College of Pharmacy
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- Juan Francisco Leon
Faculty and Staff
Juan Francisco Leon, Ph.D.
Title: | Assistant Professor |
Department: | Drug Discovery & Biomedical Sciences (DDBS) College of Pharmacy |
Email: | jleon@mailbox.sc.edu |
Office: |
Horizon I Building - 112A 541 Main Street Columbia, SC 29201 |
Resources: | Curriculum Vitae [pdf] |

Education
Ph.D. Organic Chemistry, La Laguna University, Tenerife, Spain
M.Sc. Organic Chemistry, La Laguna University, Tenerife, Spain
B.S. Chemistry, National University of Colombia, Bogota, Colombia
Postdoctoral Research
Medicinal Chemistry, University of Mississippi
Background
Dr. León received his degree in Chemistry from National University of Colombia, Bogota, Colombia. He obtained his doctoral degree in organic chemistry at La Laguna University, Tenerife, Spain. Afterwards, he held several positions at European University of Madrid, Spanish National Research Council and University of Mississippi. Most recently, he was a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Florida.
Research Interests
Dr. León’s research interest consists of the exploration of the chemistry expressed through natural products from different natural sources, such as, plants and fungi, as well as the synthesis and semi-synthesis of bioactive natural compounds. He focuses on the evaluation of extracts/fractions/pure compounds for their ability to interact with different targets - for example, opioid and cannabinoid receptors with the goal of identifying new agents for pain treatment and neurological disorders.