Tony Day is Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Manchester. His discoveries have transformed the field of glycosaminoglycan-protein interactions, starting with structure-function analyses, progressing to mechanistic insights and culminating recently in the development of a therapeutic agent for dry eye disease and osteoarthritis.
He elucidated the molecular basis of cumulus expansion (essential for ovulation), including the biochemistry of how TSG-6 mediates covalent modification of HA with heavy chains of the inter-alpha-inhibitor family. He is developing a biological drug, ‘Link_TSG6’, that has wide applicability for inflammatory and tissue-degenerative diseases, and to take this forward, he founded Link Biologics, based on preclinical data for dry eye disease and osteoarthritis, conditions that each affect 100s of millions of individuals worldwide.