Mansukh Wani, Ph.D., who recently retired from RTI International as the co-discoverer of the anticancer drugs taxol and camptothecin, is collaborating with scientists at three other organizations in an $8 million federally funded search for new cancer therapies derived from natural sources such as pond scum and plants from tropical rainforests.
Wani is working with researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy, the Ohio State University and scientists at pharmaceutical manufacturer Bristol-Myers Squibb under an $8 million, five-year federal grant. The grant is funded by the National Cancer Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health.
Among the materials to be evaluated is cyanobacteria, also referred to as blue-green algae or pond scum. It's found in nearly every habitat, from oceans to fresh water to bare rocks to soil, and is a source of many unique chemical structures.
In addition to the cyanobacteria, plant materials from tropical countries will also be analyzed. Information found on UIC's NAPRALERT database, which catalogs biological activities of many plant species found throughout the world, will be used in the project.