New Approaches to Drug Discovery for Neglected Diseases

With the parasites increased resistance to traditional drugs and vector resistance to insecticides, over 40% of the world's population is at risk. With this growth in the spread of malaria also comes an increased economic strain, especially in developing countries. Consequently, the development of new treatments to combat drug-resistant strains of Plasmodium is critical.

The problem is a challenge from both the basic scientific perspective and the economic development perspective. Over the past few years, fewer drugs are coming out of the corporate pipeline, and the pharmaceutical industry increasingly seems focused on the bottom line rather than on innovative science. When the development of a new drug can exceed 100 million dollars, this is, in part, understandable. This problem is exacerbated if the target is a neglected tropical disease. Ironically, this presents a unique opportunity for those in academia to make a real contribution to the drug discovery process. Academia can closely integrate basic science and applied research while taking on the high-risk ideas that he thought were too often overlooked by big drug companies. We will discuss how these advantages are leading to new potential antimalarial compounds.

David Wright (b. 1965) attended Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana where he received a B.S. in Chemistry and a B.A. in Classical Languages and Ancient History. David pursued his graduate work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA under the supervision of the late Prof. William. H. Orme-Johnson. His thesis focused on understanding the structure and function of the FeMo-cofactor of the enzyme nitrogenase. He pursued post-doctoral studies in the laboratory of Prof. William. H. Armstrong where he developed paramagnetic NMR methods to study the reactivity of Mn-oxo model complexes of the oxygen evolving complex of PS II. After beginning his academic career at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA, David joined the faculty of Vanderbilt University in 2001. His research focus spans areas ranging from heme detoxification in hemophagous parasitic infectious diseases to developing tools and diagnostics for low resource settings to drug discovery for neglected tropical diseases.