Prof Terry K Smith obtained his 1st BSc (Hons) and PhD in Chemistry from University of Surrey. A post-doc in New York with Prof Alton Meister working on enzymes on the gamma-glutamyl cycle was followed by a senior post-doc position at the University of Dundee working with Prof Mike Ferguson on protozoan parasite glycosylphosphatidylinositol biosynthesis. Terry now has over 25 years experience working with T. brucei and related parasites. Since establishing my research group in Dundee (2003), I have gained a standing within the parasitology field for undertaking lipidomic analysis to aid phenotyping of genetically or chemically manipulated parasites. Since moving (2007) and establishing the first ever Cat 3 facility and parasitology group at St Andrews in its 600-year history, I was able to consolidate and expand my studies into many other areas of parasite lipid metabolism, using the world-class facilities and collaborations in Chemistry, Biology and Medicine available at St Andrews University. The Smith group is a truly multi-disciplinary research team, occupying biochemistry and chemistry labs, as well as a large Cat 3 suite within a recently completed £13 million purpose built Biomedical Science Research Complex at St Andrews University. The building also has a purpose built floor for analytical instrumentation, including several high end mass spectrometers, NMRs, microscopy, X-ray diffractors and a wide range of cutting edge biophysical and screening instrumentation. This in includes our Orbitraps, GC-MSs and a Q-trap MS ideal for lipidomics and metabolomics. This allows us to undertake multifaceted collaborative lipidomic analyses if wide range of samples, not just of protozoa, but other pathogens, bacteria, yeast and viruses as well as model cell-lines of human disease and organisms and other diverse samples as salmon, fruit flies and plant tissues.

Terry Smith research interests include Biosynthesis and uptake of phospholipids in protozoan parasites The enzymology of biosynthetic enzymes in parasites Lipidomics and focussed metabolomics of pathogens Structure, function & biosynthesis of parasite glycoconjugates including GPI anchors