Dr. GPCR Podcast

Dr. Chris Tate obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Bristol in 1989 and then moved to the University of Cambridge (Dept of Biochemistry) to work on bacterial sugar transporters. In 2005 he started working on the development of conformational thermostabilization of GPCRs, which resulted in the structure of the β1-adrenoceptor. In 2016 mini-G proteins were developed as a tool for the structure determination of GPCRs in the fully active state. Join me to learn more about Chris’s work and his love for science.

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Imagine a world in which the vast majority of us are healthy.

The #DrGPCR Ecosystem is all about dynamic interactions between us who are working towards exploiting the druggability of #GPCR's. We aspire to provide opportunities to connect, share, form trusting partnerships, grow, and thrive together. 

To build our #GPCR Ecosystem, we created various enabling outlets.

For more details, visit our website http://www.DrGPCR.com/Ecosystem/.

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Dr. Pfleger trained as a pharmacologist and obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Edinburgh. I sat down with Kevin to chat about GPCRs, pharmacology, and his contributions to the field in both the academic and biotech worlds.

Professor Pfleger has developed extensive expertise in profiling receptor binding and function at the molecular and cellular levels over the last 20 years, particularly involving GPCRs. He also has globally-recognized expertise in bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) technology, including his patented Receptor-Heteromer Investigation Technology (Receptor-HIT) for studying heteromers.

Kevin is also Director, Biomedical Innovation at The University of Western Australia (UWA) and the MTPConnect Western Australian Life Sciences Innovation Hub. He is Head of Molecular Endocrinology and Pharmacology at the UWA Centre for Medical Research and Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, Deputy Director of the Australian Research Council Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies, Chief Scientific Advisor to Dimerix, and co-founder of RAGE Biotech.

He currently serves on the Board of the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists and is a member of the British Pharmacological Society International Advisory Group.

Join me and learn more about Kevin’s work and how he manages all his responsibilities.

Elva is currently a research fellow at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Elva moved to Canada where she obtained her Ph.D. at the University of Western Ontario, working on the regulation of G proteins signaling by accessory proteins, such as RGS proteins and GPSM proteins. After her Ph.D., she moved to Australia and continues working on GPCRs. Her current research focuses on class B GPCRs and understanding how GPCR signaling and function is mediated by various ligands, binding partners, and intracellular machinery. In her spare time, Elva likes to run in the mountains, play with Tilly (a 9-year old retired greyhound), collecting mini shoes, and hang out with friends.

Eleonora Comeo is a doctoral candidate in Medicinal Chemistry and Drug Discovery in the joint program of the University of Nottingham in the UK and Monash University in Australia. We sat down to chat about GPCRs, synthesizing labeled ligands, and her unique position that allows her to work with GPCR scientists on 2 continents. We also touched on how COVID-19 affected her Ph.D. work.

''Dr. Ross Cheloha is an Investigator at the National Institutes of Health in the Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry in Bethesda, MD, where he started in October 2020. He completed his postdoctoral training at MIT and Harvard Med School in the lab of Hidde Ploegh where he developed new applications of single domain antibodies (nanobodies). He earned his PhD in Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the lab of Sam Gellman on the study of analogs of the GPCR peptide ligand parathyroid hormone. Work in his independent laboratory is focused on developing new pharmacological tools via chemistry and protein engineering to interrogate GPCR signaling.

Ross and I chatted about his work and his transition to an independent investigator, Join me to learn more about class B GPCRs and Dr. Cheloha’s work.''

It was December 14th, 2020, 1:50 pm, when I turned on my laptop and signed into Zoom for my chat with Bob.

Bob is James B. Duke Professor of Medicine and Professor of Biochemistry, Chemistry, and Pathology at the Duke University Medical Center. He began his career in the late 1960s and has been an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute since 1976. His legacy lies in the numerous discoveries he and his team made in the GPCR field and in all those who trained in his laboratory and went on to pursue stellar scientific careers.

I very much enjoyed chatting with Bob, and I hope you’ll enjoy learning more about him as well.

http://www.drgpcr.com/episode-27-dr.-robert-j-lefkowitz/

Dr. Debbie Hay is presently a professor at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Otago after spending 18 years at the University of Auckland. Her work is primarily focused on class B GPCRs and their interactions with RAMPs. Debbie obtained a Ph.D. in Molecular Pharmacology from Imperial College London in the UK. She has gained experience from working in academia and at GSK as an industrial trainee.

Join me and learn more about Debbie’s career and what she learned through her experiences as a scientist.

Originally, Annette wanted to be a medical doctor but as luck has it, she didn’t get into medical school when she first applied. Instead, she discovered research and started her Ph.D. the day she should have started medical school. Dr. Gilchrist completed her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences /  Immunology at the University of Connecticut and went on to become a postdoctoral fellow at UIC (University of Illinois at Chicago). Annette worked in industry, academia and her entrepreneurial side led her to three companies, Cue Biotech, Caden Biosciences, and MyGenomeRx in addition to being a consultant for over a decade. Dr. Gilchrist is also an associate professor at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Join me and learn more about Annette’s career, our common love for chemokines, and how you can use your training as a scientist in so many different ways.

Dr. Niv is currently an associate professor and vice dean for research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The Niv lab is also part of the Global Consortium for Chemosensory Research. Masha earned her Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, followed by a direct Ph.D. at the Institute of Chemistry, at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel. Dr. Niv trained as a postdoctoral fellow at Weill Cornell Medical College. Her work focuses on both sweet and bitter taste receptor GPCRs and her lab established the BitterDB.

Dr. Fan is currently an associate professor of Pharmacology and Pathology and Cell Biology at Columbia University in NYC. Qing is a structural biologist interested in the molecular mechanisms controlling how class C GPCRs transmit signals. She obtained her bachelor's, master and doctoral degrees at Harvard University and completed her postdoctoral training with Dr. Hendrickson at Columbia University.