Professor profile

Barbara Timmermann, University Distinguished Professor and chair, Department of Medicinal Chemistry

Ginger and turmeric have a place in many home spice racks but could possibly be just as at home in the medicine cabinet. The plants, like many in nature, have medicinal properties. All that’s needed is to identify their chemistry, biological activity and effectiveness before they can be transferred to medicine.

In a new KU YouTube video, Barbara Timmermann, University Distinguished Professor and chair of Medicinal Chemistry, discusses her research by exploring nature in search of new medicines, mentoring students and the strength of KU’s Department of Medicinal Chemistry in the School of Pharmacy.

“There are plants in the world that are known for certain activities, such as ginger and turmeric. Those are plants that have been used for thousands of years as parts of traditional systems of medicine, but we do not know much about their physiological and pharmacological effects, about their chemistry, so now is the time to study them,” Timmermann said.

The plants have been shown to fight inflammation and show promise in treating and preventing conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Like aspirin and morphine, other drugs that were originally discovered in nature, turmeric and ginger are among many potential cures and treatments that can come from the plant kingdom. But new drugs are not all her research team discovers.

“When we go to nature to explore biodiversity, we do not know what the plants contain, what medicinal properties they might have, so this is more exploratory type research. We not only identify new molecules, but new plant species as well. This helps us add new species to the catalogs of world biodiversity and consequently, contribute to their conservation.”

The work is not as easy as finding a plant with potential healing properties and packaging it in a pill. When Timmermann’s team discovers a molecule of potential value, they attempt to modify it, to make it more active and reduce toxicity. Some molecules can be synthesized easily in the lab or through genetic engineering. Others are not so easy, but can provide an idea of how the molecule could be used.

Natural-occurring molecules can fight a number of illnesses. Timmermann’s research looks for drugs to fight cancer, inflammatory and infectious diseases.

Research is not the sole focus of Timmermann’s work, however. Mentoring is just as important to her. She is the director of KU’s Center for Cancer Experimental Therapeutics, funded by the National Institutes of Health. The grant funds and promotes the work of young faculty who research cancer. Faculty from institutions across Kansas, including the KU School of Medicine, Kansas State University, Emporia State University and Wichita State University have been assisted by the program.

Mentoring students who go on to work in various fields of health care and policy making is another point of pride for Timmermann. Seeing a student take the knowledge she has shared, use it and expand upon it is “the biggest reward a teacher can get,” she said.

While students led her to enter academe, colleagues brought her to KU.

“The Department of Medicinal Chemistry at KU is superb,” she said. “It’s one of the top, if not the top departments in the country right now. The faculty members in this department are first rate in teaching, in conducting researching and in mentoring.