Research Career Synopsis

Bernhard Rupp

• Current Position: CEO and Founder, q.e.d. life sciences, California
  Adjunct Faculty, U. of California,  Irvine; Texas A&M University, IBT; U. of Wyoming, Laramie. Previous position: Head of Protein Drug Target Crystallography and Drug Discovery Group, University of California - Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

• Background: Strong and broad education in physical sciences, structural chemistry, structural biology, and computer science, during last ten years applied to biosciences and drug discovery. Unique combination of experience in biophysical sciences with advanced method development skills, focused on biomedical applications. Established drug target crystallography group at UC-LLNL in 1993, expanded 2000 into high throughput crystallization and structural genomics with focus on drug target structures and structure guided drug discovery.

• Accomplishments: Numerous successful collaborative grants, established fully supported structural genomics and drug discovery group (founding member of TB Structural Genomics Consortium) with extramural research budget of ~$1.2M without institutional contributions. Well respected as key member of structural genomics and structural biology community with extended international network of scientific and institutional connections. 120+ peer reviewed publications (see extended Biography for honors and board memberships). Founder, q.e.d. life science discoveries, California.

• Relevant Experience: Research in structural proteomics, automation technology, biophysical chemistry,  instrumentation development and crystallographic computing, combined with experience in hypothesis driven structure based drug discovery and design. Strong leadership and team building skills, 16+ years personnel and financial management experience of extramurally funded proteomics and drug target crystallography group. Consultant for several US biotech ventures, universities, and instrument manufacturers. Experience in patenting, licensing, and intellectual property protection. Invited keynote speaker at Protein crystallography in Drug Discovery and Laboratory Automation conferences. Excellent academic teaching and instruction record. Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences Committee for Crystallography and NAS Keck Futures Initiatives panel.

• Current Goals and Activities: Integration of technology-driven high throughput discovery methods, biophysics, crystallography, structural bioinformatics and data mining with hypothesis driven interests into strong biomedical drug discovery research program. Establishment of interdisciplinary proteomics and drug discovery program in highly collaborative environment, expanding exploration of genetics, structure-function relationships and interaction networks to a systems-level employing novel approaches at the interface of genomics, medicine, biology and bioinformatics. Specific interest in employing an innovative and unique combination of genetic screening and directed evolution with structure based drug discovery methods, technologies, and systems analysis to the design of resistance-resistant chemotherapeutics.