Category: Upcoming Events

This event has reached capacity. Please click “contact us” above to use our contact form to get on our waiting list in case of any cancellations. We look forward to seeing you.

CALPACS members are cordially invited to our Fall Luncheon. This year, we will be treated to an inside look at the development of small molecule therapeutics by Vu Ma, a decades-long member of Amgen’s research arm in Thousand Oaks, CA. The event will include appetizers and a three course lunch. Attendees can also choose to stay for the annual open session of the CALPACS Executive Committee.

Speaker: Vu Ma, Senior Scientist, Amgen
Title: The Discovery of Sotorasib (AMG 510): A First-in-Class Investigational Covalent Inhibitor of KRASG12C
Date & Time: Saturday, October 21, 2023 at 11:30 – 2:30 PM
Place: Firestone Walker Barrelworks, 620 McMurray Rd, Buellton, CA 93427 (https://maps.app.goo.gl/mq4VHUfh4YmgoP8g6)
Cost: $25/$15 for students 
Note: Seating is limited. Please RSVP and submit payment here at the bottom of this page (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSed5A_knuSMEphett3-eAsGE3g3-FdlDbmjNzQ335yE289Ugg/viewform?usp=sf_link) 

Vu Ma has been at Amgen for over 20 years where he has worked on several discovery and pipeline projects in the medicinal chemistry department at the Thousand Oaks campus.  With a wide variety of experience in different therapeutic areas including metabolic disorders, analgesics, CNS neurology, and oncology, Vu is a valued member of the medical chemistry team.  Notably, Vu worked on the pioneering project of KRAS small molecule inhibitors. Up until 5 years ago, this ubiquitous oncogene was considered undruggable since its discovery in the 1980’s.  The CALPACS section is pleased to have Vu take us through the journey of the discovery of Sotorasib, an FDA approved treatment of non-small cell lung carcinoma.  This discovery had a big impact in the field of medicinal chemistry and this work was recognized as the Best Pharmaceutical Agent in 2022 with the Prix Galien Award.  Before Amgen, Vu worked at Pharmacopiea in combinatorial chemistry and graduated from Lehigh University with a masters degree in chemistry.

Industry Tour: San Luis Obispo Water Treatment Plant and The Water Resource Recovery Facility

Sustainability in water use is one of our state’s great challenges. Please join CALPACS for an afternoon adventure demonstrating how chemistry and engineering can address that challenge.
We will tour the Water Treatment Plant (WTP) and the Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF). The WTP uses ozone disinfection, ballasted flocculation, and chemical treatment to provide up to 16 million gallons of fresh water daily to the city of San Luis Obispo. The WRRF treats 4.5 million gallons of wastewater daily for discharge into San Luis Creek and for re-use in irrigation. In addition, the facility produces electricity from biogas and compost. A casual lunch will be provided at the beginning of the tour.
Please use this form to reserve your spot, as attendance is capped for safety reasons at 25 attendees.
Date: Thursday, May 4, 2023
Itinerary:
12: 15 Check-in at the WTP
1:00 Tour of WTP
2:00 Drive to WRRF
2:30 Tour of WRRF
3:30 End of Event

The WTP is on Stenner Creek Road, 0.8 miles north of Highway 1. The location is shown on this map. The WRRF is located on Prado Road, as shown here.

Cost: Free! This event is sponsored by Calpacs.

Please set the hours of 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Saturday, October 15th aside for the annual CALPACS luncheon. Please join us for drinks, lunch and a talk about extraterrestrial chemistry. Taylore McClurg of NASA’s Jet Propulsions Laboratory (JPL) will speak to the section about her experiences working on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and being in charge of retrieving samples from Mars.

A buffet lunch with choices of chicken, beef and vegetarian dishes will be served.

Please RSVP from the Paypal buttons at the bottom of this page.

Speaker: Taylore McClurg, NASA JPL
Title:  Engineering Challenges with the James Webb Space Telescope and the Mars Rover
Date & Time: Saturday, 10/15/22, 11:00 – 14:00
Place: UCSBMosher Alumni House
Cost: $10, $5 for students

Taylore McClurg: 
As early as she can remember, Taylore wanted to be an astronaut. But when she watched the movie Apollo 13, where the engineers in mission control must to find a way to create a C02 scrubbing system with only the items available to the astronauts in space, she knew she wanted to do that. Solve the complex problems of being and traveling in space. Taylore earned her B.S. and M.S. in Aerospace Engineering as Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and joined Northrop Grumman after graduation. In her 13 years at Northrop Grumman, she has worked on weather satellites, lunar mission, communications satellites, and, for 8 of those 13 years, the James Webb Space Telescope. Taylore lead the requirements and verification team for the spacecraft element and observatory, ensuring all the requirements for mission success were verified – proving the system will work to NASA. Now with JWST operating and producing the amazing science we all hoped for, Taylore has taken a position at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory working as the verification lead for the Mars Sample Return Lander. This Sample Return mission will bring back the Martian soil samples currently being collected by the Perseverance Rover.

As soon as the role of mRNA in the cell was elucidated, scientists hypothesized that it could be used as a vehicle for rapid deployment of vaccines. After many decades of research, this hypothesis was finally validated in the BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines for Covid-19. As we move toward the latter stages of the covid-19 pandemic, please join us for a talk that will elucidate the motivations and innovations behind mRNA vaccines, their future and how their safety and efficacy were ensured by the regulatory process. Our esteemed ACS member, Dr. Rebecca Anderson, will bring all the experiences of her long career in pharmaceutical research, development and regulatory approval to the discussion of mRNA vaccines, their efficacy and their safety.

A free lunch will be provided as well as free parking. Please use the form at the bottom of this page to make your reservation for this lecture to help us plan for the event. We look forward to seeing you.