Category: Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry
Frye Promoted to Full Professor with Tenure
November 23, 2011The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Board of Trustees has approved the promotion of Stephen Frye, PhD, to the rank of full professor with tenure in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Frye is the director of the School’s Center for Integrative Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, a research group bringing dedicated medicinal chemistry expertise to bear on biological targets of therapeutic relevance under investigation by UNC faculty. CIBDD project teams work with other groups on campus to move potential drug targets through the drug discovery and development process. “This promotion is due recognition of the impressive contribution … Read more
UNC Scientists Find a Shortcut to Synthetic Heparin
October 27, 2011Creating a safer synthetic version of the anticoagulant heparin can be done in as few as ten steps thanks to a breakthrough made by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute that promises a purer, less expensive drug with fewer side effects. In a paper published in the November issue of the journal Science, a team led by Jian Liu, PhD, of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Robert J. Lindhardt, PhD, of RPI document a technique that combines enzymatic and chemical processes to synthesize a simplified version of heparin in significant … Read more
Discovery by Jin, Roth Could Lead to Better Schizophrenia Drugs
October 24, 2011Scientists led by researchers at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy have discovered three first-in-class chemical compounds that could lead to safer, more effective medications for schizophrenia and related disorders. Schizophrenia is typically treated with antipsychotic medications, but the medications do not adequately treat a high percentage of patients. The drugs don’t address the negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia, and all current antipsychotics can lead to serious side effects such as cardiovascular conditions and weight gain with chronic use. The new compounds, which UNC has patented, will help address these problems by enabling researchers to better study which key … Read more
UNC Gets $100,000 Grant to Commercialize Huang, Kohn Inventions
September 30, 2011The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has received $100,000 from the North Carolina Biotechnology Center to advance the commercial development of technologies created by UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy scientists Leaf Huang, PhD, and Hal Kohn, PhD. Technology transfer officials at three University of North Carolina System campuses are dividing $250,000 to advance the commercial development of discoveries made at their universities. Technology Enhancement Grants of $50,000 each will support the advancement of five inventions with significant market potential. At UNC-Chapel Hill, Henry Nowack and Jackie Quay, PhD, both assistant directors of the Office of Technology Development, are recipients … Read more
MCNP Renamed Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry
September 12, 2011Effective September 12, the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products will be renamed the Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry. “This new name more accurately reflects the nature of the research in the division,” says Bob Blouin, PharmD, dean of the School. “The change also recognizes the significance of our Center for Integrative Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, which is strategically aligned with the division.” The faculty of the division voted 13–0 in favor of the new name. “Drug development has been and always will be a key mission of the research groups housed in the division ,” … Read more
Singleton Named Vice Chair of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products
August 17, 2011Scott Singleton, PhD, has been named vice chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. “Professor Singleton has extensive administrative experience, including running the School’s graduate program and initiating the biotechnology start-up company. He is also a winner of multiple instructor-of-the-year awards,” says David Lawrence, PhD, an Eshelman Distinguished Professor and chair of the division. “I feel fortunate that he has agreed to assume the position of vice chair. The Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products will gain from his experience as an administrator and his passion as an educator. … Read more
UNC Scientists Create “Excellent” Probe to Study Gene-Controlling Proteins
July 11, 2011Collaboration between University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Canadian scientists has resulted in a molecular probe capable of specifically targeting two proteins that affect a wide range of biological functions in humans by controlling the expression of certain genes. The probe, called UNC0638, is a small molecule created by the researchers that targets the proteins G9a and GLP, which play a role in a variety of conditions from cancer to cocaine addiction. The probe was created in collaboration with the Structural Genomics Consortium based at the University of Toronto and is detailed in a paper published in Nature … Read more
K. H. Lee Receives Rising Sun Award from Japan
June 20, 2011Kuo-Hsiung Lee, PhD, the Kenan Distinguished Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, has been awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, by the government of Japan for his contributions to the development of medicinal chemistry in that nation. In his forty-one-year career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, more than eighty Japanese scholars have honed their understanding of medicinal chemistry under Dr. Lee’s tutelage. The Order of the Rising Sun was established in 1875 as the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese Government. It is presented … Read more
Doctoral Student Pempe Receives Fellowship from American Heart Association
June 9, 2011Liz Pempe, a doctoral student at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, has won a predoctoral fellowship award from the American Heart Association to support her study of the blood-thinner heparin. The fellowship will provide $23,000 per year for two years to support Pempe’s research to determine which structural features of the heparin molecule control the drug’s half-life — the rate at which the drug is eliminated from the body. Heparin is the world’s most widely used anticoagulant drug, with annual sales estimated at $3 billion. It is used for a variety of applications, such as preventing clotting during surgery, … Read more
Tropsha to Lead Research Efforts as Associate Dean, Lawrence to Chair Medicinal Chemistry Division
May 30, 2011Alexander Tropsha, PhD, has been named as the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s new associate dean for research charged with overseeing the School’s research and graduate education programs. David Lawrence, PhD, will replace Tropsha as the new chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products. “I am thrilled that Alex has agreed to take on this new responsibility,” says Robert Blouin, PharmD, dean of the School. “He has made major contributions to the School over his two decades here and is internationally recognized for his research in cheminformatics. He has a knack for bringing together scientists with diverse … Read more