Structure-based CADD methods for Peptide Therapeutics Discovery
Sandeep Somani
Principal Scientist, Janssen Research and Development
Structure-based CADD (Computer Aided Drug Design) methods such as ligandability assessments, binding affinity predictions and conformational analysis are well established in the field of small molecule drug discovery. This talk will describe efforts at Janssen for adapting these methods for discovery of peptide therapeutics.
Dr Somani is a computational chemist at Janssen R&D and is based in Spring House, Pennsylvania. He joined Janssen in 2013 where he has been applying computer-aided drug design methods to support discovery programs across different modalities - antibodies, vaccines, small molecules and peptides. In recent years, Dr Somani has worked on multiple peptide discovery programs aimed at oral delivery and is involved in shaping Janssen's peptide strategy.
Prior to Janssen, Dr Somani did his post-doctoral training in Theoritical Chemistry at University of Cambridge, UK and doctoral research in Chemical Physics at University of Maryland, College Park, both in the field of statistical mechanics and atomistic simulations of biomolecules. He has co-authored 19 scientific publications and has submitted over 5 patents.