Xuong Nguyen-Huu (Vietnamese: Nguyễn Hữu Xương; July 14, 1933 – May 11, 2026) was an American biochemist and a pioneer of protein crystallography technology. His research focused on the development of novel methods, such as protein crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, for the determination of protein structures and biological macromolecules.Bio, Distinguished Asian Americans: a biographical dictionary - pp. 359-360
Life and career Nguyen-Huu was born in Vietnam on July 14, 1933. He received his B.S.E.E. in electrical engineering; M.S.E.E. from Ecole Superieure d'Electricite, Paris, France (1957); M.S. in mathematics from University of Paris, Paris (1958); M.S. and Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Berkeley (1962).Bio at UCSD
He was a professor emeritus of physics, biology, chemistry and biochemistry at UC San Diego since 1964.Faculty Description of UC San Diego, Department of Physics He is a pioneer of protein crystallography technology and of the field of Direct Detection Device (DDD) that will be used in Electron Microscopy. He is also inventor of "Xuong’s X-Ray Machine" (or Xuong Machine) in 1975, an X-ray Multiwire Area Detector, which using Multi-wire Proportional Chambers and then Silicon detectors to help researchers map three-dimensional structure of receptor and allowed for high-speed data collection,50 Years of Protein Structure Determination Timeline - HTML Version - National Institute of General Medical Sciences at NIH and can be used to find drugs to kill deadly viruses such as HIV (the AIDS virus), Polio, etc."Xuong Machine" helps researchers map three-dimensional structure of receptor. , libraries.ucsd, November 28, 1990
His awards include Guggenheim Fellowship (1965–1966), NATO Senior Fellowship (1977), Fogerty Fellowship (Unable to accept, 1984), Union of Pacific Asian Communities Award (1985), UCSD Chancellor Associate Award (1992)Four UCSD faculty members honored for excellence by Chancellor's Associates and Charles E. Supper Instrumentation Award from American Crystallographic Association (2004). He is also founder of Area Detector Systems Corporation. Area Detector Systems Corporation
Nguyen-Huu served as the President of the Vietnamese Alliance Association, 1976–1992 and was also co-founder and Ex-Chairman of "Boat People SOS Committee" from 1980 to 1990, which worked with another non-profit organizations to obtain visas for Vietnamese refugees (Boat people) and they successfully sent out rescue ships on the South China Sea to pick up drifting boat people, saving more than 3,500.Jackie Bong-Wright, Vietnamese Refugees’ Journey to Freedom, asianfortunenews, 2009RALPH FRAMMOLINO, Vietnamese Contributions : $40,000 Is Donated to Help Boat People, Los Angeles Times, April 02, 1986DAVID SMOLLAR, How Two Educators Approach the Challenge of Vietnamese Issues : Physics Professor Finds the Time for Global Lobbying, LA Times, February 12, 1989
Nguyen-Huu died on May 11, 2026, at the age of 92.
Selected patents Direct collection transmission electron microscopy. With Mark H Ellisman, Stuart Kleinfelder. Method of high-energy particle imaging by computing a difference between sampled pixel voltages. With Liang Jin, Robert B Bilh At Intellectual Property EXchange Limited
Selected publications Crystal Structure of a Transition State Mimic of the Catalytic Subunit of cAMP-dependent Protein Kinase. With Madhusudan, P. Akamine, and S. S. Taylor. Nature Struc. Biol. 9, 273 2002. The Structures of Anthranilate Synthase of Serratia Marcescens Crystallized in the Presence of (i) its substrates, Chorismate and Glutamine, and a Product, Glutamate, and (ii) its End-product Inhibitor, L-tryptophan. With G. Spraggon, C. Kim, M. C. Yee, C. Yanofsky, and S. E. Mills. PNAS 98, 6021 2001. Status of the Digital Pixel Array Detector for Protein Crystallography. With P. Datte, A. Birkbeck, E. Beuville, N. Enres, F. Druillole, L. Luo, and J. Millaud. Nuclear Instru. & Methods Phys. Res. A-421, 576 1999. ASIC-Based Event-Driven 2D Digital Electron Counter for TEM Imaging. With G.Y. Fan, P. Datte, E. Beuville, J.-F. Beche, J. Millaud, K.H. Downing, F.T. Burkard, and M.H. Ellisman. Ultramicroscopy 70, 107 1998.
References
External links Xuong Nguyen-Huu, Professor of Biology, UCSD Bio at Forgotten People Foundation Publications Xuong Nguyen-huu - Inventor "Xuong Machine" helps researchers map three-dimensional structure of receptor