Southern Research Institute Names Corinne Augelli-Szafran, Ph.D., Director Of Chemistry

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., June 17, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Southern Research Institute today announced that Corinne E. Augelli-Szafran, Ph.D., has been named Director of Chemistry. In this role, Dr. Augelli-Szafran is responsible for managing the Institute's chemical research initiatives for the identification of new therapies in oncology, infectious diseases, and neuroscience.

Dr. Augelli-Szafran brings more than 25 years of practical and managerial experience in medicinal chemistry and drug discovery gained from leading research programs at institutions and pharmaceutical companies.  Most recently, Dr. Augelli-Szafran was the Director of the Laboratory for Experimental Alzheimer Drugs at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.  In that position, she built a fully functional medicinal chemistry and drug discovery laboratory from the ground up which focused on the development of gamma-secretase Notch-sparing inhibitors for the therapeutic indication of Alzheimer's disease.

Prior to Harvard, Dr. Augelli-Szafran held a number of leadership roles at Parke-Davis Pharmaceutical Research and Pfizer Global Research and Development, as co-chair and project leader investigating central nervous system therapeutics with a major emphasis in neurodegeneration mainly in Alzheimer disease therapeutics, but also in the areas of cardiovascular, atherosclerosis, psychotherapeutics and inflammation/pain.  Her scientific record includes more than 140 publications, presentations and patents.

"We are pleased to welcome Dr. Augelli-Szafran to our team," stated Mark J. Suto, Ph.D., Vice President, Drug Discovery of Southern Research Institute.  "Her expertise brings additional value to our knowledge base and skill, strengthening our capability to provide innovative, problem-solving chemistry services.  Additionally, Dr. Augelli-Szafran's valuable experience in leadership and project management will be vital in accelerating growth in our drug discovery programs."

"Over the past two years Mark has articulated and executed on a vision of adding world-class talent to Southern Research's drug discovery efforts and on continuing to expand our capabilities beyond cancer to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other critical diseases," stated Arthur J. Tipton, Ph.D., President and CEO of Southern Research Institute.  "I am thrilled he recruited Corinne as the most recent member of our senior team; she is an excellent fit for the Institute's mission to bridge the gap between early stage discovery and the market."

Dr. Augelli-Szafran completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania where she earned a B.A. in Biology, then earned a M.S. and her Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from New York University.

About Southern Research Institute 
Southern Research Institute is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) scientific research organization founded in 1941 that conducts preclinical drug discovery and development, advanced engineering research in materials, systems development, and environment and energy research. Approximately 500 scientific and engineering team members support clients and partners in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, defense, aerospace, environmental and energy industries. Southern Research is headquartered in Birmingham, AL, with additional laboratories and offices in Wilsonville and Huntsville, AL, Frederick, MD, Durham, NC, Houston, TX, and Cartersville, GA. For more information visit: http://www.southernresearch.org.

Contact:
Jonathan M. Nugent
205-566-3026
[email protected]

SOURCE Southern Research Institute