
Overview
Background
James De Voss received a B. Sc (Hons) in Chemistry and a University Medal from the University of Queensland in 1984. He was a Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 scholar at Cambridge University, where he worked on the biosynthesis of Vitamin B12 with Prof. Sir Alan Battersby. A postdoctoral fellowship, again from the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, allowed him to work with Prof. Craig Townsend at Johns Hopkins University on the mechanism of DNA cleavage caused by the enediyne antibiotic calicheamicin. He was then introduced to the cytochromes P450 by Prof. Paul Ortiz de Montellano with whom he worked while at the University of California, San Francisco. Since returning to the University of Queensland to take up an academic appointment, initially as a Senior lecturer and subsequently as a Reader and then a Professor, he has continued his interest in problems at the interface of chemistry and biology and currently works with a range of bacterial, insect and mammalian P450s, as well as on the biogenesis of insect pheromones and phytochemistry of herbal medicines.
Availability
- Professor James De Voss is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Bachelor (Honours) of Science (Advanced), The University of Queensland
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Cambridge
Works
Search Professor James De Voss’s works on UQ eSpace
2020
Journal Article
Caco-2 cell permeability of flavonoids and saponins from Gynostemma pentaphyllum: the immortal herb
Ahmed, Iftekhar, Leach, David N., Wohlmuth, Hans, De Voss, James J. and Blanchfield, Joanne T. (2020). Caco-2 cell permeability of flavonoids and saponins from Gynostemma pentaphyllum: the immortal herb. ACS Omega, 5 (34) acsomega.0c02180, 21561-21569. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.0c02180
2020
Journal Article
A chemoenzymatic approach to the synthesis of glycopeptide antibiotic analogues
Tailhades, Julien, Zhao, Yongwei, Ho, Y. T. Candace, Greule, Anja, Ahmed, Iftekhar, Schoppet, Melanie, Kulkarni, Ketav, Goode, Rob J. A., Schittenhelm, Ralf B., De Voss, James J. and Cryle, Max J. (2020). A chemoenzymatic approach to the synthesis of glycopeptide antibiotic analogues. Angewandte Chemie, 132 (27), 10991-10995. doi: 10.1002/ange.202003726
2020
Journal Article
Oxygen surrogate systems for supporting human drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 enzymes
Strohmaier, Silja J., De Voss, James J., Jurva, Ulrik, Andersson, Shalini and Gillam, Elizabeth M. J. (2020). Oxygen surrogate systems for supporting human drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 enzymes. Drug Metabolism and Disposition , 48 (6), 432-437. doi: 10.1124/dmd.120.090555
2020
Journal Article
A chemoenzymatic approach to the synthesis of glycopeptide antibiotic analogues
Tailhades, Julien, Zhao, Yongwei, Ho, Y. T. Candace, Greule, Anja, Ahmed, Iftekhar, Schoppet, Melanie, Kulkarni, Ketav, Goode, Rob J. A., Schittenhelm, Ralf B., De Voss, James J. and Cryle, Max J. (2020). A chemoenzymatic approach to the synthesis of glycopeptide antibiotic analogues. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 59 (27) anie.202003726, 10899-10903. doi: 10.1002/anie.202003726
2020
Journal Article
Structural insights into the role of the acid-alcohol pair of residues required for dioxygen activation in cytochrome P450 enzymes
Coleman, Tom, Stok, Jeanette E., Podgorski, Matthew N., Bruning, John B., De Voss, James J. and Bell, Stephen G. (2020). Structural insights into the role of the acid-alcohol pair of residues required for dioxygen activation in cytochrome P450 enzymes. JBIC Journal of Biological Inorganic Chemistry, 25 (4), 583-596. doi: 10.1007/s00775-020-01781-4
2020
Journal Article
Biophysical techniques for distinguishing ligand binding modes in cytochrome P450 monooxygenases
Podgorski, Matthew N., Harbort, Joshua S., Coleman, Tom, Stok, Jeanette E., Yorke, Jake A., Wong, Luet-Lok, Bruning, John B., Bernhardt, Paul V., De Voss, James J., Harmer, Jeffrey R. and Bell, Stephen G. (2020). Biophysical techniques for distinguishing ligand binding modes in cytochrome P450 monooxygenases. Biochemistry, 59 (9) acs.biochem.0c00027, 1038-1050. doi: 10.1021/acs.biochem.0c00027
2020
Journal Article
An inexpensive, efficient alternative to NADPH to support catalysis by thermostable cytochrome P450 enzymes
Strohmaier, Silja J., Baek, Jong Min, De Voss, James J., Jurva, Ulrik, Andersson, Shalini and Gillam, Elizabeth M. J. (2020). An inexpensive, efficient alternative to NADPH to support catalysis by thermostable cytochrome P450 enzymes. ChemCatChem, 12 (6) cctc.201902235, 1750-1761. doi: 10.1002/cctc.201902235
2020
Journal Article
Investigation of the requirements for efficient and selective cytochrome P450 monooxygenase catalysis across different reactions
Podgorski, Matthew N., Coleman, Tom, Chao, Rebecca R., De Voss, James J., Bruning, John B. and Bell, Stephen G. (2020). Investigation of the requirements for efficient and selective cytochrome P450 monooxygenase catalysis across different reactions. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry, 203 110913, 1-13. doi: 10.1016/j.jinorgbio.2019.110913
2019
Journal Article
Rearrangement-free hydroxylation of methylcubanes by a cytochrome P450: the case for dynamical coupling of C–H abstraction and rebound
Sarkar, Md. Raihan, Houston, Sevan D., Savage, G. Paul, Williams, Craig M., Krenske, Elizabeth H., Bell, Stephen G. and De Voss, James J. (2019). Rearrangement-free hydroxylation of methylcubanes by a cytochrome P450: the case for dynamical coupling of C–H abstraction and rebound. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 141 (50) jacs.9b08064, 19688-19699. doi: 10.1021/jacs.9b08064
2019
Journal Article
Exploring the substrate specificity of cytochrome P450cin
Stok, Jeanette E., Giang, Peter D., Wong, Siew Hoon and De Voss, James J. (2019). Exploring the substrate specificity of cytochrome P450cin. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 672 108060, 108060. doi: 10.1016/j.abb.2019.07.025
2019
Journal Article
The cubane paradigm in bioactive molecule discovery: further scope, limitations and the cyclooctatetraene complement
Houston, Sevan D., Fahrenhorst-Jones, Tyler, Xing, Hui, Chalmers, Benjamin A., Sykes, Melissa L., Stok, Jeanette E., Farfan Soto, Clementina, Burns, Jed M., Bernhardt, Paul V., De Voss, James J., Boyle, Glen M., Smith, Maree T., Tsanaktsidis, John, Savage, G. Paul, Avery, Vicky M. and Williams, Craig M. (2019). The cubane paradigm in bioactive molecule discovery: further scope, limitations and the cyclooctatetraene complement. Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry, 17 (28), 6790-6798. doi: 10.1039/c9ob01238a
2019
Journal Article
Kistamicin biosynthesis reveals the biosynthetic requirements for production of highly crosslinked glycopeptide antibiotics
Greule, Anja, Izoré, Thierry, Iftime, Dumitrita, Tailhades, Julien, Schoppet, Melanie, Zhao, Yongwei, Peschke, Madeleine, Ahmed, Iftekhar, Kulik, Andreas, Adamek, Martina, Goode, Robert J. A., Schittenhelm, Ralf B., Kaczmarski, Joe A., Jackson, Colin J., Ziemert, Nadine, Krenske, Elizabeth H., De Voss, James J., Stegmann, Evi and Cryle, Max J. (2019). Kistamicin biosynthesis reveals the biosynthetic requirements for production of highly crosslinked glycopeptide antibiotics. Nature Communications, 10 (1) 2613, 2613. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-10384-w
2019
Journal Article
Pyrrolizidine alkaloids of Blue Heliotrope (Heliotropium amplexicaule) and their presence in Australian honey
Carpinelli de Jesus, Matheus, Hungerford, Natasha L., Carter, Steve J., Anuj, Shalona R., Blanchfield, Joanne T., De Voss, James Joseph and Fletcher, Mary T. (2019). Pyrrolizidine alkaloids of Blue Heliotrope (Heliotropium amplexicaule) and their presence in Australian honey. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 67 (28) acs.jafc.9b02136, 7995-8006. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.9b02136
2019
Journal Article
Caco-2 monolayer permeability and stability of Chamaelirium luteum (false unicorn) open-chain steroidal saponins
Stockdale, Tegan P., Challinor, Victoria L., Lehmann, Reginald P., De Voss, James J. and Blanchfield, Joanne T. (2019). Caco-2 monolayer permeability and stability of Chamaelirium luteum (false unicorn) open-chain steroidal saponins. ACS Omega, 4 (4), 7658-7666. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.9b00496
2019
Journal Article
Selective hydroxylation of 1,8- and 1,4-cineole using bacterial P450 variants
Lee, Joel H.Z., Wong, Siew Hoon, Stok, Jeanette E., Bagster, Sarah A., Beckett, James, Clegg, Jack K., Brock, Aidan, De Voss, James J. and Bell, Stephen G. (2019). Selective hydroxylation of 1,8- and 1,4-cineole using bacterial P450 variants. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 663, 54-63. doi: 10.1016/j.abb.2018.12.025
2019
Journal Article
Significance of protein-substrate hydrogen bonding for the selectivity of P450-catalysed oxidations
Slessor, Kate E., Stok, Jeanette E., Chow, Sharon and De Voss, James J. (2019). Significance of protein-substrate hydrogen bonding for the selectivity of P450-catalysed oxidations. Chemistry: A European Journal, 25 (16), 4149-4155. doi: 10.1002/chem.201805705
2019
Journal Article
Cyclooctatetraene: a bioactive cubane paradigm complement
Xing, Hui, Houston, Sevan D., Chen, Xuejie, Ghassabian, Sussan, Fahrenhorst-Jones, Tyler, Kuo, Andy, Murray, Cody-Ellen P., Conn, Kyna-Anne, Jaeschke, Kara N., Jin, Da-Yun, Pasay, Cielo, Bernhardt, Paul V., Burns, Jed M., Tsanaktsidis, John, Savage, G. Paul, Boyle, Glen M., De Voss, James J., McCarthy, James, Walter, Gimme H., Burne, Thomas H. J., Smith, Maree T., Tie, Jian-Ke and Williams, Craig M. (2019). Cyclooctatetraene: a bioactive cubane paradigm complement. Chemistry: A European Journal, 25 (11), 2729-2734. doi: 10.1002/chem.201806277
2019
Journal Article
Engineering thermostable CYP2D enzymes for biocatalysis using combinatorial libraries of ancestors for directed evolution (CLADE)
Gumulya, Yosephine, Huang, Weiliang, D'Cunha, Stephlina A., Richards, Katelyn E., Thomson, Raine E.S., Hunter, Dominic J.B., Baek, Jong-Min, Harris, Kurt L., Boden, Mikael, De Voss, James J., Hayes, Martin A., Isin, Emre M., Andersson, Shalini, Jurva, Ulrik and Gillam, Elizabeth (2019). Engineering thermostable CYP2D enzymes for biocatalysis using combinatorial libraries of ancestors for directed evolution (CLADE). ChemCatChem, 11 (2) cctc.201801644, 841-850. doi: 10.1002/cctc.201801644
2019
Journal Article
Enzymatic cascade to evaluate the tricyclization of glycopeptide antibiotic precursor peptides as a prequel to biosynthetic redesign
Tailhades, Julien, Zhao, Yongwei, Schoppet, Melanie, Greule, Anja, Goode, Robert J. A., Schittenhelm, Ralf B., De Voss, James J. and Cryle, Max J. (2019). Enzymatic cascade to evaluate the tricyclization of glycopeptide antibiotic precursor peptides as a prequel to biosynthetic redesign. Organic Letters, 21 (21) acs.orglett.9b03245, 8635-8640. doi: 10.1021/acs.orglett.9b03245
2018
Journal Article
Engineering highly functional thermostable proteins using ancestral sequence reconstruction
Gumulya, Yosephin, Baek, Jong-Min, Wun, Shun-Jie, Thomson, Raine E. S., Harris, Kurt L., Hunter, Dominic J. B., Behrendorff, James B. Y. H., Kulig, Justyna, Zheng, Shan, Wu, Xueming, Wu, Bin, Stok, Jeanette E., De Voss, James J., Schenk, Gerhard, Jurva, Ulrik, Andersson, Shalini, Isin, Emre M., Bodén, Mikael, Guddat, Luke and Gillam, Elizabeth M. J. (2018). Engineering highly functional thermostable proteins using ancestral sequence reconstruction. Nature Catalysis, 1 (11), 878-888. doi: 10.1038/s41929-018-0159-5
Funding
Current funding
Past funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor James De Voss is:
- Available for supervision
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Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Microbial manufacturing of plant saponin-inspired vaccine adjuvants
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
-
Doctor Philosophy
Biochemical and molecular characterization of Cytochrome P450 (CYPs) from extremophilic sources and their biotechnological applications
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of peptide antibiotic constituents for elucidation of their biosyntheses and II) Characterization of bacterial cytochromes P450
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
Doctor Philosophy
Biochemical and molecular characterization of Cytochrome P450 (CYPs) from extremophilic sources and their biotechnological applications
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Biochemical and molecular characterization of Cytochrome P450 (CYPs) from extremophilic sources and their biotechnological applications
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Biochemical and molecular characterization of Cytochrome P450 (CYPs) from extremophilic sources and their biotechnological applications
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Biochemical and molecular characterization of Cytochrome P450 (CYPs) from extremophilic sources and their biotechnological applications
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Bioactive Phytochemicals from Australian Native Plants used as Ingienous medicines
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
Doctor Philosophy
Identification of the Structure and bioavailability of bioactive compounds from Australian native plants.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
Doctor Philosophy
Stingless bee enzymes for biotransformation of cane sugar to a low GI sugar
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Emerita Professor Mary Fletcher, Dr Loan Nguyen, Dr Natasha Hungerford
-
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of novel probes and inhibitors of carbohydrate-binding proteins
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Vito Ferro
-
Doctor Philosophy
Engineering Saccharomyces cerevisiae for triterpenoid production
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Birgitta Ebert
-
Doctor Philosophy
Stingless bee enzymes for biotransformation of cane sugar to a low GI sugar
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Emerita Professor Mary Fletcher, Dr Loan Nguyen, Dr Natasha Hungerford
-
Doctor Philosophy
Isolation and identification of natural products from Australian Native Medicinal Plants
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
Doctor Philosophy
Exploiting plant biosynthesis to produce vaccine adjuvants
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Birgitta Ebert
-
Doctor Philosophy
Isolation and identification of natural products from Australian Native Medicinal Plants
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
Completed supervision
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
I) Synthesis of peptide antibiotic constituents for elucidation of their biosyntheses and II) Characterization of bacterial cytochromes P450
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Isolation and Characterization of Bioactive Australian Natural Products
Principal Advisor
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis for the exploration and exploitation of Cytochrome P450 enzymes
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Characterisation of Bacterial Cytochromes P450
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Paul Bernhardt
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of cholesterol derivatives for exploration of cytochromes P450 from Dioscorea transversa and inhibition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Biosynthesis of Steroidal Saponins
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of Mechanistic Probes for Cytochrome P450 Catalysed Desaturation
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2019
Doctor Philosophy
Phytochemistry of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Makino
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2016
Doctor Philosophy
Unusual cytochrome P450-catalysed reactions: synthesis of small molecule probes
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2014
Doctor Philosophy
CYP710C1: Mechanism and Design of Inhibitors
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2013
Doctor Philosophy
Steroidal Saponins from Medicinal Herbs
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
Cytochrome P450-catalysed oxidations: Biosynthetic and mechanistic studies
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2009
Doctor Philosophy
Cytochrome P450cin: An Investigation into the Substrate-Based Determinants of Reactivity
Principal Advisor
-
2008
Doctor Philosophy
Chemical Characterisation of Novel Metabolites from Bioactive Herbs
Principal Advisor
-
2008
Doctor Philosophy
Cytochrome P450cin: Chemistry and Biochemistry
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Paul Bernhardt
-
2007
Doctor Philosophy
TOTAL SYNTHESIS OF PROPOSED ACTIVE CONSTITUENTS IN ECHINACEA. SP. AND CHAMALERIUM LEUTEUM
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2006
Doctor Philosophy
FATTY ACID METABOLISM BY CYTOCHROMES P450
Principal Advisor
-
2005
Doctor Philosophy
SYNTHESIS AND BIOSYNTHESIS OF INSECT DERIVED SPIROACETAL PHEROMONES
Principal Advisor
-
2005
Doctor Philosophy
MEDTHOD DEVELOPMENT FOR THE SYNTHESIS OF SOME HETEROCYCLIC NATURAL PRODUCTS
Principal Advisor
-
2003
Doctor Philosophy
CYROCHROME P450cin
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
BACTROCERA TRYONI VOLATILES: SPIROACETAL STRUCTURE, SYNTHESIS AND BIOSYNTHESIS
Principal Advisor
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Characterising the structure, bioactivity and bioavailability of active compounds from complex herbal extracts
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Theoretical and experimental investigations into the mechanisms of Cytochromes P450
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Developing Chemical Building Blocks for Medicinal Chemistry and Microelectronic Applications
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Phytochemical characterisation of Australian medicinal plants: Doctrina veteris et novi
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Insights into the Chemical Composition and Ecology of Nudibranchs of the Genus Goniobranchus
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Karen Cheney
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Development and Characterisation of Cytochrome P450 Support Systems
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Gillam
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy: A Toolbox for Characterising Molecular Structure and Function in Metal-Centred Catalysts
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Jeffrey Harmer
-
2016
Doctor Philosophy
Physical and chemical interactions between bile pigments and polyaromatic mutagens
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Joanne Blanchfield
-
2016
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of C-2 Functionalized L-Iduronic Acid Derivatives as Potential Pharmacological Chaperones for MPS II (Hunter Syndrome)
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Vito Ferro
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
Chemical Investigation of Marine Invertebrates from South East Queensland: Secondary Metabolites from Nudibranchs and Sponges
Associate Advisor
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
Total synthesis of (-)-neovibsanin G and (-)-14-epi-neovibsanin G and synthetic studies towards other related caged neovibsanins
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
Stable High Level Expression of Heterologous Gene Clusters Encoding Antitumour Antibiotics in Escherichia coli K12
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Emeritus Professor John Fuerst, Emeritus Professor John Pemberton
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2012
Doctor Philosophy
Directed evolution of enzymes of cytochrome P450 catalysis: Evolving CYP1A, CYP2D and P450 reductase
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Gillam
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2011
Doctor Philosophy
Towards the Total Synthesis of 5ß-Hydroxy-Cis-Dehydrocrotonin And Development of Novel Methodology in the Synthesis of Cis-Vinylstannanes and Cis-Vinylpinacolboronates.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
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2008
Doctor Philosophy
2-Iodoxybenzoic acid: Acidity investigations and the total synthesis of 5,14-bis-epi-spirovibsanin A
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Craig Williams
-
2007
Doctor Philosophy
REDOX PROPERTIES AND MEMBRANE LOCALIZATION OF HUMAN RECOMBINANT CYTOCHROME P450 SYSTEMS
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Gillam, Professor Paul Bernhardt
-
2005
Doctor Philosophy
MOLECULAR BREEDING OF CYTOCHROME P450s FOR INDIGOID PIGMENT PRODUCTION
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Gillam
-
2002
Doctor Philosophy
STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISATION OF INTRACELLULAR COPPER TRANSPORTING PROTEINS
Associate Advisor
Media
Enquiries
Contact Professor James De Voss directly for media enquiries about:
- Bio-organic chemistry
- Biosynthesis of natural products
- Chemistry - organic
- Enzymes - P450
- Enzymology
- Herbs - bioactives
- Natural products - chemistry of
- Organic chemistry
- P450 enzymes
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