Dr. Kadayat is a medicinal chemist experienced in structure-based drug design, small molecule synthesis, pharmacology, and chemical biology. Prior to joining Larkin University, he was a postdoctoral scholar working with Dr. Kip Guy at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy. Dr. Kadayat holds a B. Pharm. from Pokhara University, Nepal, and an MS and PhD in Medicinal Chemistry from Yeungnam University College of Pharmacy, South Korea. From 2016 to 2021, he worked as a drug discovery chemist at the New Drug Development Center DGMIF, K-MEDIhub, refining skills in drug design and pharmacokinetic studies on topoisomerase, epigenetics, and nuclear receptor modulators. With over 10 years of teaching experience, Dr. Kadayat has mentored numerous students at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He completed the Graduate Certificate in College Teaching and Learning (GCCTL) at the University of Kentucky, specializing in course design, student assessment, and promoting diversity and inclusivity. He has excelled in collaborative research, leadership, and securing extramural funding. He is the recipient of multiple academic awards, including the Pokhara University Merit Scholarship, the Dr. Hirotoshi Fushimi Award, the Korean Government Scholarship, and NRF-Korea Research Fellowship. He completed the NRF Korea Early Career Research Grant (2018-2021) focused on developing NSD2 inhibitors. Dr. Kadayat holds 3 patents, has published over 40 peer-reviewed scientific papers, and has presented his research at several conferences, including ACS, IUPAC, and the Gordon Research Conference.

 

Education and Training

2023–2024 Instructor, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky

2022–2024 Graduate Certificate in College Teaching and Learning (GCCTL), University of Kentucky

2021–2024 Postdoctoral Scholar, (Advisor: Dr. R. Kip Guy) University of Kentucky College of

Pharmacy 2016–2021 Research Scientist, K-MEDI hub New Drug Development Center, South Korea

2011–2016 MS & PhD in Medicinal Chemistry (Advisor: Dr. Eung-Seok Lee), Yeungnam University College of Pharmacy, South Korea

2010–2011 Instructor, Multicultural Education and Research Institute, South Korea

2009–2010 Pharmacology Instructor, Kathmandu University Nepalgunj Medical College, Nepal

2005–2009 B. Pharm, Pokhara University, Nepal

 

Teaching Interests

Dr. Kadayat’s teaching interests and experience include Pharmacology, Medicinal Chemistry, Foundations of Drug Design/Drug Discovery and Development, Research Techniques/Directed Research in Medicinal Chemistry with special emphasis on Drug Metabolism, Hit-to-lead, and Lead optimization.

 

Research and Scholarly Interests

Dr. Kadayat’s research is focused on discovering small molecules that target cancer, metabolic, and neglected diseases. He is particularly interested in applying computational and synthetic techniques to develop new chemical entities such as nuclear receptor modulators, epigenetic regulators, and E3 ligase inhibitors for therapeutic applications. Dr. Kadayat aims to contribute to the advancement of medicinal chemistry by integrating cutting-edge AI-driven methodologies with traditional synthetic strategies to accelerate the identification and optimization of potential drug candidates. He is also committed to fostering collaborations that bridge chemistry, biology, AI, and machine learning techniques to address complex problems in drug discovery. In addition, Dr. Kadayat has a keen interest in other scholarly activities, especially promoting pharmacy education through the integration of practice and active learning/teaching.

 

Selected Publications

>45 Publications in peer-reviewed journals, 23 First Author, Google Scholar Citation: 1050

1. Kadayat TM et al. “Synthesis and biological evaluation of 4, 7, 9-trisubstituted benzoxazepines as antileishmanial agents” Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 114 (2024), 130003. Link

2. *Carrillo AK, *Kadayat TM et al. “Antitrypanosomal chloronitrobenzamides” J. Med. Chem. 67 (2024), 3437. Link

3. *Kim J, *Kadayat TM et al. “Discovery of the therapeutic potential of PPARd agonist bearing 1,3,4- thiadiazole in inflammatory disorders” Eur. J. Med. Chem. 279 (2024), 116856. Link 4. Kim HJ, Kim H, Song J, Hong JY, Lee EH, Jung K, Kwon S, Kadayat TM et al. “Highly potent and selective PPARδ agonist reverses memory deficits in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease Theragnostics 14 (2024), 6088. Link

5. *Kim HS, *Ortiz D, *Kadayat TM et al. “Optimization of Orally Bioavailable Antileishmanial 2,4,5-Trisubstituted Benzamides” J. Med. Chem. 66 (2023), 7374. Link

6. Shrestha A, Kim N, Lee SJ, Jeon YH, Cho SJ, #Kadayat TM (#Co-corresponding author), #Chin J “Targeting NSD Family of Histone Lysine Methyltransferases: Recent Progress and Perspective” J. Med. Chem. 64 (2021), 14913. Link

7. Kadayat TM et al. “Antioxidative and Anti-inflammatory activity of Psiguadial B and its halogenated analogues as potential neuroprotective agents” Bioorg. Chem. 113 (2021), 105027. Link

8. Kadayat TM et al. “Targeting Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor delta (PPARd) agonist: A Medicinal Chemistry Perspective” J. Med. Chem. 63 (2020), 10109. Link

9. Kadayat TM et al. “Discovery and Biological Evaluations of Halogenated 2,4-Diphenyl Indeno[1,2-b]pyridinol Derivatives as Potent Topoisomerase IIα-targeted Agents for Breast Cancer” J. Med. Chem. 62 (2019), 8194. Link

10. Kadayat TM et al. “Synthesis of Unique Dimethyl Thiazoline Core Containing Intermediate of Novel PPARd agonists” Tetrahedron Lett. 59 (2018), 4384. Link

Full Publication list: Tara Man Kadayat, Ph.D. – Google Scholar

 

Selected Scholarly Presentations

 

Oral Presentation

1.Kadayat TM ‘Bridged Piperidines as Inhibitors of Neddylation E3 Ligase Inhibitors.’ Amgen Chemistry Day, Virtual (Sept 20, 2024, Thousand Oaks, USA)

2.Kadayat TM ‘Medicinal Chemistry of Cell Wall Inhibitors.’ Larkin University (Sept 23, 2024, FL, USA).

3.Kadayat TM ‘Shark Tank Presentation.’ University of Kentucky Graduate Retreat (August 8, 2024, KY, USA)

4.Kadayat TM ‘Development of Small Molecule Therapeutics for Lung Cancer.’ NSF Regional I-Corps (June 28, 2024, KY, USA)

5.Kadayat TM ‘Medicinal Chemistry of Beta-Lactams.’ Virginia Commonwealth University (June 5, 2024, VA, USA).

6.Kadayat TM ‘UKCOM Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series.’ University of Kentucky (May 15, 2024, KY, USA).

7.Kadayat TM ‘Rational Drug Discovery for Cancer and Neglected Disease.’ NIH (Nov. 7, 2023, MD, USA).

8.Kadayat TM ‘TK-006: Unveiling the Journey of Anticancer Agent.’ Postdoc Talk Competition (Sept. 21, 2023, KY, USA).

9.Kadayat TM ‘Targeting Neddylation Pathway for Anticancer Drug.’ University of Kentucky Pharmaceutical Science Seminar (Sept. 19, 2023, KY, USA).

10. Kadayat TM ‘Development of Potent NEDD8-Activating Enzyme Inhibitors’. University of Kentucky Pharmaceutical Science Super Group/Journal Club Meeting (Feb. 9, 2023, KY, USA).

11. Kadayat TM ‘Approaches to Target NSD2 Histone Lysine Methyltransferases. University of Kentucky Slice of Science 5-minute Chalk Talk (Sept. 22, 2022, Kentucky, USA).

12. Kadayat TM ‘Challenges and Opportunities for independent researchers in Korea’. Society of Nepalese Students in Korea (SONSIK) Annual Seminar, Invited Talk Session (March 17, 2021, South Korea).

 

Awards and Honors

1. University of Kentucky Launch Blue UAccel Award (October 15, 2024)

2. Shark Tank Award, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy (August 8, 2024)

3. Discovery Rockstar Award, NSF Regional Innovation Corps UK Cohorts (June 28, 2024)

4. First Place, Annual Trainee Research Day Poster Competition 2024, University of Kentucky

5. Second Place, Postdoc Talk Competition 2023, University of Kentucky

6. Travel Grant, 2023 Gordon Research Conference on Medicinal Chemistry, New London, NH

7. First Prize, Markey Cancer Center Poster Competition 2023, University of Kentucky

8. Second Prize, TODD Symposium Poster Competition 2023, University of Kentucky

9. First Prize, Global Impact Poster Competition 2022, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

10. Travel Grant, 2022 Gordon Research Seminar in Medicinal Chemistry, New London, NH

11. Young Scientist Award, PSK Medicinal Chemistry Workshop 2014, South Korea

12. Excellence Award, National Essay Competition 2015, Korea Minister of Justice

13. Korean Government Scholarship 2010-2013 by Ministry of Education, South Korea

14. Dean’s Award for Recognition of an Outstanding Achievement by Pokhara University.

15. Dr. Hirotoshi Fushimi Progressive Academic Excellence Award of the year 2008

16. Dr. Katsuko Komatsu Crude Drug Monograph Writing Award of the year 2008

17. Pokhara University Merit Scholarship 2005-2009 Fellowship and Extramural Funding

 

Fellowship and Extramural Funding

2021–2024 University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy Postdoctoral Research Scholar, USA

2020–2021 Korea Research Fellowship (KRF-2020H1D3A1A02081418) by the Korea Ministry of Science and ICT (Fund: ~US$ 40,000; Role: Research Fellow)

2018–2021 National Research Foundation-Korea, Early Career Independent Research Grant (NRF-2018R1D1A1B07047143) (Fund: ~US$ 130,000 Role: Principal Investigator)

 

Academic and Professional Services

1. Editor (2019-2022), Europasian Journal of Medical Sciences

2. Reviewer (2018-2021), Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters

3. Council Member (2022-Present), UKCOP Staff and Post-Doc Advisory Council (UKCOP SPAC). Initiated Postdoc-Faculty Fireside Chat Series, Co-ordinated to address postdoc issues related to research and career

4. Vice President (2022-2023), University of Kentucky Society of Postdoctoral Scholars (UK SOPS). Planned and executed SOPS annual activities to provide postdoc’s career growth and networking opportunity.

5. President and Co-founder (2020), Khas Health Group. Planned and executed community pharmacy; Advocated for transformative health education in universities in Nepal.

6. Symposium Coordinator (2020-09-26 & 27), Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA), Asia Pacific Knowledge Convention. Invited session chair and speakers, and selected abstracts for the oral session.

7. President (2013-2014), Society of Nepalese Students in Korea (SONSIK). Integrated, represented, and empowered >1,000 Nepalese students and scholars to in South Korea.

8. Member (2013-Present), American Chemical Society, Division of Medicinal Chemistry.

9. Member (2011-2014), The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)

10. Registered Pharmacist (R.Ph. 681), Nepal Pharmacy Council, Kathmandu