Source: UCSF Today
March 3, 2008

Wells to Chair UCSF Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry

James A. Wells, PhD, an internationally recognized biochemist and leader in the development of new technologies for engineering proteins and for identifying small molecules to aid in drug discovery, has been named chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry in the UCSF School of Pharmacy.

His appointment is effective July 1, 2008.

Wells, a member of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, joined UCSF in 2005 as the first holder of the Harry Wm. and Diana V. Hind Distinguished Professorship in Pharmaceutical Sciences. He is a professor in his home Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and holds a joint appointment as professor in the UCSF School of Medicine's Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology.

At UCSF, Wells' research group focuses on the discovery and design of small molecules that trigger or modulate cellular processes in inflammation and cancer. Using small molecules and engineered proteins, the Wells lab is studying how enzymes known as proteases are turned on to cleave particular proteins in cells. The lab is focusing on one set of proteases, known as caspases, that kill virally infected or precancerous cells. These enzymes act as demolition experts and help us understand the essential protein struts that support life. Wells' research spans the multiple disciplines of biophysics, cell biology, molecular biology, biochemistry and chemistry.

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