U.S. Economy Holds Promise for Chemists Who Stay Sharp

At the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, biologists, chemists, pharmacologists and computer scientists focus on scientific questions that advance drug discovery from targets to powerful therapies against human diseases. Over 20% of NIBR scientists have trained in chemistry. A number of NIBR chemists, along with peers in the Boston area from both academia and industry, discussed “The Prospects for Chemistry in the Future US Economy” on February 18 in a Town Hall co-sponsored by the Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society (ACS) and Global Discovery Chemistry at NIBR. An esteemed panel led the discussion, composed of leaders in the chemical sciences across industry, academia and government, and featuring the newly inaugurated ACS President Joe Francisco.

Joe Francisco says the good news in this dismal national economy of 10% unemployment is that only 4% of chemists are unemployed. Despite this statistic, Scott Biller, VP of Global Discovery Chemistry at NIBR, admitted that this is the most challenging job market that he has seen for chemists in the pharmaceutical industry. However, Biller believes that chemists who are versatile, have broad skills sets and remain at the cutting edge of their science will have good career prospects. “In the US, we need to be doing the most innovative work and stay at the highest value end of our field,” says Biller.

The horizon looks bright, according to Chris Austin, Director of the NIH Chemical Genomics Center, especially in fields such as regenerative medicine and novel drug delivery systems. Austin is using the power of small molecule screening, chemistry and informatics to better understand gene function. His Molecular Libraries Screening Center Network, which includes NIBR’s neighbor the Broad Institute, uses public funding to produce innovative chemical probes for use in biological research, with the objective of identifying new pathways that will spawn novel therapies. “With over 7,000 diseases and but only 300 established drug targets, the NIH is starting to see value in funding more target discovery and translational research, especially for rare and neglected diseases.”

Julian Adams, President of Research and Development of Infinity Pharmaceuticals, described some of the approaches that he and his peers use to deliver safer and more efficacious medicines. Adams went on to talk about new fields of chemistry that are likely to have impact on future career opportunities, such as nano-technology and renewable energy. He believes that RNAi has the potential to change the face of medicine once chemists figure out how to deliver them to humans. Chemists are working on other “smart” delivery systems that use nano-technology to direct natural products and other agents directly to targeted cells, avoiding organs that may suffer adverse effects. MIT Professor Robert Langer provided riveting examples of several nano structures that chemists are using as scaffolds to help cells proliferate and regenerate skin, bone and muscle tissue. These efforts are approaching commercialization, and the material sciences that led to these discoveries will offer new career opportunities for chemists.

The overwhelming message delivered throughout the program is that the long-term future is bright for chemistry, and that chemists who are creative, have broad skill sets and enjoy working in multidisciplinary environments will achieve the best career results.

Click here to view a video of the full conference

Read Chemical and Engineering News' article about NIBR's postdoc program