Dr. Alexander Straub: a successful cardiovascular researcher
Passionate chemist: Bayer scientist Dr. Alexander Straub prepares a solution for the rotary evaporator.
“Research scientists need a high level of frustration tolerance,” says Dr. Alexander Straub, who works in Pharmaceutical Research at Bayer HealthCare in Wuppertal. The chemist – one of the company’s most successful researchers – knows all about the rocks that strew the road to success. Together with his colleagues, he has optimized an active ingredient that today has the potential to become a real blockbuster: rivaroxaban, a drug product for the prevention and treatment of thrombosis.
From producer of effervescent powders to active ingredient hunter
Right from elementary school, Straub knew he wanted to be a chemist. In his bedroom, he performed experiments, concocted baking powder and effervescent powder, and used the garden as a launching pad for homemade rockets. After completing his studies in chemistry, his interest in biochemistry and medicine grew. His work at Bayer has taken him through many of the company’s research labs – and brought him numerous prizes. You can read more about the research work of the active ingredient hunter here.