Dr. Peter Dosa - Discovery & Translation Grant

Peter Dosa, Associate Program Director in the Institute for Therapeutics Discovery & Development, received a $50,000 grant from the Office of Discovery and Translation for the project "Development of Novel Therapeutics for Glaucoma." The grant is in collaboration with Michael Fautsch of the Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Gunda Georg - SciBX story

ITDD Director Gunda Georg is quoted in the November 26 SciBX online article "Solving triptolide," which discusses her research with Dr. Ashok Saluja and the development of minnelide.

Dr. Carston (Rick) Wagner - new AAAS Fellow

Professor Carston Wagner was elected as a Fellow of the Association by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Council.

Ran Dai - 2012-13 Bighley Grad Fellowship

Graduate student Ran Dai from Professor Barry Finzel's lab has been awarded a College of Pharmacy Bighley Fellowship award for 2012-13.

Dr. Michael Walters - Role Model for Young Scientists

ITDD Lead & Probe Discovery Director Mike Walters was the November featured speaker at the Young Scientist Roundtable at Wayzata Central Middle School, a free program for students K-12 to learn more about science. He presented "From urea to lipitor: The art and science of molecular construction."

Nick Struntz - American Heart Association Fellowship

Nick Struntz, a fourth year grad student in the Harki lab, was awarded an American Heart Association predoctoral fellowship for his project "Development of photochemically regulated DNA decoys to control NF-κB activity." Beginning January 1, 2013, he will receive $52,000 over two years.

Amit Gangar - Dissertation Fellowship honor

Med Chem grad student Amit Gangar in the Wagner lab was honored as one of the top fifteen of 137 University of Minnesota Dissertation Fellows for 2012-13. Of three fellows in the College of Pharmacy, he was selected to present his research on "Self-assembled nanostructures for the cellular delivery of small molecules, DNA and proteins for the treatment of cancer" in a November 6 seminar.

Dr. Jon Hawkinson joins ITDD

Jon Hawkinson joined the faculty of the Institute for Therapeutics Discovery and Development on November 12 as the new Associate Program Director, High Throughput Screening. He is a former vice president of research and development at Omneuron, Inc., and former senior director in lead discovery and optimization at Elan Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Hawkinson replaces Derek Hook, who retired in August 2012.

Dr. Gunda Georg - UO1 Grant

Dr. Gunda Georg, Medicinal Chemistry Head and Institute for Therapeutics Discovery & Development Director, received a UO1 grant for the project "Drug Discovery & Synthesis of Contraceptive Agents." The grant is for $4.7 million over five years.

Drs. Gunda Georg & Vadim Gurvich - Minnelide research

The October 17 issue of Science Translational Medicine features the latest results of Institute for Therapeutics Discovery & Development faculty in the article "A Preclinical Evaluation of Minnelide as a Therapeutic Agent Against Pancreatic Cancer." ITDD directors Gunda Georg and Vadim Gurvich are working with other University of Minnesota researchers to develop Minnelide, a new drug to treat pancreatic cancer.

Dr. Chengguo Xing - HealthTalk story

Chengguo (Chris) Xing, Associate Professor, was quoted in the September 10 Academic Health Center HealthTalk story "Can kava help without harming? A look at potential chemoprevention with a price."

Dr. Rory Remmel - NIH/NINDS Co-Investigator

Professor Rory Remmel is a co-investigator with Angela Birnbaum and Dick Brundage on Dr. Birnbaum's $1.9 million grant from NIH/NINDS for the project "Maternal Outcomes and Neurodevelopmental Effects of Antiepileptic Drugs."

Dr. Chengguo Xing - RO1 Grant

Dr. Chengguo (Chris) Xing, Associate Professor, received a five-year $1,531,400 RO1 grant for his research into "Mechanisms of Anticancer Agents Selective against Drug Resistant Leukemia." Professor Rory Remmel is one of several other investigators on the project.

Dr. David Ferguson - HealthTalk story

Professor David Ferguson was quoted in the August 21 Academic Health Center HealthTalk story "The Danger of Molly and Friends."

Dr. Gunda Georg - C&EN Story

Research by Gunda Georg, Director of the Institute for Therapeutics Discovery & Development, is discussed in the article, "Hunt For The Male Contraceptive Pill Continues Despite Decades Of Research," in the September 24, 2012 issue of Chemical & Engineering News (Volume 90, issue 39).

ACS Travel Grants

Several graduate students were awarded travel grants to attend the Fall 2012 American Chemical Association National Meeting in Philadelphia, PA. Maggie Olson in the Harki lab received $1,000 from the Women Chemists Committee/Eli Lilly & Co. In the Georg lab, Wei Li received $600 from the Division of Organic Chemistry and Trinh Doan received a $500 departmental travel award.

Dr. Daniel Harki - Hyundai Hope on Wheels Grant

Dr. Dan Harki, Assistant Professor, and collaborator John Ohlfest, Associate Professor in Neurosurgery, were awarded $250,000 from Hyundai Hope On Wheels for their proposal to develop new drug therapies for pediatric brain tumors. Hyundai Hope on Wheels makes donations to hospitals across the country to help support the further training and/or research of childhood cancer specialists.

Dr. Daniel Harki - V Foundation Grant

Dan Harki, Assistant Professor, was named a 2012 V Foundation V Scholar and received a $200,000 grant from The V Foundation for Cancer Research. A relatively new organization, The V Foundation is guided by a scientific advisory board, comprised of top physicians and research scientists from prominent universities and cancer centers throughout the country, who recommend the research projects funded.

Dr. David Ferguson - WCCO Radio

Professor David Ferguson discussed synthetic drugs on the July 26 episode of WCCO Radio's Jordana Green show.

ITDD Faculty involved in Therapeutics for Rare & Neglected Diseases Grant

Several ITDD faculty members will participate in a National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education (NIPTE) contract in support of the National Institutes of Health's Therapeutics for Rare & Neglected Diseases (TRND). NIPTE Associate Director Dr. Vadim Gurvich is co-PI on the whole effort and PI for the U of M. He, along with Professors Gunda Georg and Mike Walters, will join other University of Minnesota researchers and NIPTE members to meet TRND's goal of closing the gap between basic research discovery and testing of new drugs in humans by generating sufficient quality data to support new drug applications to the FDA.

Dr. David Ferguson - MPR Quote

Professor David Ferguson was quoted in the June 19 MPRNews story "Law enforcement fighting 'epidemic' of heroin use."

Dr. Elizabeth Amin - Sigma Xi Member

Elizabeth Amin, Assistant Professor, has been approved as a full member in the University's chapter of Sigma Xi, an international, multidisciplinary research society. Sigma Xi promotes the health of scientific enterprise, honors scientific achievement, and encourages camaraderie and collaboration among scientists in all fields through its programs and activities.

2012 Professors of the Semester/Year

The PharmD students have chosen their 2012 Professors of the Semester and Year, and again Department of Medicinal Chemistry Professors were honored. Rory Remmel, Distinguished Teaching Professor, was named Professor of the Year (Twin Cities) from the class of 2012; Elizabeth Amin, Assistant Professor, was named Professor of the Semester (Duluth) and Professor of the Year (Twin Cities) by the class of 2014.

Dr. Michael Walters - NSD-C study section member

Michael Walters, ITDD Director of Lead & Probe Discovery, is a member of the NIH NINDS Neurological Sciences and Disorders C (NSD-C) Translational Research study section.

Dr. Carston R. Wagner - Graduate Education Faculty Award

Professor Carston (Rick) Wagner received the 2011-12 College of Pharmacy Excellence in Graduate Education Faculty Award, which recognizes faculty who have exhibited outstanding abilities as either graduate teachers, advisors, or program leaders.

Dr. Michael Walters - Nature quote

The March 29 issue of Nature quoted Michael Walters, ITDD Director of Lead & Probe Discovery, in the story "Chemistry's web of data expands."

Georg Lab - Organic Chem Portal highlight

A recent publication by the Georg laboratory on the synthesis of Oximidine II (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2011, 50, 7855) is highlighted in the Organic Chemistry portal "C-O Ring Construction" column dated April 9.

Dr. Rory Remmel - R21 Grant

Rory Remmel, Distinguished Teaching Professsor, received an R21 grant of $275,000 for his project "Meropenem prodrugs for XDR-TB."

Dr. Michael Walters - HealthCanal.com

Mike Walters, ITDD Director of Lead & Probe Discovery, was quoted in the HealthCanal.com story, "Minnesota Partnership Researchers Close in on Drug to Fight Fungal Infections."

Dr. Michael Walters - National Ataxia Foundation Grant

The National Ataxia Foundation awarded Michael A. Walters, ITDD Director of Lead and Probe Discovery, a $100,000 grant for the project "Small Molecule Inhibitors of PKA: A Therapeutic Strategy for SCA 1." The main objective of this work is to discover compounds that can modulate the activity of PKA with the goal of developing a treatment for spinocerebellar ataxia. He also received a $390,690 R21 grant for the project "Development of antl-DUX4 therapeutics for FSHD" from the NIH NINDS. The main objective of this work is to discover, characterize, and develop anti-DUX4/D4Z4 therapeutics to treat facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD).

MN Partnership for Biotech & Medical Genomics Grant

Drs. Elizabeth Amin, Derek Hook, Barry Finzel, and Michael A. Walters (co-PI) have received a $612,312 grant from the Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics for the project "Identification and optimization of small molecular inhibitors of the histone acetyltransferase Rtt109: A novel approach to prevent fungal infection." Collaborators at the Mayo Clinic include Drs. Zhiguo Zhang (co-PI) and Andrew Limper. The primary goal of this work is to discover and characterize inhibitors of Rtt109 that could serve as novel anti-fungal therapeutic agents.

Dr. Phil Portoghese - National Institute on Drug Abuse Grant

Professor Phil Portoghese has been awarded $2.7 million dollars over the next five years from the National Institute on Drug Abuse for his research on "Ligands that target opioid-chemokine and opioid-mGluR5 heteromers."

Journal of Medicinal Chemistry Editor-in-Chief changes

After forty years of service as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, Professor Philip S. Portoghese stepped down at the end of 2011 to devote full time to research. Professor Gunda Georg is one of two new Co-Editors-in-Chief, with Dr. Shaomeng Wang at University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. J Med Chem is the most-cited journal in Medicinal Chemistry and ranked as the top primary research journal in impact in its category.

Drs. Rory Remmel & Mike Walters - Engebretson Drug Design & Development Grants

Two department members were awarded Engebretson Drug Design and Development grants: Rory Remmel, Distinguished Teaching Professor, for his "Meropenem prodrugs for treatment of tuberculosis" project, and Michael Walters, ITDD Director of Lead and Probe Discovery, for his "Enhancers of dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase stability and function."

Dr. Stephen Hecht - 2012 Joseph Cullen Memorial Award

Professor Stephen Hecht was the selected recipient of the 2012 Joseph W. Cullen Memorial Award for excellence in tobacco research, selected from a group of distinguished scholars considered by members of the American Society of Prevention Oncology (ASPO).

Dr. Elizabeth Amin - 2011 ACS HP Outstanding Jr. Faculty Award

Elizabeth Amin, Assistant Professor, was awarded the American Chemical Society Hewlett-Packard Outstanding Junior Faculty Award for 2011.

Mar 2 - 4 Recruitment Weekend

Invited graduate students from across the US are welcomed by Med Chem faculty, students, and staff to learn more about our graduate program.

John Hong - ACS Award & MEDI Poster Presentations

Graduate student Kwon Ho (John) Hong from Professor Gunda Georg's lab won a travel award from the American Chemical Society Medicinal Chemistry (MEDI) Division to attend the ACS meeting in Denver. His poster was selected by the MEDI Division to be presented twice, during the regularly scheduled poster session and then to represent the MEDI Division during the SciMix Poster session.

Susith Wickramaratne - ACS Chemical Travel & Poster Awards

Grad student Susith Wickramaratne from Professor Natalia Tretyakova's lab has won both the ACS Division of Chemical Toxicology travel award and second place for the best poster award at the national meeting in Denver. His poster title was "Synthesis and biological evaluation of site-specific DNA lesions of 1,3-butadiene."

Dan Wang - American Heart Association Award

Graduate student Dan Wang from Assistant Professor Dan Harki's lab received a $52,000 American Heart Association predoctoral fellowship for her study "Elucidating the cellular targets of parthenolide - A promising anti-atherosclerosis natural product."

Maggie Olson & Xia Zhang - 2011 Bighley Fellowship Winners

Graduate students Maggie Olson from Assistant Professor Dan Harki's lab and Xia Zhang in Professor Elizabeth Amin's lab received 2011 Bighley Fellowship awards. 10/3/11

Dr. Tom Shier - Grant-in-Aid of Research

Professor Tom Shier received a Grant-in-Aid of Research, Artistry, and Scholarship for his project "Toll-like receptor 7 agonists for treatment of solid tumors." Professor David Ferguson and Med School Professor John Ohlfest are co-investigators. 12/15/11

Drs. Gunda Georg & Vadim Gurvich - NCI Grant

ITDD DIrector Gunda Georg and Associate Director Vadim Gurvich are co-investigators on a $247,267 NCI grant for "Polymeric Nanoparticles for Tumor Targeted Delivery of Tylocrebrine." Associate Professor Jayanth Panyam, Pharmaceutics, is a the primary investigator. 10/3/11