Alberto Muñoz earned a Ph.D., M.Phil., and M.S. in Chemistry from Columbia University. His practice focuses on intellectual property law, where he leverages his scientific background to provide technical and strategic guidance on patentability, invalidity, and non-infringement analyses, as well as on patent prosecution and related intellectual property matters.
Prior to joining MBHB, Dr. Muñoz served as a Senior Scientist in Medicinal Chemistry at AbbVie. In this role, he designed and executed routes for the synthesis of lead-like compounds targeting the treatment of human diseases, with a particular focus on virology and neurology disease areas. He also served as a data deconvolution chemist for the DNA-Encoded Library Team and managed relationships with international contract research organizations (CROs), overseeing the work of over 10 FTEs and coordinating their efforts with AbbVie’s antiviral medicinal chemistry team. In addition, Dr. Muñoz served as Co-Leader of the AbbVie Chemistry Connections (ACC) Mentorship Program, a grassroots initiative dedicated to providing networking and mentorship opportunities for students interested in pursuing careers in the pharmaceutical industry.
Given this background, Dr. Muñoz possesses extensive experience in the drug discovery process and across a broad range of chemical disciplines. His areas of expertise include organic chemistry, organic synthesis, inorganic chemistry, organometallic chemistry, biochemistry, asymmetric catalysis, photocatalysis, and electrochemistry. This scientific training and industry experience enable him to provide clients with sophisticated technical insight across a wide variety of chemical and pharmaceutical technologies.
Research Publications:
Muñoz, A.; Rovis, T. “A Simple Tool to Benchmark Reactivity in Asymmetric Catalysis” Synlett, 2024, 35, 883-888 (DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1751576).
Delos Reyes, A. M. V.; Nieves Escobar, C. S.; Muñoz, A.; Huffman, M. I.; Tan, D. S. “Direct Conversion of Amino Acids to Oxetanol Bioisosteres via Photoredox Catalysis” Chemical Science, 2023, 14, 10524-10531. Featured in Most Popular 2023 Organic Chemistry Articles; Highlighted in Synfacts; Highlighted in OPR&D (DOI: 10.1039/D3SC00936J).
Flanigan, D. M.; Muñoz, A.; Ozboya K. E.; Rovis, T. “The Catalytic Enantioselective Stetter Reaction” Organic Reactions, 2021 (DOI: 10.1002/0471264180.or106.02).
Niu, Y.*; Wang, N.*; Muñoz, A.; Xu, J.; Zeng, H.; Rovis, T.; Lee, J. “Experimental and Computational Gas Phase Acidities of Conjugate Acids of Triazolylidene Carbenes: Rationalizing Subtle Electronic Effects” Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2017, 139, 14917-14930 (DOI: 10.1021/jacs.7b02559).
Muñoz, A.; Rovis, T. “6,7-Dihydro-2-phenyl-5-(phenylmethyl)-5H-pyrrolo[2,1-c]-1,2,4-triazolium Chloride” e-EROS Encyclopedia of Reagents for Organic Synthesis, 2016. (DOI: 10.1002/047084289X.rn00736.pub2)
D’Erasmo, M.P.; Smith, W.B.; Muñoz, A.; Mohandas, P.; Au, A. S.; Marineau, J.; Quadri, L. E. N.; Bradner, J. E.; Murelli, R. P. “7,9-Diaryl-1,6,8-trioxaspiro[4.5]dec-3-e-2-ones: Readily accessible and highly potent anticancer compounds” Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 2014, 24, 4035-4038 (DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2014.05.102).
Muñoz, A.; Murelli, R.P. “Acid-mediated coupling of gamma-hydroxybutenolides and aldehydes: Synthesis of a new class of spirocyclic ketal-lactones” Tetrahedron Letters, 2012, 53, 6779-6781 (DOI: 10.1016/j.tetlet.2012.09.139).
Patent Publications:
Degoey, D. A.; Schrimpf, M. R.; Hardee, D. J.; Ludwig, J.; Miller, E. R.; Hodges, T. R.; Muñoz, A.; Perlmutter, S. J.; Li, H. Q.; Jang, A.; Noey, E. L.; Gfesser, G. A.; Jecs, E.; Schmidt, R. G.; Dietrich, J. D.; Searle, X. B.; Nocek, B. P.; Bogdan, A. (2024) “Pyrrolidine main protease inhibitors as antiviral agents” WO2024081351A1.
