Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award 2014
October 16, 2014
Dr. Carlos F. Barbas III ’82 has been selected to receive the Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award posthumously in recognition of his groundbreaking biomedical research which laid the foundation for new therapies, including those to treat HIV and cancer.
After taking every science class Shorecrest Upper School had to offer, Barbas majored in chemistry at Eckerd College. He earned a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Texas A&M University in 1989, and conducted postdoctoral studies at Pennsylvania State University and at Scripps Research Institute.
Some of his accomplishments include developing the first human antibody phage libraries, creating the first synthetic antibodies, developing the first artificial transcription factors capable of regulating endogenous genes, and pioneering chemically programmed antibodies. Each of these approaches has resulted in a new drug class that is currently in clinical trials or approved for the treatment of a variety of diseases.
Dr. Barbas was the Janet and Keith Kellogg II Chair professor, and member of The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology at the Scripps. "I always wanted to be a scientist, an astronaut or a brain surgeon," he said in a 2009 interview. "I've also started three companies that are all based on therapeutic antibodies and inventions I've made. I'm very optimistic about the impact of science on the country. I certainly favor channeling more Americans into science."
In addition to being named a scholar of The American Foundation for AIDS Research and a fellow of the American Associate for the Advancement of Science, Dr. Barbas was the recipient of the Investigator Award from the Cancer Research Institute, the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award, Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award from the American Chemical Society, a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director's Pioneer Award and the Tetrahedron Young Investigator Award in Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry.
Sadly, Carlos passed away June 24th, after a battle with a rare form of medullary thyroid cancer. He is survived by his wife, Annica, and children Derek, Sabrina, Sixten and Viggo.
Our Distinguished Alumnus will be celebrated along with our Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees at a luncheon on Friday, November 7, 2014.
After taking every science class Shorecrest Upper School had to offer, Barbas majored in chemistry at Eckerd College. He earned a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Texas A&M University in 1989, and conducted postdoctoral studies at Pennsylvania State University and at Scripps Research Institute.
Some of his accomplishments include developing the first human antibody phage libraries, creating the first synthetic antibodies, developing the first artificial transcription factors capable of regulating endogenous genes, and pioneering chemically programmed antibodies. Each of these approaches has resulted in a new drug class that is currently in clinical trials or approved for the treatment of a variety of diseases.
Dr. Barbas was the Janet and Keith Kellogg II Chair professor, and member of The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology at the Scripps. "I always wanted to be a scientist, an astronaut or a brain surgeon," he said in a 2009 interview. "I've also started three companies that are all based on therapeutic antibodies and inventions I've made. I'm very optimistic about the impact of science on the country. I certainly favor channeling more Americans into science."
In addition to being named a scholar of The American Foundation for AIDS Research and a fellow of the American Associate for the Advancement of Science, Dr. Barbas was the recipient of the Investigator Award from the Cancer Research Institute, the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award, Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award from the American Chemical Society, a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director's Pioneer Award and the Tetrahedron Young Investigator Award in Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry.
Sadly, Carlos passed away June 24th, after a battle with a rare form of medullary thyroid cancer. He is survived by his wife, Annica, and children Derek, Sabrina, Sixten and Viggo.
Our Distinguished Alumnus will be celebrated along with our Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees at a luncheon on Friday, November 7, 2014.
