Drug Discovery Summit catalyst for new approaches and therapies

University of Arizona Health Sciences researchers and industry leaders will convene in Phoenix on Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for the Fifth Annual Arizona Drug Discovery and Development Summit to share potential treatments for cancer, diabetes and other diseases.

The UArizona Cancer Center and the Arizona Center for Drug Discovery at the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy are co-hosting the annual summit, which will be held in the Virginia G. Piper Auditorium on the Phoenix Bioscience Core. 

The summit aims to bring together scientists from both academia and industry to exchange innovative ideas and foster new collaborations.  

“The speakers participating in this event all have innovations to share,” said Joann Sweasy, PhD, Nancy C. and Craig M. Berge Endowed Chair and UArizona Cancer Center director. “I know that there are real opportunities for scientists to come away with ideas for interdisciplinary work and collaborations.”

This year’s featured speaker is Nader Sanai, MD, chief of neurosurgical oncology and director of the Ivy Brain Tumor Center at the Barrow Neurological Institute. Dr. Sanai is renowned in the field and globally recognized for his clinical and research prowess in the treatment of various types of brain tumors.

Dr. Sanai is joined by researchers and clinicians representing diverse research areas, all united by their shared interest in drug discovery.

“Listening to peers whose specialties differ from ours is crucial to scientific breakthroughs,” said Rick G. Schnellmann, PhD, dean of the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy and Howard J. Schaeffer Endowed Chair in Pharmaceutical Sciences. “Observing others’ approaches and posing questions can inspire new ideas for all attendees.”

Adding to the roster of speakers this year are representatives from the National Cancer Institute’s Small Business Innovation Research Development Center. Program directors Saroj Regmi, PhD, and Swamy Tripurani, PhD, will share funding opportunities and other commercialization resources for researchers interested in translating ideas from lab to market. 

Speakers at this year’s summit include:

• Rui Chang, PhD, associate professor, Department of Neurology, UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson; member, UArizona Cancer Center, Clinical and Translational Oncology Program
• Alessandra Fistrovich, graduate student, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UArizona College of Science and College of Medicine – Tucson
• James K. Liao, MD, FACP, FACC, chair and professor, Department of Medicine, UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson
• Christopher Penton, PhD, researcher, Arizona Center for Drug Discovery, R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy
• Joyce Schroeder, PhD, head and professor, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, UArizona College of Science; member, UArizona Cancer Center, Cancer Biology Program; member, BIO5 Institute
• Yana Zavros, PhD, associate head and professor, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson; member, UArizona Cancer Center; director, Tissue Acquisition Cellular and Molecular Analysis Shared Resource, UArizona Cancer Center

Registration is required and closes on Tuesday, Sept. 19. Free parking vouchers will be available during check-in for guests parking at the Phoenix Bioscience Core parking garage.