Scott Runyon

Scott Runyon, Ph.D., is RTI’s principal investigator conducting synthetic medicinal chemistry research. Currently, his lab is developing small-molecule agonists for neuropeptide S and the APJ GPCR’s.

Since joining RTI in 2001, Dr. Runyon has focused on developing novel therapeutics, including:

• Small-molecule kappa opioid antagonists
• Dopamine transporter inhibitors
• GABA allosteric modulators (neuroactive steroid scaffold)
• Non-hormonal male contraceptives (indenopyridine scaffold)
• Haptens and protein conjugates for nicotine and opiate vaccines
• Orexin antagonists
• Neurotensin modulators
• Apelin and neuropeptide S peptide structure activity relationships
• Small-molecule neuropeptide S agonists and antagonists
• Small-molecule APJ/apelin agonists.

Dr. Runyon has extensive medicinal chemistry and drug development experience and has worked on teams, including, JDTic, a compound used to map the kappa opioid receptor. This project has progressed compounds to IND-ready and phase 1 clinical trials.