Emma Buzzard

Emma obtained her PhD at the University of Exeter in the laboratory of Dr Vicki Gold, collaborating closely with Prof Ian Collinson and Prof Patty Kuwabara at the University of Bristol.

In her doctoral research, Emma used cryo-ET to investigate the relationship between respiratory chain organisation and mitochondrial morphology in the model organism C. elegans. Emma’s work revealed new insights into adaptation of respiratory chain organisation to suit bespoke energetic needs of different organisms. Through her work on a model for specifically reducing stability of the “respirasome” in C. elegans, she also revealed new insights into the role of the respirasome.

Upon completion of her doctoral studies, Emma joined eBic in June 2024 as an Electron Microscope Scientist. Her research interests lie in the fast-growing field of in situ cryo-EM, attracted by its unique ability to provide contextualisation of protein structure and organisation within organelles, cells and whole organisms. Emma hopes that through her work at Diamond she will be able to contribute to future advancement of the field of cryo-ET and use this technique to contribute to a variety of collaborative research projects.

Buzzard E, McLaren M, Bragoszewski P, Brancaccio A, Ford H, Daum B, Kuwabara P, Collinson I, Gold VAM. (2024) The consequence of ATP synthase dimer angle on mitochondrial morphology studied by cryo-electron tomography. Biochem. J. 481, 161-175. https://doi.org/10.1042/BCJ20230450

Knapp-Wilson A, Pereira GC, Buzzard E, Ford HC, Richardson A, Corey RA, Neal C, Verkade P, Halestrap AP, Gold VAM, Kuwabara PE, Collinson I. (2021) Maintenance of complex I and its supercomplexes by NDUF-11 is essential for mitochondrial structure, function and health. J. Cell. Sci. 134, jcs258399. https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.258399