Dame Margaret Brimble FRS is a Distinguished Professor and Director of Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She is an Executive Editor for Organic Letters (Amercian Chemical Society), Deputy Director of the Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery and Past-President of IUPAC Organic and Biomolecular Division III. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society London, Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit and has been inducted into the American Chemical Society Medicinal Chemistry Hall of Fame. She received the 2023 Davy Medal for Chemistry from the Royal Soeity London, the 2023 American Chemical Society Ernest Guenther Award for Natural Products Chemistry and the 2022 Royal Society of Chemistry Pedler award for Research and Innovation in Organic Chemistry. She also received the Rutherford, Hector and MacDiarmid medals (Royal Society NZ), the 2019 Kiwinet BNZ Supreme Commercialization Award and Baldwins Research Entrepreneur Award, Marsden medal (NZ Association of Scientists), and the Royal Society of Chemistry Sosnovsky Award for Cancer Therapy and Natural Products Award. Her research focusses on the synthesis of novel bioactive natural products/antimicrobial peptides and the synthesis of lipopeptides for cancer vaccines and new biomaterials. She discovered the drug DAYBUE™ (trofinetide, NNZ2566) for Acadia Pharmaceuticals and Neuren Pharmaceuticals that was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on March 10, 2023 for the treatment of Rett syndrome in adults and pediatric patients 2 years of age and older. She also discovered the investigational new drug NNZ2591 for Neuren Pharmaceuticals that is in phase 2 clinical trials for Phelan-McDermid syndrome, Angelman syndrome, Pitt Hopkins syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome. She is co-founder of the cancer immunotherapy company SapVax.llc that has licensed her CLipPA peptide lipidation technology to develop self-adjuvanting peptide-based cancer vaccines. Her laboratory hosts NZ’s only laboratory accredited by Medsafe NZ to manufacture peptides under cGMP for human clinical trial.

Distinctions/Honours:
2023 Royal Society London Davy Medal 

2023 American Chemical Society Ernest Guenther Award for Natural Products Chemistry
2022 Royal Society of Chemistry Pedler Award for Research and Innovation in Organic Chemistry
2019 Queen’s Honour–Dame Companion New Zealand Order of Merit (DNZM).
Inducted into American Chemical Society Medicinal Chemistry Hall of Fame
Supreme Award Kiwinet Research Commercialisation Awards
Baldwins Research Entrepreneur Award Kiwinet Research Commercialisation Award
Zonta Centenary Women of Achievement Award
2018 Elected Fellow of The Royal Society (FRS)–first female New Zealander.
Royal Society Chemistry. George & Christine Sosnovsky Award in Cancer Therapy.
2017 IUPAC Award–Outstanding Service in Advancement of Chemistry Worldwide.
2016 NZ Assoc. of Scientists Marsden Medal (Lifetime Achievement in Science)
Royal Society of Chemistry Australasian Lectureship.
2015 IUPAC Distinguished Women in Chemistry/Chemical Engineering Award.
Senior Fellowship Award International Society of Heterocyclic Chemistry.
University of Auckland Vice-Chancellor’s Commercialization Medal.
2014 Westpac Trust Women of Influence Award (Science and Innovation).
2012 Queen’s Honour–Companion New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM).
RSNZ Rutherford Medal (top science medal)
RSNZ Hector Medal (Chem.Sciences)
RSNZ MacDiarmid Medal (Human Benefit)
2011 Royal Australian Chem. Inst. Adrien Albert Award (Medicinal Chemistry).
Dean’s Award for postgraduate supervision; RSNZ Marie Curie lectureship.
2010 Royal Society of Chemistry UK Natural Products Chemistry Award
2008 World Class NZ Award (Research, Science, Technology & Academia).
2007 L'ORÉAL-UNESCO Women in Science Laureate Asia/Pacific.
2005 NZIC HortResearch Prize for Excellence in the Chemical Sciences.
2004 Queen’s Honour–MNZM; RSNZ James Cook Research Fellowship.
2003 Novartis Chemistry Prize; Royal Society Rosalind Franklin Lectureship.
2001 Federation of Asian Chemical Societies Distinguished Chemist Award.
1992 NZIC Easterfield Medal; RSNZ Hamilton Memorial Prize.

Responsibilities:
Exective Editor for Organic Letters (American Chemical Society)
Deputy Director Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery ( a National Centre of Research Excellence) 2021-2024
Co-Founder SapVax.llc

Committee/Professional groups/Services:
Distinguished Professor, Chair of Organic and Medicinal Chemistry, Director of Medicinal Chemistry, Deputy Director Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Past-Chair of the Royal Society of New Zealand Rutherford Foundation, Past-President of Organic and Biomolecular Division of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Past-President International Society of Heterocyclic Chemistry, Member of the European Research Council PE5 panel for Synthetic Chemistry and Materials Science, Past Chair Marsden Fund (PCB panel).

Qualifications:
MSc (Auckland), PhD (Southampton, UK)

Areas of Expertise:
Expertise

Inventor – Daybue (Trofinetide, NNZ2566); FDA approved for treatment of Rett syndrome March 10, 2023, Neuren Pharmaceuticals (ASX) and Acadia Pharmaceuticals (USA)

Inventor – NNZ2591; successful in phase 2 clinical trials in 4 rare neurogenetic disorders:Phelan-McDermid syndrome, Angelman syndrome, Pitt Hopkins syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome.

Organic Synthesis; Medicinal Chemistry; Drug Development; Natural Products; Peptide Chemistry; Agrochemistry; GMP synthesis peptide cancer vaccines; Co-Founder SapVax.llc);

Consultant/Expert Witness - several international pharmaceutical companies.

Interests: Synthesis of: bioactive natural products and traditional Chinese medicines; norovirus and SarsCov2 mPro protease inhibitors; telomerase inhibitors; antimicrobial peptides; cell penetrating peptides; lipopeptides; peptidomimetics; alkaloids as neuroprotective agents; antibody-drug conjugates; glycopeptides, lipopeptides, cGMP peptides as vaccine components; fish antifreeze peptides; agrochemicals. Organocatalysis. Synthesis of neo-glycopeptides, neo-phosphopeptides, neo-lipopeptides using click chemistry and olefin metathesis. Synthesis of small proteins, glycopolymers and hydrogels.

20 Selected Recent Publications

NATURAL PRODUCTS SYNTHESIS, SYNTHETIC METHODOLOGY and PEPTIDE CHEMISTRY

1. “Total Synthesis of (–)-Cordycicadin D and 3,4-trans-Cordycicadins A and B: Entry to the 3,4-trans-Fused Cordycicadin Framework,” L. R. Hunt, P. S. Grant, G. K. Shimokura, D. P. Furkert and M. A. Brimble, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2024, 63, DOI: 10.1002/anie.202419989. (IF = 16.6)  (Highlighted in Synfacts, 2025, 21, 114. DOI: 10.1055/a-2496-9012)

2. “Use of a Cyclic alpha-Alkylidene-beta-diketone as a Cleavable Linker Strategy for Antibody-Drug Conjugates,” J. T. Tong, M. Sarwar, M. Ahangarpour, P. A. Hume, G. M. Williams, M. A. Brimble, I. Kavianinia, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2024, 146, 23717-23728.  (IF = 14.4)

3. “N-Substituted Iminothiolane (NIT): A Promising Strategy for Protecting Lysine Side Chains for Solid-Phase Peptide Chemistry,” C.-J. Aguilar, M. Sarwar, M. A. Brimble and I. Kavianinia, Organic Letters, 2024, 26, 8922−8927. (IF = 6.1)

4. “Late-Stage Desulfurization Enables Rapid and Efficient Solid-Phase Synthesis of Cathepsin-Cleavable Linkers for Antibody-Drug Conjugates,” M. Ahangarpour, M. A. Brimble and I. Kavianinia, Bioconjugate Chemistry, 2024, 35, 1007-1014. (IF = 4.7)

5. “Synthesis, Structure-Activity Relationship Study, Bioactivity and Nephrotoxicity Evaluation of the Proposed Structure of the Cyclic Lipodepsipeptide Brevicidine B,” D.  Palpal-Latoc, A. J. Horsfall, A. J. Cameron, G. Campbell, S. A. Ferguson, G. M. Cook, V. Sander, A. J. Davidson, P. W. R. Harris and M. A. Brimble, Journal of Natural Products, 2024, 87, 764–773. (IF = 5.1)

6. “Synthesis of the Bicyclic Butenolide Core of Pallamolide A: A Biomimetic Approach,” G. Drummond, A. Geurts, P. S. Grant, D. P. Furkert and M.A. Brimble, Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry, 2024, 22, 8032-8036. (IF = 3.6)

7. “Total Synthesis of Spiroketal Alkaloids Lycibarbarines A–C,” E. G. Young, P. S. Grant, D. P. Furkert and M. A. Brimble, Organic Letters, 2023, 25, 2895−2900. (IF = 6.1)

8. “Harnessing the Power of a Photoinitiated Thiol–ene “Click” Reaction for the Efficient Synthesis of S-Lipidated Collagen Model Peptide Amphiphiles,” C.J. Aguilar, M. Sarwar, S. Prabakar, W. Zhang, P. W. R. Harris, M. A. Brimble and I. Kavianinia, Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry, 2023, 21, 9150-9158. (IF = 3.6) (Front Cover)

18. “Total Synthesis of (±)-Leonuketal,” P. S. Grant, D. P. Furkert and M. A. Brimble, Organic Letters, 2020, 22, 8735–8740. (IF = 6.6) (Selected for inclusion in “Synthesis Workshop” https://synthesis-workshop.com/, a website that has short video episodes on total syntheses, named reactions and other topics; highlighted in Synfacts 2021, 17, 0003, DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1719262)

19. “Asymmetric Total Synthesis of the Naturally Occurring Antibiotic Anthracimycin” E. K. Davison, J. L. Freeman, W. Zhang, W. M. Wuest, D. P. Furkert and M. A. Brimble, Organic Letters, 2020, 22, 5550-5554. (IF = 6.6)

20.  “Highly Diastereoselective Synthesis of syn-1,3-Dihydroxyketone Motifs from Propargylic Alcohols via Unusual Spiroepoxide Intermediates” X. Ding, D. P. Furkert and M. A. Brimble, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2019, 58, 11830-11835. (IF = 12.1)