PengyuRen
- pren@mail.utexas.edu
- BME 5.202M
Computational drug discovery; Multiscale physical modeling of proteins and nucleic acids; Structure and function of protein-mimetics and biomaterials
About
Pengyu Ren specializes in molecular modeling of biological systems for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. He integrates computational technology and modeling with computer science, chemistry, physics and biology to better understand molecular driving forces, such as molecular recognition and the protein structure-function relationship. Ren joined The University of Texas at Austin in 2005 and has served on a number of committees within the department and at the university level, including as the chair of the department’s Graduate Studies Committee and as a member of the University’s Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Review Committee.
Ren is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and a recipient of the Moncrief Grand Challenge Award. His computational drug discovery research has been featured on NSF Discoveries and on LiveScience.com. He received his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati and his B.S. in chemical engineering from Zhejiang University.
Ren is also the cofounder of Qubit Pharmaceuticals, a deep physics-driven drug discovery company. Researchers use advanced simulation and AI-enhanced medicinal chemistry to develop novel drug candidates and innovative modes of action against challenging biomolecular targets.
Ren’s research is focused on molecular modeling of biological systems for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. Computational biology and molecular modeling that integrate our knowledge in computer science, chemistry, physics and biology allow us to understand the fundamental molecular driving forces in chemistry and biology, such as molecular recognition and protein structure-function relationship. With accurate in silico prediction of molecular interactions, they seek to engineer novel molecules, from small organic molecules to protein mimetics,” with controlled structure and function for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes.
Educational Qualifications
Ph.D., Chemical Engineering, University of Cincinnati
B.S., Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University
Select Awards & Honors
- American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) fellow
- American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering fellow
- Moncrief Grand Challenge Award
Related Websites
Molecular Modeling Lab
Oden Institute for Computational Engineering & Sciences
Select Publications