Chance and Necessity in Drug Discovery: The case history of calcimimetic drugs
ABOUT THE EVENT
Join Dr Nemeth as he goes through the discovery and development of calcimimetic cinacalcet (Sensipar®, Mimpara®) a first-in-class therapy for hyperparathyroidism.
The case history of cinacalnet does not include the usual descriptions of cloned receptors or strong ligands, but illustrates a drug discovery strategy based on physiological responses that predict clinical efficacy with unusually high fidelity. A repeatable strategy? You debate and decide.
This is a great occasion to discuss drug discovery and development from someone who has truly “been there, done that” from start to finish.
DATE | TIME | LOCATION
October 23, 200611:30AM - 1:00PM
MaRS Centre
101 College St, Toronto
ABOUT THE PRESENTER
Edward F. Nemeth, Ph.D. is presently the Chief Scientific Officer at NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. He joined the Company in March 1990 as Director of Biology and was Vice President for Research from 1994 to 1997. From 1986 until joining the Company, Dr. Nemeth was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He holds a B.A. in Chemistry and Psychology from Lawrence University, a M.A. in Psychology from Princeton University, and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from Yale University. Dr. Nemeth was a postdoctoral fellow in Neurobiology at the National Institutes of Health and in Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Nemeth's principal research activities are focused on the pharmacology of receptors, particularly G protein-coupled receptors. In 1986, he proposed the existence of calcium receptors - cell surface receptors which enable certain cells in the body to detect and respond to small changes in the concentration of extracellular calcium. At NPS Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Nemeth established and led the team that discovered the first molecules that act on the calcium receptor. He coined the terms "calcimimetic" and "calcilytic" to describe agonists and antagonists of this receptor, respectively. The first drug resulting from these efforts is cinacalcet (Sensipar™) which was developed by Amgen and launched in 2004. Sensipar™ is used to treat hyperparathyroidism. Calcilytic compounds are being developed by GlaxoSmithKline as anabolic therapy for osteoporosis. The calcilytic ronatacalcin is currently in clinical trails.
ABOUT THE DRUG DEVELOPMENT DISCUSSION GROUP
The Drug Development Discussion Group (DDD Group) is an informal moderated forum bringing together research professionals and clinicians interested in drug development.
Think of DDD Group as a Journal Club focused on global drug development issues; a place to hear candid comments from the practitioners in the field, a chance to debate and develop a rapport with industry and academic professionals you do not necessarily deal with on a daily basis.
If you are interested in moderating future sessions please contact Veronika Litinski (vlitinski@marsdd.com).
Click here for more information about the Drug Development Discussion Group (DDD Group).
UPCOMING EVENTS
PAST EVENTS
- March 27, 2008
MaRS Drug Development Discussion Group - Structure-Guided Discovery Without Structures: Computer-aided design of GPCR ligands - February 27, 2008
MaRS Drug Development Discussion Group - Formulation: Giving new life to naturally occurring un-patentable compounds - January 25, 2008
Drug Development Discussion Group - Novel therapeutic targets for preventing bone loss in osteolytic disease - December 18, 2007
MaRS Drug Development Discussion Group - Outsourcing Preclinical Development - October 23, 2006
MaRS Drug Development Discussion Group - Chance and Necessity in Drug Discovery: The case history of calcimimetic drugs - August 31, 2006
Drug Development Discussion Group - Structure-based Lead Generation and Optimization - June 29, 2006
Drug Development Discussion Group - Exploratory IND - April 27, 2006
Drug Discussion Group - BioMarkers in Clinical Trials
