RSC-BMCS / SCI 23rd Medicinal Chemistry Symposium
Event
RSC-BMCS / SCI 23rd Medicinal Chemistry Symposium
Dates
Sunday – Wednesday, 14th-17th September, 2025
Place
Churchill College, Cambridge
Important links and downloads
X hashtag – #CamMedChem25
Synopsis
The organisers invite you to the 23rd SCI-RSC Medicinal Chemistry symposium, Europe’s premier biennial Medicinal Chemistry event, focusing on first disclosures and new strategies in Medicinal Chemistry.
Workshop
The workshop is based on an interactive, team-based game that allows you to explore various aspects of the drug discovery process. Delegates will work together in teams with peers from other organisations and the learning experience will be facilitated by a dedicated and diverse team of experienced professional medicinal chemists from across the pharmaceutical industry. This is a great way to accelerate your learning curve in medicinal chemistry, learning from your peers and our experts and it’s a lot of fun to play!
This event will be of interest to early career scientists, typically with five years or fewer post-graduate experience in medicinal chemistry.
Abstract submissions
Abstract submission is now open! If you would like to submit an abstract please click here.
The deadline for submission is Wednesday 30th April 2025.
Registration
Please click here to register.
Registration Packages:
| Residential Package Full conference attendance plus 3 Dinners & 3 Nights Accommodation |
Conference Attendance Only Does NOT include Conference Dinners or Accommodation |
|
| RSC/SCI Member* | £1010.00 | £510.00 |
| Non-member | £1130.00 | £630.00 |
| RSC/SCI Student** Member* (undergraduate and post-graduate) | £710.00 | £210.00 |
| Student** non-member (undergraduate and post-graduate) | £815.00 | £315.00 |
* Member is a paid-up member of the RSC / SCI
** Student rates apply to undergraduate and post-graduate students only, but not post-doctoral students.
***The Sunday BBQ, Monday Dinner, and Conference Dinner can be booked separately at an additional cost.
If you decide to choose the Conference Attendance Only package, this does not include dinners. If you would like to attend any of the dinners this is also available at a separate cost
Sunday Night BBQ: £40.00
Monday Night Churchill College Dinner: £70.00
Tuesday Night Conference Dinner: £95.00
Exhibition/Sponsorship opportunities
Exhibition stands are now sold out, however there are still sponsorship opportunities available, please contact events@hg3.co.uk for further information
Programme:
Sunday 14th September
| 13:00-16:30 | MedChem Training Workshop (Registered Participants Only) |
| 15:00 | Registration Opens and Refreshments |
| 18:30 | Welcome BBQ |
Monday 15th September
| 08:00 | Registration Opens |
| 08:30 – 08:40 | Welcome and opening remarks
Chair: Gordon Saxty (NS-MC Consulting) |
| Session 1
Chair: Jamie Scott (AstraZeneca) |
|
| 08:40 – 09:10 | Medicinal chemistry discovery of a clinical peptide candidate
Hannah Bolt (AstraZeneca) |
| 09:10 – 09:40 | Revolutionizing Screening for Molecular Glues: Unveiling WEE1 Degraders with High-Throughput Spectral Shift
Olivier Mirguet (Eurofins) |
| 09:40 – 10:10 | Discovery of novel IL-17 inhibitors by scaffold morphing strategy
Juraj Velcicky (Novartis) |
| 10:10 – 10:40 | Refreshment break |
| Session 2
Chair: Tanja Poljak (Selvita) |
|
| 10:40 – 11:10 | Discovery of Zamzetoclax (GS-9716), a Potent Orally Active MCL1 Inhibitor for the Treatment of Solid Tumors
David Lin (Gilead) |
| 11:10 – 11:40 | Structure- and property-based optimization of covalent TEAD PPI inhibitors Bryan Chan (Genentech Inc) |
| 11:40 – 12:10 | Merck’s TEAD endeavor: hit optimizations, selectivity considerations, CNS availability and MoA studies.
Timo Heinrich (Merck Group) |
| 12:10 – 13:30 | Lunch |
| Session 3
Chair: Joanne Pinder (Vertex) |
|
| 13:30 – 14:00 | Discovery of RMC-5127, an Oral, RAS(ON) G12V-Selective, Noncovalent, Tri-Complex Inhibitor Jim Cregg (Revolution Medicines) |
| 14:00 – 14:30 | Targeting the Active State of KRAS G12C through Structure Based Drug Design
Juan del Pozo (MSD) & Patrick Schopf (Astex) |
| 14:30 – 15:00 | Invention of MK-0616, an Orally Bioavailable Macrocyclic Peptide PCSK9 Inhibitor
Petr Vachal (MSD) |
| 15:00 – 15:30 | Refreshment Break |
| Session 4 Chair: Kirsten McAulay (University of Dundee, CTPD) |
|
| 15:30 – 16:00 | Discovery of glovadalen (UCB0022), an oral, brain penetrant positive allosteric modulator of the dopamine D1 receptor (D1 PAM) currently in Phase 2 clinical trial
Anne Valade (UCB) |
| 16:00 – 16:30 | Discovery of gut-restricted PRMT5 inhibitors for APC loss-of-function dependent colorectal cancer interception
Susan Lepri (J&J Innovative Medicine) |
| 16:30 – 17:00 | Targeting Cancer with First-in-Class Inhibitors of the RNA m7G Methyltransferase METTL1
Beth Thomas (Storm Therapeutics) |
| 17:00 – 17:30 | Flash poster presentations |
| 17:30 | Poster Session 1 (Odds) and Drinks Reception |
| 19:30 | Churchill College Dinner |
Tuesday 16th September
| 08:00 | Registration Opens |
| Session 5:
Chair: Andrew Williams (past RSC-BMCS Chair) |
|
| 08:30 – 09:00 | PF-07853578 for Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease
Thomas Chappie (Pfizer) |
| 09:00 – 09:30 | Identification of a peripherally restricted MAGL inhibitor with potential to treat inflammatory bowel disease
Fionn O’Hara (F. Hoffmann-La Roche) |
| 09:30 – 10:00 | Structure-based Discovery and Development of Highly Potent Dihydroorotate Dehydrogenase Inhibitors for Malaria Chemoprevention Zhe Nie (Schrödinger) |
| 10:00 – 10:30 | Refreshment Break |
| Session 6:
Chair: Chris Swain (Cambridge MedChem Consulting) |
|
| 10:30 – 11:00 | Adventures with Carboxylic Acids in Oral Small Molecule Drug Discovery Programme
Tim Barrett (GSK) |
| 11:00 – 11:30 | Lead optimization of Thienopyrimidines as potential long acting antimalarials
Candice Soares de Melo (H3D) |
| 11:30 – 12:00 | Teaching an old target new tricks – Optimization of a MD-0428, A non-trapping PARP inhibitor for use in promoting vascular remodeling
Naeem Yusuff (Astellas) |
| 12:00 – 13:10 | Lunch |
| Session 7:
Chair: Sarah Major (Dark Blue Therapeutics) |
|
| 13:10 – 13:40 | Optimization of a Fragment Hit Yields ABBV-973, a Potent, Pan-allele Small Molecule STING Agonist for Intravenous Administration Cheng Ji (Abbvie) |
| 13:40 – 14:10 | Discovery and characterisation of compounds targeting the pro-inflammatory effects of extracellular nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (eNAMPT).
Sam Butterworth (University of Manchester) |
| 14:10 – 14:40 | Discovery of CHF-6333: a Neutrophilic elastase inhibitor under clinical development
Fabio Rancati (Chiesi) |
| 14:40 – 15:10 | Refreshment Break |
| Session 8:
Chair: Nadia Ahmad (Secretary of the BMCS committee) |
|
| 15:10 – 15:40 | Phenotypic Screen for Alzheimer’s Target and MoA determination Eric Stefan (Biogen) |
| 15:40 – 16:10 | From Phenotypic Screening to a Preclinical Lead – the Discovery of JNJ-9676, a Small Molecule Sarbecovirus Inhibitor Targeting the Viral Membrane Protein
Michiel Van Gool (J&J Innovative Medicine) |
| 16:10 – 16:25 | Pirtobrutinib, First and Only Non-Covalent (Reversible) Approved BTK Inhibitor
Nicolas Guisot (Redx Pharma) Malcolm Campbell Memorial Prize presentation. Presented by Nadia Ahmad (Secretary of the BMCS committee) |
| 16:25 – 16:55 | Flash poster presentations |
| 16:55 | Poster Session 2 (Evens) |
| 19:00 | Gala Dinner |
Wednesday 17th September
| 08:00 | Registration Opens |
| Session 9:
Chair: Daniel O’Donovan (AstraZeneca) |
|
| 08:30 – 09:00 | Discovery of EGT710, an oral non-peptidomimetic SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitor for the treatment of COVID-19
Lei Zhang (Novartis) |
| 09:00 – 09:30 | ABBV-903: A Non-Covalent Inhibitor of the Coronavirus Main Protease
Tim Hodges (Abbvie) |
| 09:30 – 10:00 | New Pan-lethal Coronavirus antivirals for Pandemic Preparedness
Ed Griffen (Medchemica) |
| 10:00 – 10:30 | Refreshment Break |
| Session 10:
Chair: John Cumming (F. Hoffmann-La Roche) |
|
| 10:30 – 11:00 | Unwinding the Challenge of Drugging Werner Helicase: The Discovery of Clinical Candidate IDE275 / GSK4418959
Brian Jones (IDEAYA Biosciences) |
| 11:00 – 11:30 | Discovery of GS-1427: A Potent and Selective, Oral a4b7 Inhibitor for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Kevin Currie (Gilead) |
| 11:30 – 12:00 | Inside Kv3.1 channel: The binding and the mechanism of positive modulators
Giueseppe Alvaro (BioTiChe Drug Discovery) |
| 12:00 – 13:10 | Lunch |
| Session 11:
Chair: Mark Healy (Novartis) |
|
| 13:10 – 13:40 | Discovery of AZD9750: an Orally Bioavailable Androgen Receptor Degrader for the Treatment of Prostate Cancer
Sharan Bagal (AstraZeneca) |
| 13:40 – 14:10 | Discovery of small molecular glues for the activation of Parkin protein Nupur Bansal (Biogen) |
| 14:10 – 14:40 | Bcl-xL from inhibition to degradation: a quest for increased therapeutic index
Andras Kotschy (Servier) |
| 14:40 – 15:10 | Identification of KRAS PROTACs Targeting GTP-loaded Alleles
Kirsten McAulay (University of Dundee) |
| 15:10 | Ending remarks
Gordon Saxty (NS-MC Consulting) |
Organising Committee
John Cumming, Roche
Mark Healy, Novartis
Daniel O Donovan, AstraZeneca
Joanne Pinder, Vertex
Jamie Scott, AstraZeneca
Gordon Saxty, NS-MC Consulting (Chair)
Chris Swain, Cambridge MedChem Consulting
Andrew Williams, Chairman of the RSC BMCS
Secretariat Contact and Further Information
Hg3 Conferences Ltd
+44 (0)1423 529333
events@hg3.co.uk
