Dennis Schmatz

Biography

Dennis Schmatz, PhD, has more than 35 years of drug discovery and development experience in pharmaceutical research, including infectious diseases, oncology, and diabetes. He served as vice president of Infectious Disease Research and Animal Health at Merck & Co., Inc. for more than a decade, managed international research programs as the head of the Merck research site in Japan, and was responsible for pharmaceutical research programs located in the United States, Spain, and Canada. Dr. Schmatz has participated in global health initiatives for more than 30 years, working with organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO), Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Global Health Innovation Technology Fund. In 2010, he served as the interim CEO of MMV and currently serves as the chairman of the Board and president of MMV North America. He chairs the MMV Scientific Board and also consults for global health organizations, biotech, and pharmaceutical companies. Dr. Schmatz has contributed to the discovery of new biochemical pathways and drug targets, novel natural products with antimicrobial activity, and several approved drugs, including Cancidas (an antifungal agent for treating serious life-threatening hospital infections), Invanz (a carbapenem antibiotic for moderate to severe infections), Zactran (an antibiotic for bovine respiratory disease in cattle), SCY-078 (an IV/oral antifungal agent currently in phase 2 clinical trials at Scynexis Inc.), Previcox (an analgesic for companion animals), and Gastroguard (a proton pump inhibitor for horses). Dr. Schmatz received a PhD in biology/biochemistry, and MS in biology/biochemistry/cell biology, and a BS in preveterinary medicine, all from Rutgers University.

Research Interest

drug discovery, Biochemistry