R. U. Lemieux Award

 For research in organic chemistry

Submit a Nomination: To nominate someone for this award, fill out the nomination form and submit your complete package as one pdf.
Consult the Terms of Reference
View the complete list of current and past winners

The 2012 winner is:

B. Mario Pinto, FCIC
Simon Fraser University
Department of Chemistry

Mario Pinto was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka and received his BSc and PhD in chemistry from Queen’s University. He is currently professor of chemistry and vice-president, research at Simon Fraser University, and is a Fellow of the CIC and Royal Society of Canada. He has received numerous awards and honours for his research.

Pinto is a pioneer in the field of chemical biology, having developed novel NMR/molecular modeling protocols for the study of bioactive ligand conformations when bound to proteins, and enzyme inhibitors as agents against Type-2 diabetes, obesity, and associated metabolic diseases. His work also involves the synthesis of antiviral and antibacterial drug candidates, bacterial vaccines, and new methods of viral control. Pinto’s approach combines biophysical analysis, synthesis, in vitro molecular and cell-based assays, and in vivo animal studies.

Pinto is one of the founding members of the Centre for Drug Research and Development (CDRD), and has served as chair of the CSC conference in 1998, president of the International Carbohydrate Organization in 2006, CSC vice-president in 2010, and CSC president in 2011. He has served on several NSERC, CIHR, and provincial and federal committees, and on several boards of directors.

Terms of Reference top

This award is presented to an organic chemist who has made a distinguished contribution to any area of organic chemistry and who is currently working in Canada.

Deadline: July 2 of every year

Sponsor: Gilead Alberta ULC

Award: A framed scroll, $1,000 cash

The recipient will be required to present an award lecture at the Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition.

Membership in the Institute is not a prerequisite for this award.

All nominations will remain in force for three years. Nominators are responsible for keeping the record of the nominee up to date and complete.

Selection Committee:

• CSC Director of Awards as non-voting Chair
• Past Chair of the Organic Chemistry Division
• Vice Chair of the Organic Chemistry Division
• Past two winners of the R.U. Lemieux Award

The award shall be presented annually unless the Committee considers that no suitable candidate has been nominated.