Matthew Volgraf
Senior Scientist, Discovery Chemistry
"I’m motivated by the opportunity to work with talented colleagues on the toughest scientific problems."
I joined Genentech in 2010 after completing my PhD at UC Berkeley with Prof. Dirk Trauner, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center with Prof. David Gin. My academic background in chemical biology and natural product total synthesis prepared me for the collaborative, multi-disciplinary team environment which is central to Genentech’s culture.
Featured Publication
Discovery of GluN2A-Selective NMDA Receptor Positive Allosteric Modulators (PAMs): Tuning Deactivation Kinetics via Structure-Based Design.
J Med Chem. 2016 Mar 24;59(6):2760-79.
Volgraf M, Sellers BD, Jiang Y, Wu G, Ly CQ, Villemure E, Pastor RM, Yuen PW1, Lu A, Luo X, Liu M, Zhang S, Sun L, Fu Y, Lupardus PJ, Wallweber HJ, Liederer BM, Deshmukh G, Plise E, Tay S, Reynen P, Herrington J, Gustafson A, Liu Y, Dirksen A, Dietz MG, Liu Y, Wang TM, Hanson JE, Hackos D, Scearce-Levie K, Schwarz JB.
My current role in the Discovery Chemistry department has been focused on developing small molecule drugs targeting ion channels within the neuroscience and immunology therapeutic areas. I am interested in studying the principles of drug design targeting membrane-bound enzymes and receptors, together with the physicochemical rules governing blood-brain barrier penetration.
- University of California, Berkeley, Ph.D in Chemistry – 2008
- University of Pennsylvania, B.A. in Chemistry – 2003
- ACS Medicinal Chemistry Division Young Investigator Symposium, Speaker – 2016
- American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellow – 2008-2010
- Roche Excellence in Chemistry Award – 2007
- ACS Medicinal Chemistry Division Predoctoral Fellowship – 2006
