Research & Professional Staff
Translational Research Institute
The end-goal of the basic research programs at Scripps Florida is the understanding of the mechanisms of susceptibility for and development of disease—with the aim of conceiving novel approaches to prevent, treat, or cure human ailments. At Scripps Florida, this goal is the primary focus of the Translational Research Institute (TRI), which is unique among academic research programs and research institutes in the United States. The TRI aims to identify new biochemical targets for drug development activities through high throughput screening, and to optimize and develop these leads through systematic efforts in medicinal chemistry, drug metabolism, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacology.
The TRI couples advanced technologies and modern drug discovery. The components of the TRI are listed below:
Technology Platforms include the Cell Based Screening Core, Genomics Core, and Proteomics Core. These cores work closely with their colleagues in the academic departments as well as the drug discovery component of the TRI to bring cutting-edge technology, instrumentation, and computational resources to bear on complex biological problems.
The Proteomics Core focuses on the application of liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry to identify, quantify, and characterize proteins and post-translational protein modifications. Investigators in this division are involved in scientific collaborations with numerous Scripps Florida scientists as well as several external investigators at other Florida research institutions.
The Drug Discovery Component of TRI
The Drug Discovery operation includes the following components: Discovery Biology, Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK), TRI-Informatics, Lead Identification and HTS, and Medicinal Chemistry. These groups collaborate towards the discovery and development of therapeutic agents for unmet needs in a variety of diseases.
Researchers in the Discovery Biology Division are responsible for selecting and characterizing molecular targets (enzymes and receptors) thought to be involved in human diseases ranging from Parkinson's disease to cancer. After a molecular target is selected, researchers will use biochemical, molecular, and cellular techniques to understand the mechanism of action for a drug candidate and to evaluate how well a compound is producing desired effects.
The Discovery Biology component is also responsible for pharmacological evaluation of these agents in models of disease. By understanding the interactions between chemical compounds and molecular targets within the cells and tissues of living systems, pharmacologists can determine whether or not the chemical might be a useful therapy for a given disease. They study how effectively and safely a compound interacts with its intended target.
The Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK) group provides the tools needed to support the development of new drugs, such as physical measurements and formulation, in vitro and in vivo metabolism, and pharmacokinetics. These tools provide the opportunity to look at such factors as how soluble and stable a drug candidate is, how rapidly a potential drug is cleared from the body, how a potential drug interacts with enzymes in the intestines and liver, and how well a drug candidate crosses the blood-brain barrier.
The TRI-Informatics group manages and mines the wealth of scientific data—both existing data that has been generated over the last decade from massive projects like the Human Genome Project and all the new data generated by researchers at Scripps Research. Investigators work with other groups to design software interfaces and platforms that can assist in experiments. Examples include development of special applications to analyze data streams from high throughput scientific instrumentation and the creation of analytical tools for large-scale proteomic studies.
The Lead Identification and HTS group is involved in high throughput screening of large compound collections (tens to hundreds of thousands) against biological targets involved in various diseases. Promising candidates from these screens are then examined further in collaboration with investigators in the DMPK, Discovery Biology, Informatics, and Medicinal Chemistry Divisions. This is one of the first and most crucial jobs in the development of novel drug candidates by narrowing the playing field to those few compounds that show promise for drug development.
A High Throughput Screening (HTS) Core operates within the Lead Identification Division, and the technologies offered in the core are available to external investigators through Scientific Collaborations.
The Medicinal Chemistry group designs and modifies biologically active chemical entities that target specific enzymes or receptors, with the goal of optimizing their therapeutic properties and value. Working in concert with their colleagues in Lead ID, Discovery Biology, and DMPK, investigators in Medicinal Chemistry are focused on a variety of disease areas, including cancer, arthritis, and Parkinson's disease.
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