Matt Suffness Young Investigators Award
Matt Suffness
Born in Staten Island, N.Y., Dr. Suffness received his B.S. degree in Pharmacy from Howard University and a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin under the mentorship of the late natural products authority, Dr. S. Morris Kupchan. In 1970-71, he did postdoctoral work at Stanford University with Prof. E.E. van Tamelen. After beginning his career as an Assistant, then Associate Professor at Ohio Northern University, Dr. Suffness joined the Natural Products Branch in the Developmental Therapeutics Program of the National Cancer Institute in 1976. In 1981 he became chief of the Natural Products Branch and was responsible for the major collection contracts that were initiated by the NCI. He also served as the first coordinator for the National Cooperative Natural Product Drug Discovery Group Program. He is best known for his commitment to the development of taxol as an anticancer drug. He edited the book entitled "Taxol—Science and Applications," which was published shortly before his death in 1995.
Friends and colleagues remember his tireless support of natural product research, his efforts to facilitate multidisciplinary research efforts and his accessibility and sound advice. He was particularly helpful to younger investigators trying to establish a successful research program and career.
"His untimely death came as a sad blow to the natural products community worldwide. A symposium, attended by his widow Rita, was held in his memory at the ASP meeting in Seattle in 2000, and his many friends and colleagues recalled his tireless support of natural product research, his efforts to facilitate multidisciplinary research, and his accessibility and sound advice.
As testimony to his commitment to natural products, the Matt Suffness Memorial Yew Grove was dedicated by the ASP in July, 2000 on Weyerhaeuser land on the Olympic Peninsula, WA. He was particularly helpful to younger investigators trying to establish a successful research program and career and was largely responsible for initiating the ASP Young Investigator’s Award, with the first Young Investigators’ Symposium being held in 1992 at the ASP meeting in Williamsburg. The name of the award was changed to the Matt Suffness Award and the Young Investigators’ Symposium renamed the Matt Suffness Symposium at the 2000 ASP meeting in Seattle."
- Dr. Gordon Cragg
Matt Suffness Young Investigators Award Details
The Matt Suffness (Young Investigators Symposium) Award, is intended to recognize the contributions of younger natural product scientists, and to provide a special, timely forum for them to present results from their research at the annual ASP meeting. The Award also recognizes and honors the memory of Dr. Matt Suffness. Dr. Suffness served as the Society’s President in 1989-1990, during which time he initiated the “Young Investigator’s Symposium” which now bears his name.
The Matt Suffness Award consists of $2,000 honorarium and reasonable travel expenses for the annual meeting of the ASP.
Matt Suffness Young Investigators Award Directions
Eligibility
The applicant must be an American Society of Pharmacognosy member in good standing.
Nominees shall be within 12 years of receiving their Ph.D., and within 10 years of gaining their first independent position (e.g., Assistant Professor or equivalent position in industry or government).
The number of speakers per year shall be limited to one, but may be none if suitable nominations are not received in a particular year.
Any current member of the ASP may submit nominations, however, self-nominations will not be accepted.
Formatting Specifics
- Font: Times New Roman
- Font size: 12 point plain for general text and 14 point bold for headings.
- Alignment: Justify text
- Line Spacing: use 1.5 or greater
Application Process
The application form will be comprised of:
- The nominee’s CV
- Nomination letter
- An abstract of the presentation proposed by the nominee
- Relevant reprints (maximum of 4)
Selected speakers will be invited to submit a short review paper to the Journal of Natural Products.
The deadline for nominations is February 15th.
The Norman R. Farnsworth Research Achievement and Matt Suffness Young Investigator’s Award Committee
2025-2026 - Chair: Tim Bugni
John MacMillan
David Sherman
Matt Suffness Young Investigators Award Recipients
Marcy Balunas
Amy Lane
Roger Linington
John MacMillan
Taifo Mahmud
Kerry McPhail
Nicholas Oberlies
Ben Shen
