In Memoriam: Dr. Michael N. G. James, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Department of Biochemistry

Dr. Michael James, Distinguished Professor Emeritus

The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry fondly remembers a respected colleague and friend, Dr. Michael James, who passed away on Monday, July 24, 2023. 

Michael was a leading researcher in crystallography — an analytical technique to learn how proteins, enzymes and other substances function by revealing their structure — and a mentor to many crystallographers and structural biologists across Canada. His research led to treatments for conditions such as hypertension, bacterial infections and HIV, helping to improve countless lives.

Michael was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, but grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He received a BSc and MSc from the University of Manitoba where he studied chemistry and geology. Michael earned a PhD from the University of Oxford in 1966, where he trained with Dorothy Hodgkin, winner of the 1964 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her work in protein crystallography. Michael then joined the University of Alberta in 1967 as a National Research Council of Canada postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Chemistry. 

After being recruited to the Department of Biochemistry in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry,  Michael established the first laboratory in Canada dedicated to studying proteins by crystallography in 1968. By 1974 he had joined the inaugural Medical Research Council (now the Canadian Institutes of Health Research) group on protein structure and function. 

Michael was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1985 and the Royal Society of London in 1989 for “substantial contributions to the improvement of natural knowledge.” In June 2023 he was named to the Order of Canada for his groundbreaking work in crystallography over the past 50-plus years.

Some of Michael’s landmark discoveries include:

• the first 3D structure of a protein in Canada (1974)
• the first 3D structure of an aspartic protease (1976), forming the basis for future research in the development of antiviral HIV drugs and other medications
• the first 3D structure of the enzyme penicillopepsin (1977)
• the first 3D structure of troponin C, the calcium-binding protein in muscle, and the first atomic resolution of any muscle contraction protein (1985)
• the first 3D structure of renin (1989), leading to the development of blood pressure medications
• the first structure of TEM-1 (1992), contributing to a better understanding of antibiotic-resistant bacteria
• the first 3D structure of enzyme ⍺-L-iduronidase (2013), leading to improved treatments for patients requiring enzyme replacement therapy

The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry is grateful for Michael’s outstanding contributions to medicine and sends its deepest condolences to Michael’s many family members, colleagues and friends. 

For more information about Michael’s research, visit the Department of Biochemistry faculty page.

For Michael’s obituary please see Dignity Memorial.