UTMB

R. Bryan Sutton, Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor

Faculty

Bryan Sutton, Ph.D.

About the Lab

My research focuses on the structure of the recently identified vesicular glutamate transporter. The transmembrane protein is a member of the SLC17 (Solute Carrier 17) family of transporters; therefore, it shares significant similarity with several prokaryotic sugar porter proteins. This similarity provides a source of protein for studying the structure of SLC17 proteins in general. This work is carried out in the Membrane Protein Laboratory (MPL), a facility co-directed by Drs. Ehud M. Landau and Javier Navarro.

Interview with Dr. Sutton

– by Keerthi Gottipati, 2nd Year BMB Student

I first met Bryan (Dr. Sutton) during the Biophysical Society meetings- 2007 in Baltimore (Separate buildings really do separate people). Bryan not only is a charming young scientist but is also incredibly fun and easy to get along with. His quick humor and his absolute fascination for science make him about the most interesting person on campus to talk to. Having completed his post-doctoral studies at Stanford with the X-ray crystallography's big shot Axel Brunger, Bryan brought the legacy down to UTMB and is now continuing the work he was always fascinated about, the structural studies of proteins involved in exocytosis and proteins forming synaptic neurotransmitter release vesicles. He proudly displays the life-size framed poster comically captioned 'Brungarian Fusion' with the structure of the Neuronal synaptic fusion complex (SNARE) that he solved at Yale. One can imagine the importance of that discovery as it is often referenced even now after almost ten years.

'I always wanted to live by the beach'
–Dr. Bryan Sutton, on what drew him to UTMB.

So when I asked him what exactly motivated him to continue in research he answered that knowing that one can never completely predict everything, even after learning about it so much is a valuable lesson learnt from research. The experience of seeing something for the first time what nobody's seen before, something that is beyond all your predictions, he says, is simply addictive, "that is what grabs you in science and research. It makes you go: 'Ha! So that is how it works, huh?'”

When asked to describe the environment in his lab he said he believed in having a one-on-one interaction over the course of the day.

He emphasized that though his was primarily a crystallography lab the choice of projects however is not limited. "It's an annealing process that the student goes through”, says Bryan, "We do have collaborations with other faculty at UTMB like Andres Oberhauser and Henry Epstein.”. He is working on expanding his lab and hopes to diversify into other areas and other applications with increased funding.

As he is one among the young faculty in the program, I was curious to know what he thought were the qualities of a good student and a researcher in the present scenario of things. According to Bryan Independence in research is an absolute requirement in a good student and/or researcher. "Lab skills are not a big deal, you can build them as you go”, he said, "but you have to be able to think independently to be a good researcher and not regurgitate stuff.”

Most times even the possibility of something happening the way it finally does, never strikes until you actually see it. It's the possibility you've never considered before.
–Dr. Bryan Sutton, on what fascinates him most about science and research.

While Bryan spent most of his career in figuring out biological structures he draws his inspiration from completely alien structures of outer space. According to him the work that "excites his scientific juices” the most is the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI). The design of the Mars Rovers and the incredible advancement made in space science he feels is the most fascinating thing that humans have done so far. Does it surprise you then that the renowned 'Carl Sagan' is his scientific idol? He said, he was a man really excited about science professionally and had been both his teenage hero and his idol through his scientific career. He said he almost chose to major in space-science; thankfully for us, he was a better biologist.

Shifting focus to the department itself, I asked him what he liked most about the program and what was unique about it. Bryan answered that since he himself was involved in recruiting, he was impressed by the tough selection criteria that the program follows and said that the students in BSCB are all very good and on par with any department at a top University in the US. He further added that being a small program it is concentrated enough for a good environment for the students. "The program also covers the whole gamut of Biophysics with both the structural and thermodynamic aspects of it. I think its a great program.”, he added.

I'd say this is the program with all the movers and shakers of bio-thermodynamics, all in one place.–Dr. Bryan Sutton, on the BSCB program.

We concluded the interview with a note of caution from Bryan. He said things are difficult right now for scientists in the United States but added on a more positive note: "It gets better. Historically we have come out of such situations. You would have to be exceptionally dedicated to make it through of course.”