Craig M Crews, PhD

Lewis B. Cullman Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and Professor of Chemistry; Executive Director, Yale Center for Molecular Discovery

Bio Profile
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Departments & Organizations

Diabetes Research Center

Faculty Research

Postnatal Development & Regeneration

Secondary Faculty

Stem Cell Center, Yale: Stem Cells and Tissue Repair

Yale Cancer Center: Developmental Therapeutics | Yale CTAP

Yale Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS): Biochemistry, Quantitative Biology, Biophysics and Structural Biology (BQBS): Cell Cycle and Signal Transduction; Drug Design, Discovery and Mechanism | Molecular Cell Biology, Genetics and Development: Cell Biology; Chemical Biology; Development; Human Disease; Regenerative Biology /Stem Cells; Signal Transduction

Office of Cooperative Research

Biography

Dr. Crews is the Lewis B. Cullman Professor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology and holds joint appointments in the departments of Chemistry and Pharmacology at Yale University. He graduated from the U.Virginia with a B.A. in Chemistry and received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in Biochemistry. Dr. Crews has a foothold in both the academic and biotech arenas; on the faculty at Yale since 1995, his laboratory has pioneered the use of small molecules to control intracellular protein levels. In 2003, he co-founded Proteolix, Inc., whose proteasome inhibitor, Kyprolis™ recently received FDA approval for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Since Proteolix’s purchase by Onyx Pharmaceuticals in 2009, Dr. Crews has focused on a new drug development technology, which served as the founding intellectual property for his latest New Haven-based biotech venture, Arvinas, LLC. Currently, Dr. Crews serves on several editorial boards and is Editor of Cell Chemical Biology. In addition, he has received numerous awards and honors, including the 2013 CURE Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2014 Ehrlich Award for Medicinal Chemistry, 2015 Yale Cancer Center Translational Research Prize, a NIH R35 Outstanding Investigator Award (2015) and the AACR Award for Chemistry in Cancer Research (2017).

Education & Training

PhD Harvard University, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (1992)
BA University of Virginia, Chemistry (1986)
Cancer Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellow Harvard University
DAAD Fellow Universität Tübingen

Honors & Recognition

  • Award for Outstanding Achievement in Chemistry in Cancer ResearchAmerican Association for Cancer Research (2017)

  • Translational Research PrizeYale Cancer Center (2015)

  • Outstanding Investigator Award (R35)National Cancer Institute (NIH) (2015)

  • Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering (2015)

  • FellowAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (2014)

  • UCB-Ehrlich Award for Excellence in Medicinal ChemistryEuropean Federation of Medicinal Chemistry (2014)

  • Entrepreneur of the Year 2013Connecticut United for Research Excellence (CURE) (2013)

  • Senior Scholar in AgingEllison Medical Foundation (2011)

  • Guest ProfessorUniversity of Konstanz (2010)

  • Lewis B. Cullman Professor of MCDBYale University (2010)

  • Bessel Research AwardAlexander von Humboldt Foundation (2006)

  • FellowRoyal Society of Chemistry (UK) (2005)

  • Arthur Greer Memorial Prize for Outstanding Junior Faculty Member in the Social or Natural SciencesYale University (1999)

  • New Investigator AwardBurroughs Wellcome Fund (1996)

  • CaPCURE Research PrizeAssoc. for the Cure of Cancer of the Prostate (1996)

  • New Investigator AwardDonaghue Foundation (1996)

Professional Service

  • PITCH (Program in Innovative Therapeutics for CT's Health) (2016 - Present) Founder of a biotech accelerator focused on translating biological and biomedical discoveries into new biopharma ventures.

  • ChemBioChem (2010 - Present) Editorial Advisory Board

  • Cell Chemical Biology (formerly Chemistry & Biology) (2007 - Present) Editor

  • NIH Chemistry and Biology Interface Training Grant (2003 - Present) Principal Investigator

  • Yale Center for Molecular Discovery (2003 - Present)

  • Molecular and Cellular Proteomics (2001 - 2009) Editorial Board

  • Cell Chemical Biology (formerly Chemistry & Biology) (2001 - Present) Editorial Board

Activities

  • Visiting Professor- University of Konstanz Konstanz, Germany (2010 - 2013)

    Guest Professor, University of Konstanz

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Contact Info

Craig M Crews, PhD
Mailing Address
Yale University
P.O. Box 208103
New Haven, CT 06520-8103

Curriculum Vitae

Crews Laboratory Homepage

PROTACs: Induced Protein Degradation as a New Pharmaceutical Paradigm

Since 2000, the Crews lab has focused on developing new methodologies for "Controlled Proteostasis" such as Proteolysis Targeting Chimeras (PROTACs), which are powerful inducers of protein degradation that remove unwanted proteins from cells.