The American Society Discovering Nature’s of Molecular Potential PharmacognosyThe ASP Newsletter: Volume 51, Issue 4 ASP Fellow Ōmura In Memoriam Awarded Nobel Prize David J. Slatkin By Drs. James B. McAlpine and David J. Newman By Drs. Paul L. Schiff Jr., Melany Puglisi-Weening, and John H. Cardellina II r. Satoshi Ōmura was one of three n November 16, 2015 Nobel Prize 2015, David Joseph winners in Physiol- Slatkin, PhD, for- Dogy or Medicine. The ASP mer Treasurer and was “ahead of the game,” Olongtime Honorary Member as he was the Norman of the ASP, passed away R. Farnsworth awardee after a long battle with Par- at the 2013 ASP Annual kinson’s disease. Many ASP Meeting for his superb members are likely to think work in antibiotics and of David as the long time related compounds; he ASP Treasurer who was a also became an ASP Fel- driving force in growing the Drs. McAlpine and Ōmura. low as a result of this Society’s financial holdings, award by the Society. It is propitious that ASP recognized his stature but Professor Slatkin was Dr. David Slatkin before the award of the Nobel Prize for Medicine this year for his also one of the country’s work on the avermectin/ivermectin class of microbial metabolites, most influential pharma- sharing the award with Dr. William Campbell, originally from Merck cists, spending most of his career making tremendous Sharp and Dohme, (one half the award to these two gentlemen) and contributions to pharmocognosy and pharmacy education. the other half to Dr. Tu Youyou for her work on artemisinin. Born in Brooklyn, New York, David was the third of four Dr. Ōmura has the phenomenal number of 1,108 cited docu- children of Max and Bertha (Schwartz) Slatkin. He grew ments in Scopus, a total citation count of 25,420 (as of Novem- up in Scarsdale, New York, and graduated from Scarsdale ber) and an h factor of 68 (since 1996). These figures demon- High School. He earned baccalaureate degrees from Wayne strate the immense effect that he has had during his scientific State University, Detroit, Michigan, and Mercer University’s career investigating molecules from terrestrial microbes. Southern School of Pharmacy, Atlanta, before pursuing Dr. Ōmura was born in July of 1935 and has the distinction of hav- Masters and PhD degrees from the School of Pharmacy, continued on page 3 continued on page 3 See ‘Snow on Red Plum Blossoms’ p.7 ASP Travel Awards Deadline p.17 IN THIS ISSUE: WINTER 2015 Editor’s Corner 2 Fun With Pharmacognosy 16 Meet a New Member 21 Mitscher Honorary Issue 6 3D Printing for the Natural Products Laboratory New Members 22 Snow on Red Plum Blossoms 7 ASP Travel Awards 17 Conference Calendar 23 JNPC2016 in Copenhagen 12 Pharmacognosy Field Notes 18 Brief News from Washington 24 ASP Interim Meeting: Oxford, Mississippi 13 Chatham Fellowship From the Archives 26 ASP Past Secretary Keller: 14 ASP Fellows 19 The Nobel Prize and the ASP 30 Years of Loyal Service What Are We Missing www.pharmacognosy.us EDITOR’S CORNER EMPLOYMENT SERVICE was truly a momentous time in history for the 2015 discipline of pharmacognosy. The Nobel Prize The Society offers a in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to scientists placement service to aid who conducted pharmacognosy research that led to our members in seeking cures for parasitic diseases. As I traveled to China positions or employees. in late 2015, I was struck by the amount of press This service is available that one of these Nobel Laureates, Tu Youyou, only to ASP members and received in her country. I saw newspapers and is free to both the appli- magazines with major front page articles on her cant and the employer. accomplishments in discovering a new cure for For more information see malaria from the wormwood plant. I was most the services website. impressed that a small gift shop in the Drum www.pharmacognosy.us/jobs/ Tower Hutong area of Beijing had a specimen of Artemisia on display with a note congratulating Youyou Tu on her Nobel work in phytochemistry. Pharmacognosy is certainly being appreciated by people more widely thanks to this recognition from the Swedish Academy. NEWSLETTER This Nobel announcement also marked the first time in which a member of the Ameri- STAFF can Society of Pharmacognosy was recognized with a Nobel Prize. ASP Fellow, Dr. Satachi Ōmura, was presented with this honor in Stockholm, Sweden in December 2015, and ASP Treasurer, Dr. James McAlpine, was on hand to witness this historic event for the Society Edward J. Kennelly, Ph.D. and for the pharmacognosy world at large. Our lead article, written by ASP Fellow Dave Editor-In-Chief Newman, along with Dr. McAlpine, goes into detail about Dr. Ōmura’s research in natural Amy C. Keller, Ph.D. products that produced a drug that has ultimately almost eradicated river blindness. Drug Assistant Editor discovery with such significant impact on human health is a goal many ASP members Nancy Novick dream of, but only a few have been able to achieve. Design & Production In addition to celebrating this Nobel achievement, we also mark the death of Dr. David Devhra BennettJones Slatkin. David served the Society for decades as our Treasurer. In the old days when we Gordon Cragg, Ph.D. mailed in checks for ASP dues, David was the first person many of us interacted with in Kevin Tidgewell, Ph.D. the Society. I attended the memorial service for David in November in suburban Chicago, ASP Newsletter Committee and I was struck by his commitment to his lovely family, his work as founding dean of three The contribution deadlines are: colleges of pharmacy, his synagogue, and the American Society of Pharmacognosy. ASP Spring Issue Feb. 15 was an integral part of David’s life professionally, but also personally. Speaking with his Summer Issue May 15 wife, she recalled family vacations that revolved around ASP meetings, and the Slatkin din- Fall Issue Aug. 15 ingroom table filled with ASP newsletters that would be labeled and mailed out from their Winter Issue Nov. 15 home in the days before email. I am very grateful to David and the entire Slatkin family for Please send information to: their devotion to the ASP, and I am honored that the Slatkin family asked that contributions Edward J. Kennelly, Ph.D. be made in his honor to the ASP Foundation. I have already done so, and I hope that other Editor In Chief, ASP Newsletter members who knew David well will also consider doing this. http://www.pharmacognosy. Department of Biological Sciences us/what-is-pharmacognosy/the-asp-foundation/ David’s legacy in ASP will live on in many Lehman College, CUNY ways, including the hard work of his daughter, Laura Stoll, as ASP Business Manager. 250 Bedford Park Blvd. West We honor another long-time ASP member, former ASP Secretary Dr. Bill Keller, for his de- Bronx, NY 10468 cades of work for the Society. Bill has stepped down as Secretary in 2015, and his work for 718-960-1105 the Society is considered in a piece by Dr. Douglas Kinghorn. As you plan your conference attendance for 2016, I hope you will consider going to 9th Joint Natural Products Confer- [email protected] ence, to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from July 24-27. ASP will be one of the hosts of ISSN 2377-8520 (print) this joint meeting, and it is a great way to make contacts with our European colleagues in ISSN 2377-8547 (online) pharmacognosy. If you are not able to make it to Europe this summer, please consider com- ing to the the joint 16th International Conference on the Science of Botanicals with the ASP Interim Meeting, to be held in Oxford, Mississippi, April 11-14. I hope 2016 is a wonderful Above: Beijing gift shop display of and productive year for you, and I hope to see you in Copenhagen or Oxford. Artemisia annua with hand written note about 2015 Nobel Prize awarded to Tu Dr. Edward J. Kennelly Youyou for her work on this species. THE ASP NEWSLETTER VOLUME 51, ISSUE 4 PAGE 2 Ōmura: 2015 Nobel Laureate in Medicine Memoriam: David J. Slatkin continued from page 1 continued from page 1 ing not one, but two PhDs, the first in Pharmaceuti- University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), Oxford, Mississippi. It was cal Sciences from the University of Tokyo, Tokyo, there at Ole Miss that a young assistant professor, Dr. Paul Japan, in 1968 and the second in Chemistry from Schiff, first met David and worked with him on several projects the Tokyo University of Science, Tokyo, Japan, his that eventually became an important part of David’s doctoral alma mater, in 1970. Aside from two years as a re- dissertation research; these projects involved a study of the search associate at the Yamanashi University, Kofu, constituents of Cocculus carolinus roots and Cannabis sativa Japan, he has spent the whole of his scientific career at the Kitasa- roots. Dr. Schiff recalls his first impressions of David as “… to Institute, Tokyo, Japan, first as a researcher, then rising through intelligent; focused; energetic; ambitious; likeable; and pos- the ranks until his appointment as President in 1990, followed by sessing an unmistakable kinesis in his actions and manner.” appointment as President Emeritus from 2008 to 2012, and is cur- Wherever “Slats” was, things were happening! rently a “Distinguished Emeritus Professor and Special Coordinator He joined the faculty at Northeast Louisiana University School of the Research Project for Drug Discovery from Natural Products of Pharmacy, Monroe, Louisiana, in 1971.