DTU Chemistry PhD Jorge Peiró Cadahía is Denmark’s nominee for European Champion in Medicinal Chemistry.
The Danish Society for Medicinal Chemistry and Chemical Biology (DSMKB) has chosen Jorge Peiró Cadahía to represent Denmark at the contest for the title of European Champion in Medicinal Chemistry. The venue for the contest is the Young Medicinal Chemist Symposium to be held in Ljubljana, September 6-7.
Jorge Peiró Cadahía works as Research Scientist with Nuevolution. Last year, he completed his PhD on prodrug candidates for safe and efficient treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). The work was done in the group led by Professor Mads Hartvig Clausen at DTU Chemistry.
Rheumatoid Arthritis is an autoimmune disease and chronic inflammatory disorder associated with progressive disability and reduced life time expectancy. Affecting around 1% of the world’s population, RA has large socio-economic costs. In the PhD project, novel prodrugs of methotrexate (MTX) and aminoptherin (AMT) were synthesized. Notably, the developed prodrugs are sensitive to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), a reactive oxygen species found in up to 100-fold higher concentration in RA-affected tissue.
These findings and later efforts secured the nomination for Jorge Peiró Cadahía at the inaugural symposium of the Danish Society for Medicinal Chemistry and Chemical Biology held 31 May 2018. DSMKB is a new society under the Danish Chemical Society and also the Danish branch of the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry (EFMC), an independent association representing medicinal chemistry societies in Europe.
The objective of EFMC is to advance the science of medicinal chemistry by promoting cooperation and networking through training and mentoring, by rewarding scientific excellence, and by facilitating communication and influencing stakeholders.
The annual Young Medicinal Chemist Symposium provides talents from the countries with EFMC branches the opportunity to present their projects to an international audience and to build an international network.
Read Jorge Peiró Cadahía article Towards better Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis in DTU Chemistry annual report 2017, page 18.
The new drug candidates from DTU Chemistry can treat inflammation in an animal model of rheumatoid arthritis. Additionally, the experiments demonstrate that the new compounds are less toxic than existing treatments. This types of experiments are crucial in order to develop drugs to a point, where they can be tested on humans and eventually benefit patients.
