Aimin Liu

Aimin Liu is a Professor of Chemistry and Lutcher Brown Distinguished Chair in Biochemistry at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) College of Sciences. His research focuses on metalloprotein chemistry, enzymology, and redox regulation.

• Education:
  • Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Biophysics, Stockholm University
  • B.S. in Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China

Research interests include:

• Metal-driven cofactor biosynthesis and protein-derived cofactor formation
• Mechanistic enzymology of oxygen activation and C–H/C–C/C–X bond transformations
• Redox regulation in cellular signaling and metabolism
• Amino acid metabolism (tryptophan, tyrosine, cysteine) and natural product pathways
• Structural and spectroscopic analysis of enzyme intermediates

Key article trends show expertise in metalloenzyme mechanisms, with emphasis on:

• Heme and non-heme iron chemistry
• Free radical and diradical intermediates
• Crystallographic and spectroscopic methods
• Biological charge resonance phenomena
• Redox sensing and signal transduction
• Enzyme engineering and mechanistic probes

Scientific awards include:

• AAAS Fellow (2021)
• Royal Society of Chemistry Fellow (2021)
• NSF Accomplishment-Based Renewal award (2022)
• Georgia Research Alliance Distinguished Cancer Scholar (2009)

Current grants include NIH R01GM152982 (2024-2028), NSF CHE-2204225 (2022-2025), and Welch Foundation AX-2110-20250403 (2025-2028). He leads the Metalloprotein Research Laboratory, integrating advanced spectroscopies, mass spectrometry, and structural biology to study metal-enzyme interactions.