Derek Lowe
An Arkansan by birth, Derek got his BA from Hendrix College and his PhD in organic chemistry from Duke before spending time in Germany on a Humboldt Fellowship on his post-doc. He’s worked for several major pharmaceutical companies since 1989 on drug discovery projects against schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, osteoporosis and other diseases.
Derek writes the popular blog In the pipeline on drug discovery and the pharma industry.
Opinion‘Making MOFs is the most fun I have ever had in the lab’
A personal connection to the 2025 Nobel prize in chemistry
OpinionKeeping tabs on contamination
Argentina’s contaminated fentanyl tragedy highlights challenges of generic drug supply
OpinionLiver toxicity remains an unpredictable hurdle for medicinal chemists
The liver’s complex role in metabolising drugs makes it both a critical consideration and potential stumbling block
Opinion‘Creative destruction’ in the chemistry lab
Some obsolete lab equipment is quickly replaced, while other items are stubbornly persistent. What modern tech will survive to the 2060s?
OpinionGetting good at human tasks
’What do you mean you had to lock the NMR with an oscilloscope and shim the magnet by hand?’
OpinionWomen are not just another confounding factor in drug development
Ignoring physiological differences between the sexes is indefensible
OpinionIn search of truth and rules
To codify and predict ever more complex phenomena is one of science’s great drivers
OpinionWelcome to the MegaPharm target selection and project resourcing meeting
Overheard recently in a seminar room near you…
OpinionFluorine makes you an offer you can’t refuse
What might we do if we had a new, electron-donating equivalent element?
OpinionMaintaining mental balance
Finding solace from human affairs in the eypiece of a telescope or microscope
OpinionRobots queuing up to fail
Claims of an AI revolution in drug discovery are missing the biggest problem
OpinionLarge language models are great, but they don’t speak to me
AI has some made tremendous achievements, but some things mean more than words
OpinionA chemist in the flower garden
The beautifully complex molecules plants produce are as inspiring as the blooms themselves
OpinionBeing wrong is almost inevitable
On the tightrope of expressing your opinion, you always risk looking a fool
OpinionMedicinal chemistry’s biological blind spots
Despite advances in modern medicine, there are some big gaps in our knowledge
OpinionThe US abortion drugs regulation challenge has stalled, but it will return
Having failed in the US Supreme Court, anti-abortion activists are trying other ways to prevent access to mifepristone
OpinionWill science ever reach an end?
While the rate of discoveries in any field may slow over time, the frontier creeps ever further
OpinionLab automation gives me more time at the top of the mountain
Getting back to the bench reminds Derek Lowe how much has changed in 40 years
OpinionWater isn’t normal
Despite its familiarity, water is a chemical oddity. But that’s what makes it fascinating