people with research and why it matters. Keep up to date with everything going on at the Crick: • https://www.instagram.com/thefranciscrickinstitute • https://www.tiktok.com/@thecrick • https://www.facebook.com/TheFrancisCrickInstitute/ • https://bsky.app/profile/crick.ac.uk • https://www.crick.ac.uk