Currently employed as the CTO for Extracta, a small Brazilian biotechnology company, where successfully designed and implemented the first Brazilian high throughput screening program involving the preparation of the collection, assay development and validation, automated screening against in vitro biological activity assays and the identification, isolation and chemical characterization of the active compounds. Would like to return to North America or Europe to work with other researchers to develop creative solutions in drug discovery with focus on medicinal chemistry or coordinated discovery programs. 15 years experience in organic chemistry including doctorate research and biotechnology based companies.

Work & Research Experience:

Extracta Moléculas Naturais SA, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Director, CTO September 2001 -present

Technical Development Director, September 1999 - August 2001

Chemistry Manager, February 1999 - August 1999

R&D company started in 1999 committed to add value to the Brazilian Biodiversity through the discovery of new bioactive molecules for the Pharmaceutical, Veterinary, Cosmetic and Agro Industry. Led the implementation of the scientific plan of the company designing the program, recruiting and managing a team of 35 scientists and technicians. Actively participated in the development of protocols for collection and sample processing, assays development and automation, bioguided fractionation, hit isolation and structure elucidation.

Neurogen Corporation, Branford, CT USA

Visiting Scientist, 1997

Worked in the Medicinal Chemistry division researching for drugs in the Schizophrenia therapeutic area (development and optimization of leads). Also worked closely with the Combinatorial Chemistry division, developing new reactions to be incorporated in the company's parallel synthesis programs.

YALE UNIVERSITY, Department of Chemistry, CT USA

Graduate Research Assistant, September 1989 - 96

Thesis Advisor: Professor Frederick E. Ziegler

Area of Research: Organic synthesis of natural products. Thesis: Studies of Radical Fragmentation in Cyclic Thionocarbonates - Applications on the Total Synthesis of Trichothecene FS-2.

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL do RIO de JANEIRO, Department of Chemistry, Brasil

Research Assistant, January 1989 - July 1989

Undergraduate Research Assistant, 1986 - 1988

Research Advisor: Warner Bruce Kover

Area of Research: Physical organic chemistry studying the “Solvolysis of the N- (p-Nitrobenzyl)-p-methoxybenzo hydroxamic Acid, an approach to a chemoselective synthesis of secondary amines”

Research Advisor: Joel Jones Junior

Area of Research: Organic synthesis/methodology working on the project “Use of limonene derivatives in the formation of functionalized five member rings.”

Education:

YALE UNIVERSITY, New Haven, CT USA

PhD., Organic Chemistry, Dec. 1998

M.S., Organic Chemistry, May 1993

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL do RIO de JANEIRO, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

B.A. in Chemistry, December 1988

Teaching Experience:

YALE UNIVERSITY, Department of Chemistry, CT USA

Part Time Teaching Assistant - General Chemistry (1989/90), Organic Lab (1993)

Full Time Teaching Assistant - Organic Lab (1995/96)

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL do RIO de JANEIRO, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

High School Chemistry for university employees and their families (1987)

Honors and Fellowships:

1989-1993 Ph.D. Fellowship Conselho Nacional de Desenv. Cientifico (Brazilian National Research Council)

1988 National Student Representative in the Brazilian Chemical Society

1988 Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico - Undergraduate Research Fellowship

1987 Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro - Scientific Development Fellowship

1986-1987 Undergraduate Representative in the University Academic Council

Science Skills:

Synthesis, purification and characterization of small “drug like” organic molecules

Isolation and structure determination of natural products

Automation and validation of assays for high throughput screening

Development of quality control methodologies using statistical analysis of data

Proficiency with multidimensional NMR spectroscopy, including the design and programming of pulse sequences (operated both Bruker and Varian systems).

Experience in a wide variety of analytical methods, including GC, HPLC and LCMS.

Computer simulations such as ab initio (Gaussian92), and molecular mechanics (MacroModel)

Management Skills:

Coordination of lead discovery projects involving technicians and scientists in the fields of chemistry, biology and information technology.

Business plan development and budget management (also accumulated the position of financial director at Extracta for a period of 6 months)

Client interface

Computer Skills:

Accomplished user of both Linux and Windows, with full command of word processors, spreadsheets, web interface applications, accounting software and graphing/data fitting packages.

Personal Information:

Effective team player and an excellent communicator

References: Available upon request

Citizenship: Dual – Brazil and USA

Languages: Fluent: Portuguese and English

Read: French and Spanish

Publications and Presentations:

RENATA XAVIER KOVER; High-throughput screening of natural products; ICS-UNIDO Workshop: Trends and Applications of Combinatorial Chemistry, Sao Paulo, Brasil, November 23, 2002

RENATA XAVIER KOVER, SILVA TERDJANIAN, JENNIFER TRAN AND ANDREW THURKAUF; New substituted 2-(4-benzylpiperazin-1-yl or 1-benzylpiperidin -4-yl) ethanones, useful as selective D4 antagonists for treating e.g. Neuropsychological disorders e.g. Alzheimer s disease; The United States Patent and Trademark Office, Patent number US2002045626 A1. Granted: April 18, 2002.

RENATA XAVIER KOVER, SILVA TERDJANIAN, JENNIFER TRAN AND ANDREW THURKAUF; New 2-(4 benzylpiperazin-1-yl)-1-ethanone derivative useful for the treatment of neuropsychological disorders e.g. schizophrenia, mania, dementia; The United States Patent and Trademark Office, Patent number US6316470 B1. Granted: November 13, 2001.

Renata Kover and Jon Lapham; Develoment of an Integrated System to Manage a Natural Product Lead Discovery Program; Society for Biomolecular Screening – 7th Annual Conference and Exhibition, 2001, Baltimore, USA

RENATA XAVIER KOVER, SILVA TERDJANIAN, JENNIFER TRAN AND ANDREW THURKAUF; Benzylpiperazinyl or benzylpiperidinyl ethanone dopamine receptor D 4 receptor antagonists, have high affinity and selectivity in binding to the D 4 receptor subtype used to treat neuropsychological disorders, dopamine mediated diseases; Patent numbers WO9943670 A1; AU9928814 A; NO200004271 A; EP1068193 A1; CN1293669 A; KR2001041341 A; HU200100926 A2; MX2000008291 A1; JP2002504549 W.

JENNIFER TRAN, ANDREW THURKAUF, RENATA XAVIER KOVER AND SILVA TERDJANIAN, New benzyl piperazine derivatives with selective dopamine D4 receptor binding, useful in treatment of e.g. schizophrenia, depression, Alzheimer s disease or obsessive compulsive disorder; The United States Patent and Trademark Office, Patent number US6084098 A. Granted: July 4, 2000.

FREDERICK E. ZIEGLER, RENATA X. KOVER AND NATHAN N. K. YEE; Studies Directed Toward the Synthesis of FS 2: Observations on the Fragmentation of Cyclobutylcarbinyl Radicals, Tetrahedron Lett.; 2000, 41, 5155.

FERNANDO DE LIMA CASTRO, RENATA XAVIER KOVER, WARNER BRUCE KOVER AND JOEL JONES JR ; A Novel Synthesis of 1-Acetyl-4-Isopropenyl-1-cyclopenteneby Chemoselective Cyclization of 4-Methyl 3-(oxobutyl)-4-pentenal an Important Intermediate for Natural Product Synthesis; J Braz. Chem. Soc., Brasil, v10, no. 2, p.112 116, 1999.

ZIEGLER, F. E.; BELEMA, M.; HARRAN, P. G.; KOVER, R. X., In Encyclopedia of Reagents for Organic Synthesis; Editor Leo A. Paquette, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.: Sussex, England, 1995; Vol. 7, p 5099-5102.

CAGNON, J.R; KOVER, R.X; ARAUJO, W.N; MATOS, J.A; Lavoisier, A Nota Selada de 1772; V Coloquio da Historia da Quimica, Campinas 1989.

Renata Xavier Kover and Warner Bruce Kover; N-(p-Nitrobenzyl)-p-methoxybenzo hydroxamic acid: synthesis of a new substrate for the study of nitrene ions; Sociedade Brasileira para o Progresso da Ciencia, 1989.

RENATA XAVIER KOVER AND JOEL JONES JUNIOR ; Synthetic Utilization of the tosylate (1S, 2S, 5R)-2- hydroxy-2-methyl-5-isopropenylcyclohexane; Chemistry Research Symposium, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, 1988.