Andrew P. Laudano 2026-11-05
Andrew P. Laudano is a biochemistry researcher whose work with Russell F. Doolittle used synthetic peptides to investigate fibrin assembly. A historical university catalog records his UC San Diego doctorate in 1981 and lists him as an emeritus faculty member in 2013–2014.[ref]
In the 1978 experiment, Gly-Pro-Arg-Pro bound fibrinogen and fragment D but not the central fragment E. The shorter Gly-Pro-Arg bound less tightly and inhibited polymerization less effectively. These comparisons linked the structure of a small peptide to its ability to disrupt a larger molecular assembly.[ref]
An illuminating control is a fragment that does not bind: it helps localize the interacting region rather than merely showing that “some protein” captures the peptide. Comparing related sequences adds another constraint. Together the tests connect binding affinity, molecular location and the observable formation of a fibrin network.
Russell F. Doolittle 2026-11-05
Russell F. Doolittle was a researcher in protein structure and molecular evolution at UC San Diego. His investigations connected the chemistry of fibrinogen and fibrinopeptides with comparisons of inherited molecular differences among species.[ref]
With Andrew P. Laudano, Russell F. Doolittle tested synthetic peptides resembling the exposed ends of fibrin chains. Gly-Pro-Arg-Pro bound fibrinogen and its distal fragment D and inhibited fibrin polymerization, helping locate a binding interaction involved in assembly.[ref]
The experiment gives a small molecule an explanatory role: an imitation of one binding element can occupy a site without connecting two full-sized molecules. Interrupting network formation in this way tests a specific molecular contact. The same interest in protein sequences also supports a different kind of inference: comparing related molecules across species can reveal evolutionary relationships.