Developmental Projects
RM DP 007: New Arenavirus Fusion Inhibitors: 3D Model-derived Medicinal Chemistry Studies
Introduction: Effective therapies against hemorrhagic fever caused by arenaviruses are urgently needed to effectively defend against select Category A biodefense threats and to successfully address public health arenavirus outbreaks. The goal of this project is to advance 3D pharmacophore model of arenavirus cell fusion inhibition and to identify an efficacious collection of novel small molecule antiviral agents.
Principal Investigator: John Gerdes, PhD.
Institution: University of Montana, Department of Biomedical & Pharmaceutical Sciences, Missoula, MT
RM DP 008: Mixing tetracycline and angucycline biosynthetic machineries for novel antibiotics
Introduction: This project is to create a new generation of antibiotics to combat bacterial infections. New compounds will be biosynthesized through combinatorial biosynthesis and pathway shuffling, and will be screened using a panel of bacterial strains including several NIAID priority pathogens.
Principal Investigator: Jixum Zhan, PhD.
Institution: Utah State University, Department of Biological Engineering, Logan, UT
RM DP 009 : Therapeutic targeting of mTOR signaling to treat Viral Encephalitis
Introduction: Viral infections of the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) cause significant disease throughout the world, and West Nile virus is the most common cause of epidemic infections of the central nervous system in the United States. Our studies will evaluate pharmacologic manipulations of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) as a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of viral encephalitis.
Principal Investigator: John D. Beckham, MD
Institution: University of Colorado Denver, Division of Infectious Diseases , Aurora, CO