The Center for Drug Discovery (CDD) was established in 2016 to help bridge the so-called “Valley of Death” in drug development.
The goal of the CDD is to translate outstanding research into products that improve the quantity and quality of life.
The Center is anchored in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics.
CDD Team
Roland (Ron) Dolle – Chemistry and Center Director
Dr. Dolle is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics. Ron’s expertise includes medicinal chemistry and many aspects of drug design and preclinical development. His accomplishments include the advancement of more than a dozen drug candidates into preclinical and clinical studies including at least 7 investigational new drug (IND) applications.
Maxene Ilagan – Biology and HTSC Director
Dr. Ilagan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics. Maxene’s expertise includes the development and optimization of microplate assays and high-throughput screening strategies to study cell-based behaviors as well as enzyme or protein function. She also has experience with screening of small molecule and biologics, including sub- or genome-wide siRNA libraries.