Research

Research in our team is focused on the development of new synthetic methods of value to medicinal chemistry and bioactive discovery.

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Areas of focus include:

Lead compounds for drug discovery

We are preparing anticancer and antimalarial compounds derived from naturally-occurring small molecules (natural products).

Compound library design and screening
We have a long-standing interest in the synthesis of natural product-inspired compound collections and investigation of their bioactivity against cancers and infectious diseases.

Green medicinal chemistry

We are developing new synthetic methods for the preparation of medicinally-relevant chemical building blocks, adhering to the principles of green chemistry.

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We are grateful to the University of Canterbury, the Maurice and Phyllis Paykel Trust, the Biomolecular Interaction Centre, the Canterbury Medical Research Foundation, and the Royal Society of Chemistry for funding.