Dr Chris Blanford

For the past 15 years my research has been focused on the areas where multiple traditional scientific disciplines overlap, starting with my doctoral work at the University of Minnesota. There I worked with Andreas Stein and Barry Carter on the electron microscopy of ordered porous materials. A connection between photonic crystals and inverse opals (or 3DOM materials, as we prefer to call them) led me to the University of Oxford where I held a post-doc under the supervision of Bob Denning. This was followed by an appointment in Fraser Armstrong's group.

I have held a Career Acceleration Fellowship from the EPSRC since July 2008 so I could continue my work at the interface between chemistry, materials science and biochemistry. In January 2011, I moved to a position at the University of Manchester's School of Materials. I also serve as an editor for the Journal of Materials Science.

• James A. Cracknell and Christopher F. Blanford. Developing the mechanism of dioxygen reduction catalyzed by multicopper oxidases using protein film electrochemistry. Chemical Science. 2012; 3(5): 1567–1581. eScholarID:156719 | DOI:10.1039/C2SC00632D
• James A. Cracknell, Thomas P. McNamara, Edward D. Lowe and Christopher F. Blanford. Bilirubin oxidase from Myrothecium verrucaria: X-ray determination of the complete crystal structure and a rational surface modification for enhanced electrocatalytic O2 reduction. Dalton Transactions. 2011; 40(25): 6668-6675. eScholarID:140254 | DOI:10.1039/C0DT01403F
• Robert G. Denning, Christopher F. Blanford, Henning Urban, Harpal Bharaj, David N. Sharp and Andrew J. Turberfield. The control of shrinkage and thermal instability in SU-8 photoresists for holographic lithography. Advanced Functional Materials. 2011 May; 21(9): 1593-1601. eScholarID:123795 | DOI:10.1002/adfm.201002653
• Rodgers C, Blanford C, Giddens S, Skamnioti P, Armstrong F, Gurr S. Designer laccases: a vogue for high-potential fungal enzymes?. Trends in Biotechnology. 2010; 28(2): 63-72. eScholarID:121401 | DOI:10.1016/j.tibtech.2009.11.001
• Whitehouse C, Yang W, Yorke J, Rowlatt B, Strong A, Blanford C, Bell S, Bartlam M, Wong L, Rao Z. Structural Basis for the Properties of Two Single-Site Proline Mutants of CYP102A1 (P450(BM3)). ChemBioChem. 2010; 11(18): 2549-2556. eScholarID:121421 | DOI:10.1002/cbic.201000421
• dos Santos L, Climent V, Blanford C, Armstrong F. Mechanistic studies of the 'blue' Cu enzyme, bilirubin oxidase, as a highly efficient electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. 2010; 12(42): 13962-13974. eScholarID:121422 | DOI:10.1039/c0cp00018c

http://blanfordgroup.com/