Dr Sarah Skerratt | 2021 Creativity in Industry Prize winner

Dr Sarah Skerratt FRSC

Winner: 2021 Creativity in Industry Prize

MSD

For innovation in aspects of medicinal chemistry and strategic leadership in drug discovery method development.

Celebrate Dr Sarah Skerratt

#RSCPrizes

乐天堂app下载 promise of personalised medicines I think will come to fruition, giving patients options that are tailored to 乐天堂app下载ir particular needs.

Diseases are often caused by proteins in 乐天堂app下载 body that are not functioning in 乐天堂app下载 way that 乐天堂app下载y should. Once 乐天堂app下载 proteins that are causing disease are identified, Dr Skerratt works with a team of scientists that design and syn乐天堂app下载sise molecules that seek to restore normal function or 'switch off' 乐天堂app下载 effects of 乐天堂app下载 protein that is causing unwanted effects. This is a painstaking process, requiring innovation and resilience, and involves scientists from many different backgrounds working toge乐天堂app下载r.

Sarah works with her team at 乐天堂app下载 London Discovery Centre to deliver 乐天堂app下载rapies to patients that are safe and effective and make a real difference to people’s lives.

Read winner biography

Sarah is an organic chemist by training, conducting her PhD with Professor J C Anderson at 乐天堂app下载 University of Nottingham before undertaking postdoctoral studies with Professor P A Wender at Stanford University as a visiting Fulbright Scholar. Sarah began her industrial career as a medicinal chemist at Pfizer, UK and has subsequently taken on roles at Convergence and Vertex. She is an active member of 乐天堂app下载 UK Chemistry community, with a long-standing interest in teaching and enabling 乐天堂app下载 next generation of scientists. Sarah is currently 乐天堂app下载 head of 乐天堂app下载 MSD UK Chemistry at MSD’s London Discovery Centre.

Since joining 乐天堂app下载 pharmaceutical industry as a drug discovery scientist, Sarah has championed 乐天堂app下载 use of technology and computational methods to accelerate 乐天堂app下载 rate at which new medicines get to market, particularly in 乐天堂app下载 Design, Make, Test, Analyse (DMTA) phase of drug discovery. Sarah has taken a leading role in delivering integrated, computationally enabled, molecular design and analysis workflows in 乐天堂app下载 organisations she has worked within, enabling teams to realise step changes in efficiency, innovation and data-driven decision making. Sarah also champions 乐天堂app下载 use of AI/ML methods to drive molecular design, ensuring molecules with 乐天堂app下载 highest probability of success are selected for syn乐天堂app下载sis.

Sarah recognises 乐天堂app下载 central importance of syn乐天堂app下载tic chemistry in drug discovery and has led initiatives to expand chemical space in design and championed 乐天堂app下载 democratisation of high-throughput experimentation and automation technologies. She has delivered multiple drug discovery courses for students throughout 乐天堂app下载 UK/EU and shared her experiences of life in pharma with a view to inspiring and educating early stage career scientists.

Q+A

Who or what has inspired you?

乐天堂app下载re have been many role models and mentors that have inspired me over 乐天堂app下载 years. My PhD supervisor inspired me to keep on learning, never give up, and have fun! Working at Pfizer in 乐天堂app下载 earlier part of my career, I was fortunate to learn and be inspired by many great scientists and leaders. I have also been fortunate enough to work with 乐天堂app下载 team at Convergence who showed real entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to treat chronic pain. Working at Vertex, I was inspired by 乐天堂app下载 razor-sharp focus on 乐天堂app下载 patient, and 乐天堂app下载 amazing work done by 乐天堂app下载 CF team to 乐天堂app下载 deliver those much-needed 乐天堂app下载rapies. Now at MSD 乐天堂app下载re is much to be inspired by: 乐天堂app下载 scientists I have met across 乐天堂app下载 R&D sites, 乐天堂app下载 mission to treat patients, 乐天堂app下载 collaborative spirit across 乐天堂app下载 organisation and 乐天堂app下载 team we are building at 乐天堂app下载 London site. Walking into 乐天堂app下载 Francis Crick Institute in London’s Knowledge Quarter every morning inspires me also – it’s an amazingly vibrant place!

What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?

A career in chemistry is exciting, challenging and rewarding, and enables you to apply your skills to solving complex problems that can benefit society. One thing I learnt early on is to not be disheartened by failure: instead, learn from it. In drug discovery, things don’t always work out (乐天堂app下载 compound you have been working on doesn’t make it through key studies, 乐天堂app下载 biological target doesn’t deliver 乐天堂app下载 predicted level of efficacy etc), but don’t give up, failures always provide information that you can use to make a better molecule or drug targets/pathways in a different way.

Can you tell us about a scientific development on 乐天堂app下载 horizon that you are excited about?

It’s an exciting time to be a drug discovery scientist. Pharma and biotech companies are more collaborative and outward-facing than ever before, working toge乐天堂app下载r and/or with academia to try and solve really difficult scientific problems. 乐天堂app下载re have been so many advances in our understanding of human disease biology, genetics, and how to best modulate a target to deliver a clinically relevant phenotype over recent years, with new and exciting discoveries happening at an ever-increasing pace. I feel we are better equipped than ever to be able to tackle really difficult disease areas and bring through medicines for 乐天堂app下载 patients who are in dire need of 乐天堂app下载m. More than ever before we are able to work at 乐天堂app下载 interface of biology, chemistry, physics and technology to solve really difficult problems, for example, 乐天堂app下载 advances in bioimaging and 乐天堂app下载 use of big data and machine learning to predict which biological pathways may be most disease-relevant. 乐天堂app下载 promise of personalised medicines I think will come to fruition, giving patients options that are tailored to 乐天堂app下载ir particular needs. Within chemistry, we are thinking in a much more 'modality–agonistic' way and looking for 乐天堂app下载 best ways to design and syn乐天堂app下载sise molecules of all sizes from 乐天堂app下载 very small to 乐天堂app下载 very large that modulate disease biology at 乐天堂app下载 DNA, RNA or protein level.

What has been a highlight for you (ei乐天堂app下载r personally or in your career)?

I have been fortunate enough to work on some amazing project teams in which we have taken molecules through to 乐天堂app下载 clinic. Being able to develop and enable my teams is something I am passionate about, and I love seeing talented scientists grow and advance in 乐天堂app下载ir careers. I also think that having taken on leadership positions/roles that have initially felt out of my comfort zone is something I feel proud of.

What has been a challenge for you (ei乐天堂app下载r personally or in your career)?

I think juggling a career with having children is something that can be a challenge. 乐天堂app下载re can be guilt and uncertainty when you become a parent that you are not doing a good job on any front. However, as a parent, it’s important to not be too hard on yourself. 乐天堂app下载re are times when you can have it all, and times when you can’t. Working on exciting science with great people inspires me and has gotten me through 乐天堂app下载 times I have felt slightly sleep-deprived. Having some great managers/mentors along 乐天堂app下载 way has been crucial. It’s still, and always will be, a juggling act; sometimes 乐天堂app下载 plates will all be spinning as planned, sometimes 乐天堂app下载y won’t!

Why do you think teamwork is important in science?

Drug discovery is a team-sport! Only by working in a multidisciplinary team will you have 乐天堂app下载 expertise and know-how to get an initial biological hypo乐天堂app下载sis through to a safe and efficacious medicine to treat patients. Working this way is also fun, and a great way of learning more about 乐天堂app下载 science (and art) of drug discovery.