Dr David Palmer

Reader

Pure and Applied Chemistry

Personal statement

I am a Reader in Chemistry at the University of Stratchlyde. I was born in London, but grew up in Cumbria in north west England. After obtaining a Masters degree in Chemistry from the University of Sheffield, I worked as a synthesis chemist for Norbrook Laboratories before reading my PhD in Chemistry at the University of Cambridge. Between 2008 and 2011, I was a postdoctoral researcher at Aarhus University in Denmark and then at the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences in Leipzig, Germany. In 2012 I was awarded a Marie Curie Research Fellowship and returned to the UK to join the Department of Physics at the University of Strathclyde. I started as a Lecturer in the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry in 2014. I was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2019, and to Reader in 2022.

Expertise

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Area of Expertise

Theoretical and computational chemistry
Solvation Thermodynamics
Molecular Simulation
Cheminformatics/Bioinformatics
Drug Discovery
Biochemistry
Machine Learning

Prize And Awards

Trustee: Recipient; 1/1/2016
Chemical Structures Association Trust Grant: Recipient; 2/6/2014
Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF - 272391 - IETSOL): Recipient; 1/2/2012

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Publications

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Publications

Physics-based solubility prediction for organic molecules: Fowles Daniel J, Connaughton Benedict J, Carter James W, Mitchell John BO, Palmer David S; Chemical Reviews (2025)
A machine learning free energy functional for the 1D reference interaction site model : towards prediction of solvation free energy for all solvent systems: Conn Jonathan G M, Ahmad Abdullah, Palmer David S; Liquids Vol 4, pp. 710-731 (2024); https://doi.org/10.3390/liquids4040040
bbSelect : an open-source tool for performing a 3D pharmacophore-driven diverse selection of R-groups: Rianjongdee Francesco, Palmer David, Pickett Stephen D, Pogány Peter, Tomkinson Nicholas CO, Green Darren VS; Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling Vol 64, pp. 4687-4699 (2024); https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jcim.4c00453
Bioprocess monitoring applications of an innovative ATR-FTIR spectroscopy platform: Christie Loren, Rutherford Samantha, Palmer David S, Baker Matthew J, Butler Holly J; Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology Vol 12 (2024); https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2024.1349473
CREATE-2 : Colorectal cancer & adenoma test evaluation of a multi-omic blood test: Cameron James M, Antoniou Georgios, McHardy Rose, Palmer David, Sala Alexandra, Baker Matthew; Cancer Research Vol 84 (2024); https://doi.org/10.1158/1538-7445.AM2024-7294
Rapid detection of heart failure using a spectroscopic liquid biopsy: Christie Loren, Sala Alexandra, Cameron James M, Conn Justin JA, Palmer David S, McGeown William J, Cannon Jane A, Sharp John, Baker Matthew J; Clinical Spectroscopy Vol 5 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clispe.2023.100029

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Research

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Research Interests

The main focus of my research is the development and application of molecular simulation and molecular informatics methods to solve industrially relevant problems at the interface between biochemistry and chemical physics. Recent examples have included the development of new methods for computational drug discovery (in collaboration with AstraZeneca, GSK, and Pfizer) and the design of an enzyme for use in food manufacturing (in collaboration with Chr. Hansen A/S). I am Founding Director of the cancer diagnostics company, Dxcover (formerly ClinSpec Diagnostics Ltd)