Michael J. Sofia is a chemist whose main research focus is

hepatitis C virus The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a small (55–65 nm in size), enveloped, positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus of the family ''Flaviviridae''. The hepatitis C virus is the cause of hepatitis C and some cancers such as liver cancer ( hepatoc ...

and

hepatitis B virus Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a partially double-stranded DNA virus, a species of the genus '' Orthohepadnavirus'' and a member of the '' Hepadnaviridae'' family of viruses. This virus causes the disease hepatitis B. Classification Hepatitis B ...

drug discovery. He was a co-recipient of the Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award for his work on

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...

in 2016 and of the Gertrude B. Elion Memorial Award from the

International Society for Antiviral Research The International Society for Antiviral Research (ISAR) is a scientific society that focuses on the discovery and clinical application of antiviral agents. It was founded in 1987 to encourage the exchange of information and collaborative resear ...

in 2017.

Career

Sofia earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

, and Ph.D. in

organic chemistry Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the science, scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of organic compounds and organic matter, organic materials, i.e., matter in its various forms that contain ...

from the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

. He did a postdoctoral fellow at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, followed by work as a research scientist at biotech companies including the

Squibb Institute for Medical Research The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consiste ...

Eli Lilly and Company Eli Lilly and Company, Trade name, doing business as Lilly, is an American multinational Medication, pharmaceutical company headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, with offices in 18 countries. Its products are sold in approximately 125 count ...

, and

Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consist ...

. He was Senior Vice President of Chemistry at

Pharmasset Pharmasset Inc. was a pharmaceutical company based in Princeton, New Jersey in the United States. The company develops antiviral drugs for HIV (including racivir), hepatitis B (including clevudine, marketed as Levovir), and hepatitis C. In Nov ...

from 2005 to 2012 when Pharmasset was acquired by

Gilead Gilead or Gilad (, ; ''Gilʿāḏ'', , ''Jalʻād'') is the ancient, historic, biblical name of the mountainous northern part of the region of Transjordan.''Easton's Bible Dictionary'Galeed''/ref> The region is bounded in the west by the J ...

, after which he became a senior advisor. Michael J. Sofia is currently the Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder of

Arbutus Biopharma Arbutus Biopharma Corporation is a publicly traded Canadian (NASDAQ: ABUS) biopharmaceutical company with an expertise in liposomal drug delivery and RNA interference, and is developing drugs for hepatitis B infection. It is headquartered in Wa ...

, formerly as OnCore Biopharma prior to its 2015 merger with Tekmira Pharmaceuticals.

Awards

Michael J. Sofia was awarded the 2016 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award for his research on

, along with

Charles M. Rice Charles Moen Rice (born August 25 , 1952) is an American virologist and Nobel Prize laureate whose main area of research is the hepatitis C virus. He is a professor of virology at the Rockefeller University and an adjunct professor at Cornell Un ...

and Ralf F. W. Bartenschlager. He was also awarded the 2016 IUPAC-Richter Prize in Medicinal Chemistry and the Economist's 2015 Innovation Award in the Bioscience category for the development of

sofosbuvir Sofosbuvir, sold under the brand name Sovaldi among others, is a medication used to treat hepatitis C. It is taken by mouth. Common side effects include fatigue, headache, nausea, and trouble sleeping. Side effects are generally more commo ...

, which was named after Sofia for his contributions to the discovery and development of the drug. He received the Gertrude B. Elion Memorial Award of the

(2017).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sofia, Michael Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Recipients of the Lasker–DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award 21st-century American chemists Cornell University alumni