MCG Staff
The MCG at UMSL represents a collective 35 years of pharmaceutical industry experience. Our chemists have demonstrated expertise in the design, synthesis and development of drug candidates with the prerequisite efficacy, safety, pharmaceutical, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties. They also have extensive experience in evaluating and writing pharmaceutical based patents. Our medicinal chemists are experienced at identifying and synthesizing tool or early lead compounds and utilizing structure-based drug design and practical medicinal chemistry experience to transform leads into promising pre-clinical candidates. They are also skilled at synthetic route optimization, scale-up synthesis and working with other contract research organizations (CRO). The MCG works closely with UMSL scientists and draws on the strong synthetic expertise within the Chemistry department and the Center for Nanosciences.
John Walker, PhD, Executive Director, Medicinal Chemistry Group at the University of Missouri-St. Louis
John leads the Medicinal Chemistry Group, which works in partnership with internal scientists, outside researchers, and collaboration with industry. He is responsible for the design and synthesis of new chemical analogs aimed at advancing research programs. These analogs provide the necessary data pivotal to the decision making process. John brings extensive expertise to this role, having twelve years of pharmaceutical research experience with Searle, Pharmacia and Pfizer. During his highly productive career, he has made significant contributions to multidisciplinary drug discovery research teams through his technical skills and leadership roles. He is a co-inventor on seven clinical candidates in multiple therapeutic areas such as inflammatory, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases. John earned both his BS and MS in Chemistry from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville and his PhD in Organic Chemistry from Indiana University at Bloomington. He has co-authored 15 peer-reviewed scientific publications, and been granted over 20 patents and patent applications.
Michael J. Hayes, M.S., Research Scientist, Medicinal Chemistry Group at the University of Missouri-St. Louis
Utilizing his twelve years of industrial experience with Pfizer, Michael is a highly skilled medicinal and synthetic organic chemist. In addition to extensive experience in the design and synthesis of bioactive molecules, he has routinely performed multi-step, combinatorial, and scale-up synthesis of numerous drug candidates. During his time in the pharmaceutical industry, Michael worked on multiple therapeutic targets such as kinases, cannabinoids, synthases, and glucocorticoid receptor modulators for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Incorporation of traditional structure activity relationship (SAR) analysis, and computer software based design tools with his expertise in the laboratory, make Michael a highly valued member of the team. Michael earned both a B.S. and M.S. degree in Chemistry from Illinois State University. He has co-authored 9 peer reviewed publications and been granted 10 patents and patent publications.
Sarah E. Marshall, PhD, Research Scientist, Medicinal Chemistry Group at the University of Missouri-St. Louis
The newest member of the MCG, Sarah has recently completed the PhD program at Michigan State University. She has worked on a variety of projects including a total synthesis project with efforts towards a library of annonaceous acetogenins, structure enantioselectivity relationship studies of cinchona alkaloid catalysts in asymmetric chlorocyclizations, and rational design and synthesis of novel chiral catalysts. She possesses a diverse spectrum of synthetic skills including methodology development, asymmetric catalysis, and expertise in a number of analytical techniques. Sarah brings both her passion and enthusiasm for synthtic organic chemistry to the group; she is a versatile chemist with an interest in applying her skills to problems in medicine. Sarah has co-authored 2 peer reviewed publications.
