Rich Taylor Email & Phone Number

Notre Dame, In, Us

Since 1921, Organic Syntheses has provided the chemistry community with detailed, reliable, and carefully checked procedures for the synthesis of organic compounds. Some procedures describe practical methods for the preparation of specific compounds of interest, while other procedures illustrate important synthetic methods with general utility. Each procedure is written in considerably more detail as compared to typical experimental procedures in other journals, and each reaction with its characterization data has been repeated several times and carefully "checked" for reproducibility in the laboratory of a member of the Board of Editors.Organic Syntheses is published by Organic Syntheses, Inc., a non-profit corporation.

Indianapolis, In, Us

The Indiana CTSI Drug Development “Think Tank” program serves as a one-stop shop for PIs to receive guidance from a pool of advisors including experts in drug discovery and development with academic and industrial experience and members who can answer scientific, technical, clinical, business, and regulatory questions. Projects will be guided with robust tracking and milestone-based support to help generate critical data for preclinical development, IND applications, and small business grants such as the SBIR and the STTR programs for commercialization through tech startups.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Our group is interested in the exploring the potential of polyketide natural products as chemotherapeutic agents particularly directed against cancer. Towards this end our group's expertise includes synthetic chemistry, molecular modeling, and molecular biology/biochemistry. In recent years the we have completed the total synthesis of the complex natural products, epothilones A, B, C and D, myriaporones 1, 3 and 4, peloruside A, neopeltolide, tolypothrix polyethers, gephyronic acid, diospongins A and B, dactylolide, and zampanolide. Our analogue design strategy is focused towards the determination of the structural and conformational constraints of binding. Our group has demonstrated that the information gained from what we have termed conformation-activity relationships complements classic SAR with the goal of providing a detailed pharmacophore model and assist in the design of future chemotherapeutic agents. In addition to our successful total syntheses and medicinal chemistry efforts, our group has already contributed significantly to the field of organic synthesis through the development of a number of new synthetic methodologies that solved key problems in our targeted efforts.Another unique aspect of our analogue design strategy is the exploitation of biosynthetic enzymes called polyketide synthases. We are actively pursuing the isolation and characterization of polyketide synthase gene clusters responsible for the production of biologically active natural products. We have demonstrated the semi-synthetic production of epothilone natural products and analogues through the use of genetically engineered organisms thus alleviating any concerns about the high cost of total synthesis of compounds of this complexity.

Notre Dame, In, Us

With the most recent grant renewal, the NIH-funded Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (Indiana CTSI) established the Molecular Therapeutics Program (MTP). The objective of the MTP is to promote and support promising early stage drug discovery research. Facilitate collaborative translational research and partnerships through identification of complementary expertise and support for team building across diverse disciplines. Be a clearinghouse for drug discovery and development resources available through Indiana-CTSI colleagues and, when necessary, identify and fill gaps through the new, external partnerships. Expand our current capabilities and knowledge base by providing access to education resources to faculty and students on translational drug discovery.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Develop, support and promote the University's California programs, building Notre Dame's presence in the Golden State with primary focus on undergraduate curricular experiences, graduate degree programs, collaborative research programs, research innovation, commercialization, and enterprise development, and California-based University infrastructure; assist University representatives with communications, alumni relations, career and internship placement, and admissions.

Notre Dame, In, Us

The Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) is a statewide collaboration of Indiana University, Purdue University, and the University of Notre Dame, as well as public and private partnerships. Established in 2008, the Indiana CTSI is supported by a $25 million Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) of the National Institutions of Health, supplemented by nearly $60 million from the state, the three member universities, and public and private partnerships. The Indiana CTSI is a member of a national network of 61 CTSA-funded organizations across the United States. In 2013 and again in 2018, the Indiana CTSI received a competitive renewal providing an additional $30M to continue its efforts for the next five years. The local director oversees an administrative structure designed to strengthen and support the entire spectrum of translational research from scientific discovery to improved patient care.

Notre Dame, In, Us

The Center's objective is to promote and support promising drug discovery research across the campus of the University of Notre Dame. The Center facilitates collaborative translational research across our campus and is an important resource for our biomedically-focused centers such as the Harper Cancer Institute, the Eck Family Institute for Global Health and Infectious Disease, and the Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases. The Center is an active participant in the Indiana Drug Discovery Alliance, a State-wide partnership within the Indiana Clinical and Translational Science Institute.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Facility staff will enable the synthesis of small molecules for use in hit verification, lead development, and scale-up. In addition, the core will provide expertise in the preparation of biological probes, active pharmaceutical agents (API) as experimental controls, and small chemical libraries for structure-activity relationships and optimization of pharmacological properties. The facility and staff are also charged to organize the products of past, current, and future chemical synthesis to create the Notre Dame Chemical Compound Collection and promote cross-disciplinary collaboration. Beyond small molecule medicinal chemistry, the new facility will be a valuable resource for collaborative research across many fields including sustainable energy research (materials chemistry, catalysis development) and nanotechnology.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Assists in the the strategic research planning efforts of the Office of the Vice President for Research, engages faculty in multidisciplinary research and promotes strong collaborations across the University and with external research partners; oversees strategic research communications within the Notre Dame Research and directs the internal grants program, the limited submission competitions, and research space development and management; serves as Notre Dame’s Deputy Director, Executive Committee member, and Director of Molecular Therapeutics within the Indiana Clinical and Translational Science Institute.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Assists in the the strategic research planning efforts of the College of Science, oversees grant management, engages faculty in multidisciplinary research and promotes strong collaborations across the University and with external research partners. Serves as the college’s primary liaison to the Office of Research and the Graduate School. Oversees the Engineering-Science Computing Facility.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Notre Dame, In, Us

The position advocates for graduate students and oversees graduate student development and support as well as graduate teaching assignments and graduate research fellowships. The position chairs the graduate studies committee who are responsible for graduate curriculum development and graduate degree requirements for Ph.D. and M.S. in Chemistry and Biochemistry. Developed a comprehensive orientation week for incoming graduate students.

Notre Dame, In, Us

Notre Dame, In, Us

Our laboratory has identified a number of new chemical entities with significant anti-cancer activity and is working to evaluate these leads in pre-clinical animal models to determine their potential for clinical studies. The laboratory uses a combination of synthetic, computational, and molecular biological studies. We are particularly interested in the correlation between unique natural product structures and their corresponding biological activities.The research is significant because, despite the advent of combinatorial chemistry and high-throughput screening during the past decade, the number of new biological targets that have emerged from the pharmaceutical industry is remarkably small. Natural products are especially important because evolution has created these compounds to transport and modulate biological function. The detailed study of natural products with unknown or unique modes of action represents a paradigm with the ability to identify new biological targets.Our laboratory aims to generate new sources of chemical diversity based upon the modification of polyketide scaffolds and explore their chemotherapeutic potential.

Stanford, Ca, Us

Developed a total synthesis of the anti-cancer agent taxol

Certificate, Executive Management

Ph.D., Organic Synthesis

B.S., Chemistry