In 2016, Vittorio Canale was awarded a Messel Travel Bursary to support his attendance at the 6th SCI/RSC Symposium on GPCRs in Medicinal Chemistry, which took place between 13 and 15 June 2016, at Aptuit, Verona, Italy. Here, he tells us how attending the conference gave him the opportunity to broaden his knowledge in medicinal chemistry, in particular CPCR and their ligands, as well as facilitate the exchange of his scientific expertise with fellow researchers.
‘The award of an SCI Messel Travel Bursary enabled me to participate at the 6th SCI/RSC Symposium on GPCRs in Medicinal Chemistry at Aptuit, Verona, Italy, 13 -15 June 2016. The conference aimed to underline the key role of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) as key medicinal chemistry targets for development of new therapies for the treatment of civilization diseases, i.e. cancer, diabetes, depression, schizophrenia, dementia. During the conference, I had the opportunity to present my current results on the design, synthesis, and metabolic pathways, as well as in vivo pharmacological evaluation of the novel class of 5-HT7 receptor antagonists. Additionally, my work was selected by the Scientific Committee for a flash poster presentation. Many researchers from academia and pharmaceutical industries, interested in my work, raised several valuable suggestions for my future research plans and scientific career. At the conference, I attended several discussions ranging from disclosures on clinical candidates and case studies in GPCR drug discovery, to the development of novel biologically active structures. An important perspective in the studies on function of GPCR’s focused on allosteric modulation and biased signaling.
‘Participation at the 6th SCI/RSC Symposium gave me an excellent opportunity to broaden my knowledge in medicinal chemistry and in particular towards the GPCR and their ligands as well as to exchange my scientific experience with both young and experienced researchers. During the conference, I had the inestimable chance to visit the Aptuit laboratories of organic synthesis which gave me the idea about organisation of the work in a pharmaceutical company.
‘I am very grateful to SCI for the Messel Travel Bursary grant to support my participation in the 6th SCI/RSC Symposium on GPCRs in Medicinal Chemistry. Following my experience at Aptuit in Verona, I have ongoing correspondence with researchers, which I’m sure will be especially relevant to my professional expertise and for future collaborations.’
Vittorio Canale
PhD Student, Jagiellonian University Medical College
Krakow, Poland
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