Recent Publications

A full list of publications can be found here.

  1. Goddard, Z. R., Searcey, M. & Osbourn, A., Advances in triterpene drug discovery. Trends Pharmacol. Sci., 2024, 45, 964-968.
  2. Cominetti, M. M. D., Goddard, Z. R., Hood, B. R., Beekman, A. M., O’Connell, M. A. & Searcey, M., Borylation via iridium catalysed C–H activation: a new concise route to duocarmycin derivatives. Org. Biomol. Chem., 2024, 22, 5603-5607.
  3. Hamshaw, I., Cominetti, M., Nana-Akyin, P., Ho Yee Ho, E., Searcey, M. & Mueller, A., IS4-FAM, a fluorescent tool to study CXCR4 affinity and competitive antagonism in native cancer cells. Pharmacol Res Perspect., 2024, 12, e70003.
  4. Hayward, D., Goddard, Z. R., Cominetti, M. M. D., Searcey, M. & Beekman, A. M., Light-activated azobenzene peptide inhibitor of the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction. Chem. Commun., 2024, 60, 8228-8231.
  5. Steverding, D., Tinson, R. A. J., Piras, M., Wren, S. P., Rushworth, S. A., Searcey, M. & Troeberg, L., Suramin: Effectiveness of analogues reveals structural features that are important for the potent trypanocidal activity of the drug. Experimental Parasitology, 2024, 260,108744
  6. Green, J.; Tinson, R.A.J.; Betts, J.H.J.; Piras, M.; Pelut, A.; Steverding, D.; Wren, S.P.; Searcey, M.; Troeberg, L. Suramin analogues protect cartilage against osteoarthritic breakdown by increasing levels of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 3 (TIMP-3) in the tissue. Bioorg. Med. Chem. 2023, 92, 117424.
  7. Ivens, E.; Cominetti, M. M. D.; Searcey M. Junctions in DNA: underexplored targets for therapeutic intervention. Bioorg. Med. Chem. 2022, 69, 116897.
  8. Bidula, S.; Nadzirin, I. B.; Cominetti, M. M. D.; Hickey, H.; Cullum, S. A.; Searcey, M.; Schimd, R.; Fountain, S. J. Structural basis of the negative allosteric modulation of 5-BDBD at human P2X4 receptors. Mol. Pharmacol. 2022, 101, 33-44.
  9. Nadzirin, I. B.;  Fortuny‐Gomez, A.; Ngum, N.; Richards, D.; Ali, S.; Searcey, M.; Fountain, S. J. Taspine is a natural product that suppresses P2X4 receptor activity via phosphoinositide 3‐kinase inhibition. Brit. J. Pharmacol. 2021, 178, 4859-4872.
  10. Ortuzar, N. ; Karu, K.; Presa, D.; Morais, G. R.; Sheldrake, H. M.; Shnyder, D. S.; Barnieh, F. M.; Loadman, P. M.; Patterson, L. H.; Pors, K.; Searcey, M. Probing cytochrome P450 (CYP) bioactivation with chloromethylindoline bioprecursors derived from the duocarmycin family of compounds. Bioorg. Med. Chem. 2021, 40, 116167.
  11. Cominetti, M. M. D.; Goddard, Z. R.; Howman, C. E.; O’Connell, M. A.; Searcey, M. Amino DSA analogues as payloads for antibody drug conjugates with multiple sites for conjugation. Initial studies and solid phase synthesis. Tetrahedron Lett 2021, 72, 15058.
  12. Goddard, Z. R.; Beekman, A. M.; Cominetti, M. M. D.; O’Connell, M. A.; Chambrier, I.; Cook, M. J.; Marin, M, J.; Russell, D. A.; Searcey, M. Peptide directed phthalocyanine-gold nanoparticles for selective photodynamic therapy of EGFR overexpressing cancers. RSC Med. Chem. 2021, 12, 288-292.
  13. Goddard, Z. R.; Marin, M. J.; Russell, D. A. Searcey, M. Active targeting of gold nanoparticles as cancer therapeutics. Chem. Soc. Rev.2020, 49, 8774-8789.
  14. Cartwright, O. C.; Beekman, A. M.; Cominetti, M.M.D.; Russell, D. A.; Searcey, M.  A peptide-duocarmycin conjugate targeting the Thomsen-Friedenreich antigen has potent and selective antitumour activity. Bioconjugate Chem.2020, 31, 1745-1749.
  15. Beekman, A. M.; Cominetti, M, M, D; Cartwright, O. C.; Boger, D. L.; Searcey, M. A small molecule drug conjugate (SMDC) of DUPA and a duocarmycin built on the solid phase. MedChemComm. 2019, 10, 2170-2174.
  16. Beekman, A. M.; Cominetti, M. D.; Walpole, S. J.; Prabhu, S.; O’Connell, M. A.; Angulo, J.; Searcey, M. Identification of selective protein-protein interaction inhibitors using efficient in silico peptide-directed ligand design. Chem. Sci 2019, 10, 4502-4508.
  17. Williams, M.; Bertrand, B.; Hughes, D. L.; Waller, Z. A. E.; Schmidt, C.; Ott, I.; O’Connell, M. A.; Searcey, M.; Bochmann, M. (C^ N pz^ C) Cyclometallated Au(III) dithiocarbamate complexes: synthesis, anticancer evaluation and mechanistic studies. Metallomics 2018, 10, 1655–1666.
  18. Williams, M.; Bertrand, B.; Fernandez-Cestau, J.; Waller, Z. A. E.; O’Connell, M. A.; Searcey, M.; Bochmann, M. (C^ N pz^ C) Au III complexes of acyclic carbene ligands: synthesis and anticancer properties Dalton Trans. 2018, 47, 13523-13534.
  19. Beekman, A. M.; Cominetti, M. D.; Searcey, M. Duocarmycins. Chapter 9 in Antibody Drug Conjugates Royal Society of Chemistry Publishing. 2018.
  20. Steel, R. J.; O’Connell, M. A.; Searcey, M. Perfluoroarene-based peptide macrocycles that inhibit the Nrf2/Keap1 interaction Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 2018, 28, 2728-2731 (Issue in honour of Dale Boger’s 65th birthday).
  21. Williams, M.; Green, A. I.; Fernandez-Cestau, J.; Hughes, D. L.; O’Connell, M. A.; Searcey, M.; Bertrand, B.; Bochmann, M. (C^ N pz^ C) Au III complexes of acyclic carbene ligands: synthesis and anticancer properties Dalton Trans. 2017, 46, 13397-13408.
  22. Benoit, B.; Fernandez-Cestau, J.; Angulo, J.; Cominetti, M.; Waller, Z. A. E.; Searcey, M.; O’Connell, M. A; Bochmann, M. Cytotoxicity of Pyrazine-Based Cyclometalated (C^ Npz^ C) Au (III) Carbene Complexes: Impact of the Nature of the Ancillary Ligand on the Biological Properties Inorg. Chem. 2017, 56, 5728-5740.
  23. Austin, M. J.; Hearnshaw, S. J.; Mitchenall, L. A.; McDermott, P. J.; Howell, L. A.; Maxwell. A.; Searcey M. A natural product inspired fragment based approach towards the development of novel anti-bacterial agents. MedChemComm 2016, 7, 1387-1391
  24. Angulo, J.; Goffin, S. A.; Gandhi, D.; Searcey, M.; Howell, L. A. STD NMR initial growth rates approach in protein-protein interactions: Unveiling the “three finger pharmacophore” required for p53-MDM2 inhibition by Saturation-Transfer Difference (STD) NMR Initial Growth-Rates Approach. Chem. Eur. J. 2016, 22, 5858-5862.
  25. Stephenson, M. J.; Howell, L. A.; O’Connell, M. A.; Fox, K. R.; Adcock, C.; Kingston, J.; Sheldrake, H.; Pors, K.; Collingwood, S. P.; Searcey, M. Solid-Phase Synthesis of Duocarmycin Analogues and the Effect of C-Terminal Substitution on Biological Activity. J. Org. Chem. 2015, 19, 9454-9467.
  26. Cominetti, M.; Goffin, S. A.; Raffel, E.; Turner, K. D.; Ramoutar, J. C.; O’Connell, M. A.; Howell, L. A.; Searcey, M. Identification of a new p53/MDM2 inhibitor motif inspired by studies of chlorofusin. Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 2015, 25, 4878-4880.
  27. Vinader, V.; Sadiq, M.; Sutherland, M.; Huang, M.: Loadman, P. M.; Elsalem, L.; Shnyder, S. D.; Cui, H.; Afarinkia, K.; Searcey, M.; Patterson, L. H. ; Pors, K. Probing cytochrome P450-mediated activation with a truncated azinomycin analogue Med. Chem. Commun. 2015, 6, 187-191.