2026 McConnell Lecture

Lewis E. Kay is a molecular biophysicist recognized for his work in the development and application of solution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Kay is particularly well known for his studies of biomolecular dynamics and for his work exploring the role of dynamics in the function and misfunction of the molecular machines of the cell. He is a Professor of Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry, and Chemistry at the University of Toronto and a Senior Scientist at the Hospital for Sick Children. Kay grew up in Edmonton, Alberta at about the same time as his beloved Edmonton Oilers were winning Stanley Cups. He received his B.Sc. in Biochemistry from the University of Alberta in 1983 and his Ph.D. in Biophysics from Yale University in 1988, pursuant to which he spent three years as a postdoctoral fellow in Chemical Physics at the NIH. Professor Kay is a fellow of the Royal Societies of Canada and London.