Associate Professor Michael Patrick Hay

Biography

Michael Hay obtained his BSc (Hons) and PhD in Chemistry from The University of Canterbury, New Zealand. After postdoctoral positions  at Imperial College, London, and the University of Auckland, Michael was appointed as a Research Fellow in the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre as a medicinal chemist in 1991. He is currently investigating bioreductive drugs that target the tumour microenvironment. He is an Associate Investigator in the Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery.

Research interests:

• Medicinal chemistry
• Drug design
• Drug development
• Hypoxia activated prodrugs
• Prodrugs
• Cancer research
• Hypoxia
• Synthesis

Research | Current

Assoc. Prof. Hay has five principal Research Areas that together form a coherent body of work in the area of anti-cancer drug development selectively targeting the tumour microenvironment through bioreductive mechanisms and/or selective target inhibition.  Secondary areas of interest include the development of novel drugs targeting M. tuberculosis, and new methodology in medicinal chemistry.

My current research interests are:

1. Discovery of novel agents to target the tumour microenvironment
2. Discovery of new hypoxia activated prodrugs
3. Development of third generation nitroimidazole-based radiosensitizers
4. Development of hypoxia activated prodrugs targeting DNA damage response pathways.
5. Development of hypoxia-selective cytotoxins and radiation response modifiers based on the 1,2,4-benzotriazine dioxide core.
6. Design and synthesis of drugs that target hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF-1alpha).