---

Education:

• B.S. 1995 Chemistry Montana Tech of the University of Montana
• Ph.D. 2003 University of Utah
• Postdoc 2004 Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Overview

Tim received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from MT Tech in 1995 and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Utah with Professor Chris M. Ireland. He held a postdoctoral appointment at Scripps Institution of Oceanography (2003-4), and was a research assistant professor at the University of UT from 2004-2009. He joined the faculty at the School of Pharmacy in 2009. His research interests are marine natural products chemistry, symbiotic microorganisms, drug discovery, and NMR and MS for structure elucidation of novel natural products.

The vast majority of therapeutic agents have been derived from nature with a large number being derived from filamentous bacteria, actinomycetes, isolated from soil. However, it has become increasingly difficult to find novel natural products from actinomycetes obtained from the soil. My research program will focus on exploring the marine environment for new bacterial sources of natural products. Marine natural products have demonstrated exceptional potency and structural diversity. Increasing evidence indicates that many marine natural products obtained from marine invertebrates are in fact produced by symbiotic bacteria. My research group aims to isolate these symbiotic bacteria and use them as a source of new therapeutic agents.

The overarching goal of my long-term research plan is to develop diverse natural product libraries from unique microbes. Identification of novel therapeutic leads provides opportunities for synthetic modification to understand and relate the structure to a biological response and alter the pharmacological properties. Exploring lead comounds not only in terms of drug development, but also in terms of chemical biology and molecular pharmacology will provide opportunities to produce chemical probes that can be used to investigate cellular function.

Highlighted Publications:

• Bugni, T.S.; Abbanat, D.; Bernan, V.S.; Maiese, W.M.; Greenstein, M.; Van Wagoner, R.M.; Ireland, C.M. Yanuthones: Novel metabolites from a marine isolate of Aspergillus niger, J. Org. Chem. (2000), 65, 7195-7200.
• Tasdemir, D.; Bugni, T.S.; Mangalindan, G.C.; Concepción, G.P.; Harper, M.K.; Ireland, C.M. New bromotryptophan derivatives from the Philippine marine sponge Smenospongiasp., Zeitschrift für Naturforschung, sec. C (2002), 57, 914-923.
• Bugni, T.S.; Bernan, V.S.; Greenstein, M.; Janso, J.E.; Maiese, W.M.; Mayne, C.L.; Ireland, C.M. Brocaenols A-C: Novel polyketides from a marine-derived Penicillium brocae, J. Org. Chem. (2003), 68, 2014-2017.
• Stierle, A.A.; Stierle, D.B.; Bugni, T. Sequoiamonascins A-D: Novel anticancer metabolites isolated from a redwood endophyte, J. Org. Chem. (2003), 68, 4966-4969.
• Bugni, T.S.; Singh, M.P.; Chen, L.; Arias, D.; Harper, M.K.; Greenstein, M.; Maiese, W.M.; Concepción, G.P.; Mangalindan, G.C.; Ireland, C.M. Kalihinols from two Acanthella cavernosa sponges: Inhibitors of bacterial folate biosynthesis, Tetrahedron, (2004), 60, 6981-6988.
• Bugni, T.S.; Ireland, C.M. Marine-derived Fungi: A chemically and biologically diverse group of microorganisms, Nat. Prod. Reports (2004), 21, 143-163.
• Bugni, T.S.; Janso, J.E.; Williamson, R.T.; Feng, X.; Bernan, V.S.; Greenstein, M.; Carter, G.T.; Maiese, W.M.; Ireland, C.M. Dictyosphaeric acids A and B: New decalactones from an undescribed Penicillium sp. obtained from the alga Dictyosphaeria versluyii, J. Nat. Prod. (2004), 67, 1396-1399.
• Janso, J.E.; Bugni, T.S.; Greenstein, M.; Ireland, C.M.; Bernan, V.S. Penicillium dravuni, a new marine-derived species from an alga in Fiji, Mycologia, (2005), 97, 444-453.
• Chevallier, C.; Bugni, T.S.; Feng, X.; Harper, M.K.; Orendt, A.M.; Ireland, C.M. Tedanolide C: A potent new 18-membered-ring cytotoxic macrolide isolated from the Papua New Guinea sponge Ircinea sp., J. Org. Chem. (2006), 71, 2510-2513.
• Ratnayake, A.S.; Bugni, T.S.; Veltri, C.A.; Skalicky, J.J.; Ireland, C.M. Chemical transformation of prostaglandin-A2: a novel series of C-10 halogenated, C-12 hydroxylated prostaglandin-A2 analogs, Org. Lett. (2006), 8, 2171-2174.
• Bugni, T.S.; Woolery, M.; Kauffman, C.A.; Jensen, P.R.; Fenical, W. New bohemamines from a marine-derived Streptomyces sp., J. Nat. Prod. (2006), 69, 1626-1628.
• Ratnayake, A.S.; Bugni, T.S.; Feng, X.; Harper, M.K.; Skalicky, J.J.; Mohammed, K.A.; Andjelic, C.D.; Barrows, L.R.; Ireland, C.M. Theopapuamide: A cyclic depsipetide from a Papua New Guinea lithistid sponge Theonella swinhoei, J. Nat. Prod. (2006), 69, 1582-1586.
• Laird, D.W.; LaBarbera, D.V.; Feng, X.; Bugni, T.S.; Harper, M.K.; Ireland, C.M. Halogenated cyclic peptides isolated from the sponge Corticium sp., J. Nat. Prod. (2007), 70, 741-746.
• LaBarbera, D.V.; Bugni, T.S.; Ireland, C.M. The total synthesis of neoamphimedine, J. Org. Chem. (2007), 72, 8501-8505.
• Mohammed, K.A.; Jadulco, R.C.; Bugni, T.S.; Harper, M.K.; Sturdy, M.; Ireland, C.M. Strongylophorines: natural product inhibitors of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 transcriptional pathway, J. Med. Chem. (2008), 51, 1402-1405.
• Bugni, T.S.; Richards, B.; Bhoite, L.; Cimbora, D.; Harper, M.K.; Ireland, C.M. Marine natural product libraries for high-throughput screening and rapid drug discovery, J. Nat. Prod. (2008), 71, 1095-1098.
• Bugni, T.S.; Harper, M.K.; McCulloch, M.W.B.; Reppart, J.; Ireland, C.M. Fractionated marine invertebrate extract libraries for drug discovery, Molecules (2008), 13, 1372-1383.
• Whitson, E.L.; Bugni, T.S.; Chockalingam, P.S.; Concepcion, G.P.; Harper, M.K.; He, M.; Hooper, J.N.A.; Mangalindan, G.C.; Ritacco, F.; Ireland, C.M. Spheciosterol sulfates, PKCz inhibitors from a Philippine sponge Spheciospongia sp. (2008), 71, 1213-1217.
• Noro, J.C.; Barrows, L.R.; Gideon, O.G.; Ireland, C.M.; Koch, M.; Matainaho, T.; Piskaut, P.; Pond, C.D.; Bugni, T.S. Tetrahydroxysqualene from Rhus taitensis shows antimycobacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, J. Nat. Prod. (2008), 71, 1623-1624.
• Whitson, E.L.; Ratnayake, A.S.; Bugni, T.S.; Harper, M.K.; Ireland, C.M. Isolation, structure elucidation, and synthesis of eudistomides A and B, lipopetides from a Fijian ascidian Eudistoma sp., J. Org. Chem. (2009), 74, 1156-1162.
• McCulloch, M.W.B.; Coombs, G.S.; Banerjee, N.; Bugni, T.S.; Cannon, K.M.; Harper, M.K.; Veltri, C.A.; Virshup, D.M.; Ireland, C.M. Psammaplin A as a general activator of cell-based signaling assays via HDAC inhibition and studies on some bromotyrosine derivatives, Bioorg. Med. Chem. (2009), 16, 2189-2198.