Category: Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry
Tropsha Named Chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products
March 29, 2006Alexander Tropsha, PhD, has been named chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products. He has served as interim chair of the division since last July. “I am delighted to announce Dr. Tropsha’s new position,” said Robert Blouin, dean of the School. “Dr. Tropsha has been a faculty member at the School for more than ten years, and he has done an excellent job of providing leadership for the division since last summer.” Tropsha is a professor of medicinal chemistry and director of the Laboratory for Molecular Modeling at the School of Pharmacy. He directs the UNC Graduate Program … Read more
Pharmacy Researchers Find New Way to Produce Popular Anticoagulant
February 7, 2006Scientists at the UNC School of Pharmacy and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered an alternative way to produce heparin, a drug commonly used to stop or prevent blood from forming dangerous clots. Heparin is most often used during and after such procedures as kidney dialysis, heart-bypass surgery, stent implantation, indwelling catheters, and knee and hip replacement to prevent clots from forming and blocking or restricting the flow of blood. The annual worldwide sales of heparin are estimated at $3 billion. “Synthesizing heparin chemically is extremely difficult, but by doing so, we eliminate the risk of viruses and other forms of … Read more
Graduate Students Recognized by the AFPE and IOA
December 14, 2005Mark Patterson, a graduate student in the Division of Pharmaceutical Policy and Evaluative Sciences, has been selected to receive the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education’s Pre-doctoral Fellowship, beginning in September 2005. The AFPE Fellowship is awarded to outstanding pre-doctoral students who have completed at least three semesters of graduate study in pharmaceutical sciences at a U.S. school or college of pharmacy. Patterson’s project, “Effect of Copayments on Medication Persistence in a Commercially Insured Population with Heart Failure,” is directed by Mick Murray, professor and chair of the Division of Pharmaceutical Policy and Evaluative Sciences. Other School of Pharmacy AFPE Pre-doctoral … Read more
School of Pharmacy Graduate Student Awarded Prestigious Fellowship
December 14, 2005Ding Xu, a graduate student in the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products, has received a predoctoral fellowship from the American Heart Association (MidAtlantic Affiliate). The award is worth $20,000 a year for two years. Ding’s research project, “Understanding substrate recognition mechanism of heparan sulfate 3-O-sulfotransferase,” is overseen by his adviser, Dr. Jian Liu. “Being awarded this fellowship is a great honor,” said Xu. “Understanding how the body creates heparan sulfate will be of great benefit to the medical community and society as a whole.” Xu’s project is designed to understand how heparan sulfate, a molecule on the surface … Read more
School of Pharmacy Researchers Awarded Three NIH Roadmap Grants
December 14, 2005Three researchers in the School of Pharmacy’s Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products have received National Institutes of Health Roadmap Grants. Kenan Professor K.H. Lee, PhD, will receive $1.28 million over three years for his project, “Chemical Diversity Libraries from Medicinal Plants. Professor and interim chair Alex Tropsha, PhD, will receive $762,000 over two years for his project, “Carolina Exploratory Center for Cheminformatics Research, and assistant professor Michael Jarstfer, PhD, will receive $73,000 over one year for his project, “A High Throughput Screen for Telomerase Assembly.” In addition, assistant professor Rihe Liu, PhD, is a key member of a … Read more
SOP Faculty Honored for Patents that Help Economy, Improve Lives
June 15, 2005UNC inventors honored for patents with potential to help economy, improve lives CHAPEL HILL – During the past two decades, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has become one of the top U.S. public universities in research support, with $577.6 million in sponsored research funding during the fiscal year ending in June 2004. That support – from federal government, other government and private sources – has funded research leading to patented discoveries. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued 26 patents in 2004 that were assigned to UNC, university officials recently announced. “These patents, in turn, often are developed … Read more