Fellowship recipient seeks to explore the evolution of epigenetic enzymes
Aiming to shed light on how simple single-celled organisms evolved into complex eukaryotic cells that make up plants, animals and humans, Dr Luis Enrique Valentin-Alvarado has been awarded a highly-competitive Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP) Long-Term Fellowship under the supervision of Snow Medical Fellow A/Prof. Gavin Knott at Monash University’s Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI).
Dr Valentin-Alvarado is one of 50 of the world’s top emerging scientists from 25 nations who have won a 2025 HFSP Fellowship. These fellowships enable young scientists to broaden their research skills by working in the world's leading laboratories and exploring new areas of study in different countries, enabling them to embark on innovative and often risky research projects across a wide range of fields.
Dr Valentin-Alvarado, who obtained his PhD at UC Berkeley under the supervision of Professor Jill Banfield, aims to unravel the evolutionary origins and functional diversity of nucleic acid methyltransferases (MTases) in Asgard archaea, microbes closely related to the earliest ancestors of eukaryotic cells.
His research will explore how these ancient organisms regulate their genes through epigenetics, potentially revealing the roots of cellular complexity. By employing advanced computational tools and innovative laboratory techniques, Dr Valentin-Alvarado seeks to understand the role of MTases in gene regulation, offering new insights into the evolution of complex life forms.
The research will involve mining environmental metagenomes to discover novel archaeal MTases, using high-throughput cell-free systems to characterise their biochemical activity, and applying structural biology and mass spectrometry to reveal their mechanisms and evolutionary origins. The project combines expertise across metagenomics, nucleic acid biochemistry and structural biology, and could also open the door to new biotechnological applications.
Dr Valentin-Alvarado shared his excitement about the project, stating, “Receiving the HFSP Fellowship is a huge honour. It gives me the freedom to take scientific risks and build new skills at the interface of computational biology and experimental biochemistry. I’m excited to explore how these ancient enzymes help us understand the evolution of complex life—and perhaps even uncover novel tools for biotechnology."
The methodologies developed in this project - combining advanced computational tools with innovative laboratory techniques - will enable proteins from uncultivated microorganisms to be studied efficiently. This approach can be extended to investigate other elusive proteins from a wide array of organisms, thus enabling exploration of a vast diversity of life.
The HFSP has supported more than 3,500 early career researchers in the past 35 years. Awardees form internationally, preferably intercontinentally, collaborative teams, who have not worked together before, and are typically engaged in work for which they have no preliminary data. In this regard, HFSP fosters frontier research and science diplomacy.
The Fellowship provides three years of support, including living, research, and travel allowances, as well as additional benefits such as child and parental leave allowances.
Read more about the 2025 HFSP Fellowship Awardees here, and read the abstracts for each Awardee in the 2025 HFSP Fellowships New Awardees booklet.
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About the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University
Committed to making discoveries that will relieve the future burden of disease, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University brings together more than 120 internationally renowned research teams. Spanning seven discovery programs across Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, Development and Stem Cells, Infection, Immunity, Metabolism, Diabetes and Obesity, and Neuroscience, Monash BDI is one of the largest biomedical research institutes in Australia. Our researchers are supported by world-class technology and infrastructure, and partner with industry, clinicians and researchers internationally to enhance lives through discovery.