Roland Riek

Prof. Roland Riek is a Full Professor of Physical Chemistry and Deputy Head of the Institute of Molecular Physical Science at ETH Zurich since 2007. His research focuses on Biological NMR spectroscopy, particularly studying 3D structures of membrane proteins, misfolded protein aggregates linked to neurodegenerative diseases, and protein dynamics. He earned his Physics degree and PhD at ETH Zurich under Prof. Kurt Wüthrich, followed by postdoctoral roles and positions as Assistant/Associate Professor at the Salk Institute. Key research themes include amyloid fibril polymorphism, protein chaperone interactions, and drug discovery using advanced NMR techniques.

His educational background includes a Diploma and PhD in Physics from ETH Zurich, followed by postdoctoral work at ETH and the Salk Institute. Current research integrates structural biology with neurodegenerative disease mechanisms, particularly α-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease and β-endorphin amyloids. He develops cutting-edge NMR methodologies like super-resolution spectroscopy and in-cell NMR for intracellular protein analysis.

Teaching responsibilities include courses on magnetic resonance, protein characterization, and advanced physical chemistry. His laboratory explores prebiotic peptide synthesis and amyloid templating, alongside structural insights into disease-related proteins. Collaborative projects include drug discovery targeting SARS-CoV-2 proteome and molecular chaperone roles in amyloid formation.

Notable contributions include defining structural strains of misfolded tau proteins in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease classifications, and non-invasive imaging techniques for tauopathy detection. Ongoing work emphasizes translating NMR innovations into biomedical applications, such as hyperpolarization-enhanced fragment screening for drug development.