Cutting Edge Professional Learning Day

Professor von Itzstein AO was the founding Director of Griffith University’s Institute for Glycomics in 2000.  Professor von Itzstein AO has a major research effort in the area of drug discovery, with a carbohydrate-based drug candidate against sepsis in phase 2 human clinical trials. He has international standing in glycoscience and drug discovery particularly in the area of anti-infective drug discovery.   Professor von Itzstein led the team responsible for the design, synthesis and biological evaluation of the anti-influenza drug, Relenza®, which has been approved for the treatment of influenza worldwide since 1999. This discovery is considered to be a significant outcome and flagship in glycotherapeutic and antiviral drug development in the last century and has further consolidated the world platform of using carbohydrates as drugs and carbohydrate-recognising proteins as drug discovery targets. Professor von Itzstein AO is currently a Distinguished Professor and his current research interests in drug discovery are focused on influenza, parainfluenza and other viruses, drug-resistant bacteria and cancer.