Dr. GPCR Podcast

Ask the Right GPCR Question: A Conversation with Prof. Dmitry Veprintsev 🎙️

In this episode, Yamina sits down with Prof. Dmitry Veprintsev, a molecular pharmacologist at the University of Nottingham, to discuss his scientific journey, GPCR research, and the intersection of academia and entrepreneurship.

Key Takeaways: 

✅ From Protein Folding to GPCRs – How Dmitry transitioned from biophysics and protein folding to cannabinoid receptor research, guided by key mentors like Michel Bouvier.

✅ Why GPCRs? – The challenge and excitement of working with notoriously difficult-to-study membrane proteins.

✅ The Power of Asking the Right Question – Dmitry emphasizes that mastering a technique isn’t enough—true scientific breakthroughs come from formulating the right biological questions.

✅ Building Z7 Biotech – The unexpected journey into biotech entrepreneurship, providing GPCR profiling services to pharma and biotech companies.

✅ Interdisciplinary Research & Future Directions – Exploring combinatorial drug actions, receptor interactions, and novel profiling approaches.

✅ Networking & Career Growth – Overcoming introversion, the importance of talking to people, and how networking (or just genuine curiosity) opens doors in science.

💡 Big Takeaway? Whether in academia or industry, success comes from curiosity, persistence, and knowing your values.

Tune in to hear how Dmitry navigated his career, the challenges of studying GPCRs, and why talking to others will always lead to answers!

Summary made with AI

About Dmitry Veprintsev

Dmitry is Professor of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology at the Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors (COMPARE), University of Nottingham, where he provides leadership in structural and biophysical pharmacology of G protein coupled receptors. He is author of over 100 papers, including several in Nature, Science and Cell.

Dmitry studied biophysics at the Moscow State University, followed by a PhD (1998) in protein folding at the Russian Academy of Sciences and at the Ohio State University, USA. He joined the MRC Centre for Protein Engineering and later at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK as a postdoctoral fellow and later as a staff scientist, focusing on the biophysical studies of the tumour suppressor p53. In 2010 he became a group leader at the Paul Scherrer Institute and ETH Zürich in Switzerland, changing his attention to structural pharmacology of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). In 2017 Dmitry became a full professor at the Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors, COMPARE, a joined venture between the University of Birmingham and the University of Nottingham. In 2021 he co-founded Z7 Biotech, developing and providing innovative GPCR drug screening and precision pharmacology services.

Dmitry Veprintsev on the web

• LinkedIn

• Veprintsev Lab

• Z7 Biotech

• University of Nottingham