Lisa Marcaurelle facts for kids

Lisa Ann Marcaurelle is an American chemist who has held important leadership roles in several biotechnology companies. She is known for her work in creating new chemical compounds that can be used to develop medicines.

Education and Early Research

Lisa Marcaurelle earned her first degree, a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in chemistry, from the College of the Holy Cross in 1997. She was a top student and became a member of Phi Beta Kappa, an honor society. During her studies, she worked with Professor Timothy Curran on special chemical structures called dipeptide scaffolds. These are like building blocks for larger molecules.

After her BA, Lisa went to the University of California, Berkeley. There, she earned her Ph.D. (a high-level science degree) in Chemistry. Her advisor was Carolyn R. Bertozzi, a famous chemist. Lisa's research focused on new ways to link sugar molecules together. This helped her create special proteins called glycoprotein mimetics, which are similar to natural substances like mucin found in our bodies.

Later, Lisa Marcaurelle completed a one-year research program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She worked with Professor Peter Seeberger on making complex sugar chains, called oligosaccharides, in a solid form. This method helps scientists create many new compounds more easily.

Career in Biotechnology

Lisa Marcaurelle spent nine years working at Infinity Pharmaceuticals and the Broad Institute. At these places, she was involved in many different chemistry projects. She worked on finding new chemicals quickly (high-throughput chemistry) and creating many different types of molecules from a few starting ones (diversity-oriented chemical synthesis). Her work also included chemical biology, which uses chemistry to study living systems, and medicinal chemistry, which focuses on making new medicines.

In 2011, she became a vice president at H3 Biomedicine. There, she helped develop a special way to create many different chemical compounds from a single starting material. This method is called diversity-oriented synthesis. She focused on new types of molecules like spirocycles and macrocycles, which have unique shapes.

Later, in 2016, Lisa became the Senior Director of Chemistry at Warp Drive Bio. In 2018, she took on the role of Vice President at Enko Chem. This company is a start-up in the Boston area that works on protecting crops. Also in 2018, she became a senior director at GlaxoSmithKline in Cambridge, Massachusetts. There, she led a team that used special DNA-encoded libraries to discover new chemicals.

Lisa Marcaurelle is also dedicated to helping other scientists. She volunteers with professional groups and mentors younger scientists in the pharmaceutical industry. She strongly supports getting more women scientists into leadership positions.

Awards and Recognition

Lisa Marcaurelle has received several awards for her important contributions to chemistry:

• 2013 - American Chemical Society WCC "Rising Star" Award
• 2013 - McElvain Industrial Seminar, University of Wisconsin
• 2011 - Division of Organic Chemistry Young Investigator Symposium
• 1997 - American Institute of Chemists Foundation Award

See also

In Spanish: Lisa Marcaurelle para niños