{"id":216,"date":"2019-07-17T18:18:01","date_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wcsu.wpengine.com\/news-archives\/boehringeringelheimscientisttodiscussdrugdiscoverybreakthrough\/"},"modified":"2019-07-17T18:18:01","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:01","slug":"boehringeringelheimscientisttodiscussdrugdiscoverybreakthrough","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/boehringeringelheimscientisttodiscussdrugdiscoverybreakthrough\/","title":{"rendered":"2011 Boehringer Ingelheim scientist to discuss drug discovery breakthrough"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Boehringer Ingelheim scientist to discuss drug discovery breakthrough <\/p>\n

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April 21 lecture to explain major technological advances in drug screening <\/span><\/p>\n

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DANBURY, CONN. <\/strong>\u2014 Dr. E. Michael August, senior principal scientist in the High Throughput Biology Group at Ridgefield-based Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, will report from the front lines of current technological breakthroughs revolutionizing the process of drug discovery in a lecture on Thursday, April 21<\/strong>, at Western Connecticut State University.<\/p>\n

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August will discuss \u201cHigh Throughput Screening in Drug Discovery: Finding the Needle in the Haystack\u201d at 7 p.m. in Room 125 of the Science Building on the university\u2019s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. Admission to the talk, sponsored by the WCSU \u201cScience at Night\u201d lecture series, will be free and the public is invited to attend. A reception with light refreshments will follow in the Science Building Atrium.<\/p>\n

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The experimentation method known as high throughput screening (HTS) has transformed scientific testing to discover new drugs by utilizing computer data processing and control software, robotics automation, and sophisticated liquid handling and detection methods to enable researchers to screen vastly increased numbers of compound samples within a short time for potential usefulness in drug treatments. In his position at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, August is responsible for development of test compounds, or assays, and for HTS analysis of these target substances to identify compounds for further investigation as potential drugs for the treatment of inflammatory, cardiometabolic and viral diseases. <\/p>\n

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Recipient of a bachelor\u2019s degree in chemistry from The George Washington University and a Ph.D. in biological chemistry from the University of Illinois, August began his research career as a post-doctoral fellow at Yale University\u2019s department of pharmacology in the laboratory of Dr. William Prusoff. He served as a senior staff fellow in the biological chemistry laboratory at the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health. Prior to joining Boehringer Ingelheim, he led the HTS group at the biopharmaceutical company Repligen, and helped to establish a natural product screening program at the biotechnology firm Phytera.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe talk will focus on the principles and practice of high throughput screening as an integral component of the drug discovery process,\u201d August said. \u201cAlthough relatively new, HTS is a rapidly expanding field that combines biochemistry and cutting-edge laboratory automation to uncover potential new drug candidates by testing tens to hundreds of thousands of samples per day.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Automation of the process of preparing, incubating and analyzing assay plates has combined with computerized data collection and analysis to provide the capacity in HTS systems to test 100,000 or more compounds per day. Since only a small fraction of compounds screened ultimately produce leads for further research and development of potential drugs, HTS technology has achieved a major breakthrough in drug development by dramatically shortening the timeframe and expanding the volume of assay screenings conducted simultaneously in the laboratory.<\/p>\n

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Boehringer Ingelheim\u2019s establishment of the High Throughput Biology Group at the Ridgefield research facility reflects the critical importance of the HTS process in advancing the company\u2019s pharmaceutical mission. \u201cResearch and development has been the foundation of Boehringer Ingelheim\u2019s success, and continues to be the major driver of innovative new medicines for the treatment of diseases with an unmet therapeutic need,\u201d the company website noted.<\/p>\n

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For more information, contact WCSU Professor of Biological and Environmental Sciences Dr. Thomas Philbrick at philbrickt@wcsu.edu or (203) 837-8773. <\/p>\n

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\n Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics
\n of New England\u2019s best small private universities.<\/em><\/p>\n

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