Senior Lecturer in Medicinal Chemistry
I completed my BSc (Hons) degree in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Sunderland in 2007 and undertook an industrial placement working at GlaxoSmithKline in the Psychiatry Centre of Excellence for Drug Discovery (CEDD). This was followed by successful completion of a master’s degree in Drug Chemistry, graduating from Newcastle University with Distinction.
I began my research career, completing a Cancer Research UK-funded PhD under the supervision of Dr Ian Hardcastle, alongside Dr Celine Cano, Prof Roger Griffin, and Prof Bernard Golding at the Northern Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle University in 2012. During this time, I specialised in the field of small-molecule drug discovery, developing inhibitors of the protein kinase ERK5 as potential anti-cancer therapeutics, and went on to spend a further 18 months furthering the project as a Postdoctoral Research Associate.
I then moved to the prestigious Institute of Cancer Research in London (2014), working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, alongside Prof Ian Collins, initially working on the lead-optimisation of modulators of IRE-1 – a dual kinase-endoribonuclease enzyme – before taking a leading role in the hit triage, validation and hit-to-lead development of novel inhibitors on an exciting, undisclosed project.
I secured my first academic position at the University of Wolverhampton in 2016, beginning my independent research career as a Lecturer in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. I then moved back to the north-east, returning to my home city to take up a position as Senior Lecturer in Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Sunderland in 2017.
Teaching and supervision
- BSc (Hons) Medicinal Chemistry
- BSc(Hons) Biochemistry
- BSc (Hons) Biopharmaceutical Science
- BSc (Hons) Cosmetic Science
- MSc Drug Discovery and Development
Module Leader and Lead Lecturer
- BPS210 Organic Chemistry
- BPS313 Medicinal Chemistry
Module Lecturer
- BPS110 Introduction to Pharmaceutical and Biological Chemistry
- BPS113 Introduction to Pharmaceutics, Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Regulation
- BPS114 Research and Practical Skills in Biopharmaceutical Sciences
- CSC101 Introduction to Chemistry Principles in Cosmetic Science
- BPS214 Further Research and Practical Skills in Biopharmaceutical Sciences
- BPS215 Introductory Medicinal Chemistry
- BPS310 Research Project
- BPS322 Advanced Drug Synthesis
- PHA111 Fundamental Principles of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Formulation
- PHA222 Integrated Therapeutics 1: Cardiovascular and Renal Systems
- PHA331 Research Option
Research interests for potential research students
- Synthesis and evaluation of natural products as potential therapeutic agents
- Drug design, hit-to-lead and lead-optimisation strategies
- Development of small-molecule inhibitors of kinases/kinesins as potential anti-cancer therapeutics
- Development of novel therapeutics for rare metabolic diseases
- Prodrug strategies
Research
- Dr. Anna Adam (2018-2022; Co-Sup)
- Noha Elarbi (2017-present; DoS)
- Alex King (2020-present; Co-Sup)
- Sean Ranson (2023-present; Co-Sup)
- Georgia Howick (2023-present; DoS)
Professional Affiliations and Roles:
- Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC)
- Member of the RSC Research Grants Peer Review Group
- Academic Representative - North East Regional Steering Group
- Member of the Scientific Expert Review Panel (SERP) for the Chemical Probes Portal
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
Affiliate Member of UKAT
Research Funding and Awards:
- Northern Accelerator Proof-of-Concept Award (2019; £48,259) to develop novel treatments towards the rare genetic disorders, cystinuria and Wilson's disease.
Northern Accelerator Proof-of-Concept Award (2020; £13,350 additional top-up funding) - RSC Undergraduate Research Bursary (2021; £2,494.80, supporting academic)
Vice-Chancellor’s Teaching Team Award (2022) - RSC Analytical Division Horizon Prize: Robert Boyle Prize for Analytical Science.
- Northumbria-Sunderland-BioMerieux-Freeman Collaboration, for the design and development of chromogenic reagents for the rapid detection and identification of pathogenic bacteria (2022)
- John Dawson Drug Discovery and Development Research Institute PhD Studentship Award (2023; approx. value £117k)
- Medical Research Council Impact Accelerator Award (2023, £60k)
Publications
Article
Miller, Duncan C, Reuillon, Tristan, Molyneux, Lauren, Blackburn, Timothy, Cook, Simon J, Edwards, Noel, Endicott, Jane A, Golding, Bernard T, Griffin, Roger J, Hardcastle, Ian, Harnor, Suzannah J, Heptinstall, Amy, Lochhead, Pamela, Martin, Mathew P, Martin, Nick C, Myers, Stephanie, Newell, David R, Noble, Richard A, Phillips, Nicole, Rigoreau, Laurent, Thomas, Huw, Tucker, Julie A, Wang, Lan-Zhen, Waring, Michael J, Wong, Ai-Ching, Wedge, Stephen R, Noble, Martin E and Cano, Celine (2022) Parallel Optimisation of Potency and Pharmacokinetics Leading to the Discovery of a Pyrrole Carboxamide ERK5 Kinase Domain Inhibitor. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 65 (9). pp. 6513-6540. ISSN 0022-2623
Myers, Stephanie (2019) Identification of a Novel Orally Bioavailable ERK5 Inhibitor with Selectivity over p38α and BRD4. European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 178. pp. 530-543. ISSN 0223-5234
Colombano, Giampiero, Caldwell, John J, Matthews, Thomas Peter, Bhatia, Chitra, Joshi, Amar, McHardy, Tatiana, Mok, Ngai Yi, Newbatt, Yvette, Pickard, Lisa, Strover, Jade, Hedayat, Somaieh, Walton, Michael Ian, Myers, Stephanie, Jones, Alan Morenc, Saville, Harry, McAndrew, Craig, Burke, Rosemary, Eccles, Suzanne, Davies, Faith, Bayliss, Richard and Collins, Ian (2019) Binding to an unusual inactive kinase conformation by highly selective inhibitors of inositol-requiring enzyme 1α kinase-endoribonuclease. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 62 (5). pp. 2447-2465. ISSN 0022-2623
Myers, Stephanie, Bawn, Ruth H., Bisset, Louise C., Blackburn, Timothy J., Cottyn, Betty, Molyneux, Lauren, Wong, Ai-Ching, Cano, Celine, Clegg, William, Harrington, Ross. W., Leung, Hing, Rigoreau, Laurent, Vidot, Sandrine, Golding, Bernard T., Griffin, Roger J., Hammonds, Tim, Newell, David R. and Hardcastle, Ian R. (2016) High-Throughput Screening and Hit Validation of Extracellular-Related Kinase 5 (ERK5) Inhibitors. ACS Combinatorial Science, 18 (8). pp. 444-455. ISSN 2156-8952
Myers, Stephanie and Collins, Ian (2016) Recent findings and future directions for interpolar mitotic kinesin inhibitors in cancer therapy. Future Medicinal Chemistry, 8 (4). pp. 463-489. ISSN 1756-8919
Patents
Cancer Research Technology Ltd (2016) Pyrrolcarboxamide derivatives for the inhbition of erk5. PCT/GB2015/052707.
- Medicinal chemistry
- Organic chemistry
- Drug design, Hit-to-Lead and Lead-optimisation strategies in medicinal chemistry
- Cancer research
- Cystinuria and Wilson's disease
- Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC)
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
Qualifications
- BSc (Hons) Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science (University of Sunderland)
- MSc Drug Chemistry (Newcastle University)
- PhD Medicinal Chemistry (Newcastle University)
- Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (University of Wolverhampton/University of Sunderland)
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