Many of the prescribed drugs of today have an origin in natural products, most of which were first discovered decades ago. However, over the past fifteen years present day pharmaceutical companies, with few exceptions, have been abandoning natural products approaches for lead generation in favor of other mechanisms.
In this talk I will describe the natural products chemistry approach to drug discovery and discuss the challenges and opportunities presently facing it. I will discuss the changes that will have to be made for natural products to regain a significant role and the contribution the Pacific Research Center for Marine Biomedicine can make to this revival.
Presenter:
Thomas Hemscheidt, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry
College of Natural Sciences
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Friday, November 5, 2004
11:00 a.m.
Pacific Ocean Science & Technology Building, 723
Refreshments will be served after the seminar in POST 121
The Pacific Research Center for Marine Biomedicine (PRCMB) is a newly established center at the University of Hawaii dedicated to trans-disciplinary research designed to gain new knowledge about the profound impacts of the ocean on human health. The Center is funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
BACK