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Unique iron starvation offers method to attack deadly bacterial biofilms
UF researchers discovered their compounds induced rapid iron starvation through a series of experiments using novel compounds known as halogenated phenazines, or HPs.
CNN interviews Dr. Chris McCurdy about the accuracy of drug expiration dates
New research reveals two common naloxone products remain chemically stable after their expiration dates.
Perfect 10: All medicinal chemistry tenure-track Ph.D. program faculty are federally funded
The 10 medicinal chemistry faculty currently serve as principal investigators on 18 different federally funded grants worth more than $18.4 million.
Brumley and Coleman win Graduate Student Seminar Presentation awards
The awards recognize the top student research presentations in the Graduate Student Seminar Series 2017-18.
Novel drug inspired by a marine natural product offers new approach to treat pancreatic cancer
A UF College of Pharmacy researcher team led by Dr. Hendrik Luesch recently developed a novel molecule based on marine cyanobacteria, Apra S10, to target pancreatic cancer cells.
Welcome to the Department of Medicinal Chemistry
The Department of Medicinal Chemistry is located in the University of Florida College of Pharmacy and is an integral part of UF Health. The strategic location within the Health Science Center facilitates interdisciplinary collaborations and close interactions with clinicians, which catalyzes the translation from bench to bedside.
Our faculty teach in both Pharm.D. and the departmental Ph.D. program. Several faculty are also teaching in our online MS Pharmacy program. Our graduate students get exposed to the entire life cycle of a drug by participating in college-wide activities and receive outstanding in-depth training in early-stage drug discovery and modern medicinal chemistry.
The department has excellent facilities dedicated to major areas of medicinal chemistry research, and our faculty have been highly successful in attracting extramural research support. UF’s Preeminence initiative in drug discovery and development has supported an expansion of the department in focus research areas such as natural products and structure-based drug design and invested in major therapeutic areas, including cancer, anti-infectives, drug abuse and pain research.
Our impressive natural products inspired program encompasses the entire spectrum of multidisciplinary research from genomes to drugs, including genome mining, biosynthetic engineering, chemical synthesis and biological profiling of natural products and natural product-like compounds, leading to the corresponding in vitro and in vivo pharmacology, mechanistic studies, and preclinical evaluation of drug candidates. Several such lead compounds have been licensed by pharmaceutical companies.
With many more small-molecule lead compounds emerging from our medicinal chemistry campaigns, utilizing target-based, phenotypic or virtual screens as well as genome scanning as starting points, our research platform provides exciting opportunities to both our current and future graduate students.
Hendrik Luesch, Ph.D.
Debbie and Sylvia DeSantis Chair in Natural Products Drug Discovery and Development | Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicinal Chemistry
College of Pharmacy News
November Seminar Series & PharmTalks
November 14, 2018
2019 PDRG Registration Form
November 14, 2018
Fast Facts | 2017-18 Academic Year
Seminar Series and Guest Speakers
Save the Dates: CNPD3 Seminar Series
Join us for these upcoming seminars on behalf of the Center for Natural Products, Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3).
Guest Speaker: Frederick T. Chin, Ph.D., 10/19
Dr. Frederick T. Chin is an assistant professor in the department of radiology at Stanford University. His presentation is titled "Targeted PET-MR imaging of novel biomarkers: assessing pain, cancer and other neurological disorders."
Guest Speaker: Dr. Sandra Loesgen, 10/8
Dr. Loesgen is the Terence Brandshaw chemistry professor at Oregon State University. Her lecture is titled "Drug discovery with microbial natural products – from new gene activation techniques to anticancer leads."