Christopher Szlenk is the Molecular Pharmacology Highlighted Trainee Author for the October 2021 issue. He is currently a graduate student in the graduate program in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Molecular Medicine at Washington University. His mentor is Dr. Senthil Natesan. The Molecular Pharmacology article that earned his selection as a Highlighted Trainee Author is titled “Membrane-Facilitated Receptor Access and Binding Mechanisms of Long-Acting β2-Adrenergic Receptor (β2-AR) Agonists” and is available at: https://doi.org/10.1124/molpharm.121.000285.

Mr. Szlenk’s areas of research include computer-aided drug design, with a focus on understanding the structure and membrane interaction relationship of drugs. This information is applied to find potential drug molecules that can allosterically modulate class A GPCRs, including the β2-adrenergic and μ-opioid receptors.

Mr. Szlenk’s current research aims to elucidate the functional role of membrane lipids in affecting access and binding processes of ligands targeting the β2-adrenergic receptors, considered one of the most studied GPCRs. This will lay the groundwork for the explicit consideration of lipids as an integral component in the molecular recognition of membrane-embedded targets during structural optimization of drugs for a better pharmacological profile.

When not in the lab, Christopher enjoys staying active playing basketball with friends, cooking at home, and eating out at new restaurants with his wife. He also enjoys advocating for his fellow students and cuddles from his cat, Appa.