Dr. Syed Ahmed, Associate Director, Medicinal Chemistry Core, to present:

"Design, Optimize, Deliver: Medicinal Chemistry from Hit to Lead"
 

ABSTRACT: Drug discovery is increasingly driven by the integration of ligand and structure-based design to efficiently identify and advance small-molecule therapeutics from initial hits to optimized leads. Following hit identification, candidates undergo iterative cycles of molecular design, chemical synthesis, and biological evaluation to enhance potency, target selectivity, and developability. Medicinal chemistry efforts focus on refining target engagement while optimizing physicochemical properties, pharmacokinetics, and safety profiles. Computational and AI-enabled tools support these efforts by guiding structure–property relationships, predicting ADME/toxicity liabilities, and informing rational decision-making.
Integrating classical design principles with robust lead optimization strategies provides a powerful framework for generating high-quality development candidates, enhancing efficiency, reducing attrition, and enabling the delivery of optimized leads with strong clinical potential.
This talk will highlight emerging workflows, showcase recent NIH, and externally funded medicinal chemistry projects, and discuss how these integrated approaches are shaping the future of precision drug discovery across diverse therapeutic areas.