Skip to main content
Miraz  Rahman

Professor Miraz Rahman

Professor of Medicinal Chemistry

Biography

Dr Miraz Rahman is a Professor of Medicinal Chemistry in School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences, King’s College London. After working three years in the industry, he went back to academia and obtained his PhD from the UCL School of Pharmacy in synthetic medicinal chemistry. His research activities are focused on the application of advanced computational chemistry, synthetic medicinal chemistry and chemical biology techniques to the design, synthesis and evaluation of novel drug-like chemical scaffolds as anticancer and anti-infective agents. He is the author of over 90 research publications, inventor on 15 patents and has more than 15 years research experience in medicinal chemistry and biophysical techniques. Dr Rahman has been working on pyrrolobenzodiazepine-based DNA binding agents for the past 16 years, and developed PBD-based anticancer and antibacterial agents that have been patented and licensed to university spin-out companies. He is working with Public Health England to develop chemical tools to study antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and discover new ways to target multiple drug-resistant pathogens. He has used a combination of homology modelling and advanced computational calculations to study bacterial and fungal efflux pumps and has invented new classes of efflux resistant antibiotics and antifungal agents that are currently being commercialised. The Rahman laboratory is located on the 5th floor of the Franklin Wilkins Building at King’s College London and is funded by grants from industry, charities and research councils. He has experience in early and late-stage drug discovery, and translational research, co-founding oncology biotech companies Transcriptogen Ltd (2013) and Femtogenix Ltd (2015).

Research Interests

  • Chemistry
  • Drug Discovery
  • Anticancer Therapeutics
  • Antimicrobial Resistance
  • Antibody Drug Conjugates

    Research

    Untitled design (9)
    Drug Discovery

    The Drug Discovery Group brings together scientific expertise in a broad range of areas, from medicinal chemistry to systems biology and pharmacology.

    AMR thumbnail
    Antimicrobial Research Theme

    Antimicrobial Research Theme

    MBRH-LOGO
    The Multiscale Biofilm Research Hub (MBRH)

    The Multiscale Biofilm Research Hub (MBRH) has been established to promote interdisciplinary interactions and focus microbial biofilm related research at King’s.

    MBRH theme3
    Antimicrobial resistance and biofilm therapeutics

    Work involves understanding how biofilms contribute to antimicrobial resistance and the creation of new anti-biofilm therapeutics.

    Project status: Ongoing

    Hero_Microbes_RIG-thumbnail
    Microbes in Health & Disease

    The Microbes in Health & Diseases Research Interest Group aims to foster collaboration across departments and faculties at KCL to explore the multifaceted role microbes play in health and disease.

    News

    King's biotech spinout Pheon Therapeutics Raises $120m to develop novel anticancer agents

    The investment raised at the close of its Series B funding round will enable Pheon Therapeutics (Pheon) to take three new Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs),...

    prostate cancer cell image general 780x450

    King's biotech spinout re-launches with new name and $68 million funding

    Pheon Therapeutics, which has its origins in research carried out in the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (IPS), launched on Wednesday 28 September based...

    antibody delivery tumour 780x450

    IPS colleagues win major awards at international PharmSci conference

    The awards included the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences' (APS) Science and Emerging Scientist awards alongside multiple invited podiums and poster...

    IPS at international PharmSci conference 780x450

    Six new Studentships for Institute of Pharmaceutical Science

    The School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Science are pleased to announce that there are six new studentships within the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

    IPS-studentships

    New broad-spectrum antibiotic class identified

    Researchers from the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences have discovered a new broad-spectrum antibiotic class with activity against...

    antibiotics

    5 minutes with Miraz Rahman

    Miraz Rahman is a Reader in Medicinal Chemistry in the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences. We took 5 minutes with Miraz to learn more about his career...

    Miraz

    Events

    01FebInaugural Lectures General 2022-23 thumbnail reduced text final

    Inaugural Lecture: Professors Pablo Lamata & Miraz Rahman

    Inspiring talks from some of our brightest minds

    Please note: this event has passed.

    Features

    Health policy priorities: What should the incoming UK government focus on?

    Whoever takes up residence at Number 10 after the general election will have a bursting in-tray. What are the health priorities the next government should be...

    general-election-2019

    Spotlight

    How King's continues to tackle cancer and support cancer care and research

    Saturday 4 February marks World Cancer Day. In order to honour this key date, we have highlighted some of the most important cancer-themed stories that have...

    Cancer cells

    Spotlight on COVID: Searching for therapeutics

    Dr Miraz Rahman discusses research aiming to find new therapeutics to treat COVID

    spotlight-covid-1920

      Research

      Untitled design (9)
      Drug Discovery

      The Drug Discovery Group brings together scientific expertise in a broad range of areas, from medicinal chemistry to systems biology and pharmacology.

      AMR thumbnail
      Antimicrobial Research Theme

      Antimicrobial Research Theme

      MBRH-LOGO
      The Multiscale Biofilm Research Hub (MBRH)

      The Multiscale Biofilm Research Hub (MBRH) has been established to promote interdisciplinary interactions and focus microbial biofilm related research at King’s.

      MBRH theme3
      Antimicrobial resistance and biofilm therapeutics

      Work involves understanding how biofilms contribute to antimicrobial resistance and the creation of new anti-biofilm therapeutics.

      Project status: Ongoing

      Hero_Microbes_RIG-thumbnail
      Microbes in Health & Disease

      The Microbes in Health & Diseases Research Interest Group aims to foster collaboration across departments and faculties at KCL to explore the multifaceted role microbes play in health and disease.

      News

      King's biotech spinout Pheon Therapeutics Raises $120m to develop novel anticancer agents

      The investment raised at the close of its Series B funding round will enable Pheon Therapeutics (Pheon) to take three new Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs),...

      prostate cancer cell image general 780x450

      King's biotech spinout re-launches with new name and $68 million funding

      Pheon Therapeutics, which has its origins in research carried out in the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (IPS), launched on Wednesday 28 September based...

      antibody delivery tumour 780x450

      IPS colleagues win major awards at international PharmSci conference

      The awards included the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences' (APS) Science and Emerging Scientist awards alongside multiple invited podiums and poster...

      IPS at international PharmSci conference 780x450

      Six new Studentships for Institute of Pharmaceutical Science

      The School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Science are pleased to announce that there are six new studentships within the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

      IPS-studentships

      New broad-spectrum antibiotic class identified

      Researchers from the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences have discovered a new broad-spectrum antibiotic class with activity against...

      antibiotics

      5 minutes with Miraz Rahman

      Miraz Rahman is a Reader in Medicinal Chemistry in the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences. We took 5 minutes with Miraz to learn more about his career...

      Miraz

      Events

      01FebInaugural Lectures General 2022-23 thumbnail reduced text final

      Inaugural Lecture: Professors Pablo Lamata & Miraz Rahman

      Inspiring talks from some of our brightest minds

      Please note: this event has passed.

      Features

      Health policy priorities: What should the incoming UK government focus on?

      Whoever takes up residence at Number 10 after the general election will have a bursting in-tray. What are the health priorities the next government should be...

      general-election-2019

      Spotlight

      How King's continues to tackle cancer and support cancer care and research

      Saturday 4 February marks World Cancer Day. In order to honour this key date, we have highlighted some of the most important cancer-themed stories that have...

      Cancer cells

      Spotlight on COVID: Searching for therapeutics

      Dr Miraz Rahman discusses research aiming to find new therapeutics to treat COVID

      spotlight-covid-1920