B.S., College of the Holy Cross
Ph.D., State University of New York at Buffalo
Physical Chemistry
Associate Professor
Research Interests:
We are applying basic principles of Medicinal Chemistry to the
design and preparation of new and improved drugs of therapeutic
interest. By utilizing a chemical reaction between ninhydrin and
certain substituted, unsaturated amines and areas we have been able
to prepare several new and different heterocyclic chemical systems.
Selection of appropriate ones has allowed us to discover new
analgesic agents, anticonvulsants and anticancer compounds. These
agents have advantages over some of the standard drugs used for
these applications, such as greatly reduced toxicity. We now have
selected some of the compounds from the original series and are
attempting to improve their pharmacological and pharmaceutical
properties by making judicious chemical modifications to them. For
example, in the case of the anticancer compounds, we believe we
know how the compounds cause inhibition of growth of the cancer
cells, i.e., by binding to DNA and preventing replication. Thus by
applying molecular modeling techniques through the use of the
computer, we hope to optimize the binding, hence the inhibition of
cell growth and the anticancer activity. This can be achieved by
choosing the appropriate chemical groups to change or add to the
parent molecule. By applying these principles to the other types of
compounds (analgesics and anticonvulsants) we hope to produce drugs
with optimal activity and minimal deleterious effects
Publications:
- Sarra, Joseph D. and Stephani, Ralph A., "Synthesis and
Anticonvulsant Activity of Some
2,4-Disubstituted-2,4-Benzodiazocine-1,3,5,6-tetrones, 1-Mono and
1,3- Disubstituted Indenoimidazoles and 2-Substituted
Indoloimidazoles.", Med. Chem. Research., 10:2, 81-91 (2000).
- Sarra, Joseph D. and Stephani, Ralph A., "Effect of
Dimethylsulfoxide on the Convulsant Properties of Metrazol in
Mice." Res. Comm. Biol. Psychol. Psych., 23,(3,4) 73-76
(1998).
- Stephani, Ralph A. and Cesare, Victor., "Enantiomeric
Enrichment of Nonracemic Antihistamines by Achiral High Performance
Liquid Chromatography.", J Chromatog. A, 813, 79-84 (1998).
- Lengyel, Istvan, Cesare, Victor and Stephani, Ralph A.,
"t-Butylhypochlorite: A Powerful Electrophilic Aromatic Ring
Chlorinating Agent.", Synthetic Commun. 28 (10), 1885 (1998).
- Cesare, Victor and Stephani, Ralph A., "Resolution of
Chlorpheniramine by Chiral Column Chromatography", Presentation at
NERMCAP XIX, St. John's University, April 23, 1994.
- Stephani, Ralph A., O'Leary, V. and Sarra, Joseph D.,
"Preparation of Urea cycloaddition Products as Potential
Pharmacological Agents", Dept. of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College
of Pharmacy, St. John's University, Jamaica, NY, poster also
presented at NERMCAP XVIII, Northeastern University, May 1,
1993.
DeVito, Stephen C. and Stephani, Ralph A., "Synthesis and
Pharmacological Evaluation of Some Novel
13-[N,N-Dialkylamino-alkyl]
benzo[g][2]benzopyrano[4,3-b]indol-5[13H]ones." Med1, 47-5,
(1991).
Contact Information:
Dr. Ralph A. Stephani, Associate Professor
Address: St. John's University, Department of Chemistry
8000 Utopia Parkway
Jamaica, NY 11439-0001
SAH Room 330
Hours: Mon. - Thurs., 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p. m.
Fri., 8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Phone: (718) 990-5215
Fax: (718) 990-1876
E-Mail: stephanr@stjohns.edu