Navigating the Peaks: A journey into protein science at Peak Proteins

By Anna Bennett

The beginning of your career after university can be daunting, finding yourself in a new environment where everyone around you has lot more experience than you can certainly feel like a lot of pressure. When I started my career as a protein scientist at Peak Proteins, it was my first job in the industry that I wanted to work in. So naturally, there was a lot of excitement at getting to do something that I am really interested in, but along with that comes the want to do well, be successful and show that you have got what it takes to your new employer, which can be overwhelming.

The safe and encouraging environment that is created here at Peak Proteins put all those new starter worries very much at ease. For the first few weeks, I was given a mentor, Naimah (Begum), whom I worked alongside whilst I learnt the ropes and built skills to gain confidence in myself. I was actively encouraged to do hands on learning, whilst provided with appropriate support throughout. Within a few weeks I had the confidence to independently tackle my own projects.

Every member of Peak Proteins, no matter the level of seniority, made themselves extremely approachable with the very collaborative approach of two heads are better than one. This made asking for advice and guidance very easy and judgement free, knowing that often science likes to throw you a curve ball! The encouragement I’ve received since joining Peak Proteins has allowed me to push myself and know that I will always get the support I need when I ask.

Diving into the world of proteins

From the get-go I was immersed in the lab doing purification work, learning how to use cutting edge technology and deliver high quality results. As one of my first projects I got to take on a monstrous amount of TEV protein to be purified from our new fermenter. The purification steps were straightforward, but with the massive yield the actual purification was one of the first mountains I had to climb, with it involving multiple size exclusion runs and a result of over 1000 aliquots being produced. But not all projects go as smoothly – soon I got involved in more challenging projects that involved trying a variety of different purification methods and optimising expression constructs to try and crack the code.

As we are a contract research company, each project is tackled with thorough research and dedication to produce the best possible outcome. Collaboration with other colleagues that have different areas of expertise is always encouraged and has shown me the strong value of teamwork within Peak Proteins. I’ve really enjoyed picking an experienced colleague’s brain to help brainstorm a possible solution or new approach. One of my favourite parts of my work is getting to see a project grow and develop from initial expression tests and small-scale feasibility studies, right up to large scale 10-20 L purifications.

I was taught the importance of quality control early on, enhancing my analysis skills with SDS-PAGE and mass spectrometry to provide assurance to our clients that the protein is at the highest quality possible. Outside of the lab, I’ve been encouraged to get into some background research for each new project, not only so I can support the client accordingly, but so I can better understand the methodology and provide new insights to tackle problems. Communication is a really important skill that I’ve been able to work on in my time so far, by getting involved with some of our biggest clients and FTE projects and presenting data or discussing the best plan moving forward I’ve been able to gain confidence in myself and develop good client relationships.

Reflection on my first six months

As I look back over the beginning of my career with Peak Proteins, I am filled with gratitude for the enriching experiences and supportive environment that surrounds me. My journey into protein science continues to present new challenges with very rewarding outcomes and opportunities for me to grow as a professional, an individual and as a scientist. I have taken all the skills I’ve enhanced and developed and now get to put them to good use by taking on new challenges and leading projects.  Peak Proteins have made what could be a very daunting and scary start to my career, be a very supportive, exciting, and enriched welcome. I couldn’t have asked for a better start, and I look forward to continuing my growth here at Peak Proteins.