Senior Lecturer · Deputy Director AuRIns · Head of NMR Lab · ChM · UiTM
Synthetic organic & medicinal chemist designing bioactive heterocyclic scaffolds, probing enzyme inhibition, and leading computational drug discovery research at UiTM.
About
ChM Dr. Syahrul Imran Abu Bakar is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Applied Sciences (Fakulti Sains Gunaan), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Shah Alam, and Deputy Director & Head of the NMR Lab at the Atta-ur-Rahman Institute for Natural Product Discovery (AuRIns), Puncak Alam. He is a Chartered Chemist (ChM) and member of the Institut Kimia Malaysia (IKM), in service at UiTM since 16 May 2017.
He holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Science) and a First Class Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Applied Chemistry, both from UiTM Shah Alam. His PhD thesis focused on the synthesis, bioactivity evaluation and computational studies of bisindolylmethane and flavone derivatives. During candidacy he published over 16 journal articles and was supported by the MyBrain15 Scholarship (2013).
He earned the Anugerah Kedoktoran Cemerlang Tuanku Canselor (2016), the Bangkok Bank Young Chemist Award, PACCON (2016), the Anugerah Kualiti Naib Canselor UiTM 2019, the Vice Chancellor's Award (2011), and the Best Undergraduate Thesis / Anugerah Saintis Muda (2011).
His work sits under UiTM's Health & Wellness (HW) Research Nexus (ReNeU), integrating organic synthesis, medicinal chemistry, natural products, computational drug discovery, enzyme inhibition, and high-field NMR spectroscopy.
Senior Lecturer, Fakulti Sains Gunaan, UiTM Shah Alam. Research Fellow & Head of NMR Lab, AuRIns, Puncak Alam.
UiTM's highest graduation honour. Also recipient of Anugerah Kualiti Naib Canselor UiTM 2019, Fakulti Sains Gunaan.
126 Scopus documents · 3,542 Scopus citations · 3,982 Google Scholar citations. Member of Institut Kimia Malaysia (IKM).
Author of Laboratory Manual: Introduction to Organic Chemistry — a 59-page teaching resource for applied science students.
325+ Scopus co-authors across Malaysia, Pakistan (Karachi, Peshawar), Indonesia, Iran, Jordan, Turkey, and beyond.
Research
126 Scopus-indexed documents spanning synthetic chemistry, computational drug discovery, and natural product research.
Enzyme Targets
Key inhibition targets across the research portfolio
Key Scaffolds
🔷 Bisindolylmethane — CA-II, β-glucuronidase, antileishmanial, anticancer
🌸 Flavone / Chalcone — α-glucosidase, CA-II, 15-LOX, natural products
🔵 Indole / Oxindole — urease, α-amylase, α-glucosidase, AChE
⬡ Coumarin / Soritin — α-glucosidase, DPP-IV, urease, dengue
🔶 Triazole / Thiadiazole — AChE/BChE, urease, antidiabetes
🟤 Benzimidazole / Oxadiazole — β-glucuronidase, thymidine phosphorylase
Rohmawati, S., Bakar, S.I.A. et al. — J Mol Struct, 1354, 144869.
Munir, Z., Imran, S. et al. — ACS Omega, 10(41), 48586–48602. Open Access.
Ayub, M., Imran, S. et al. — ACS Omega, 10(39), 45191–45203. Open Access.
In vitro + in silico combined approach. Journal article, 97(6), 593–608.
Taha, M., Imran, S. et al. — J Mol Struct, 1323, 1–10.
J Mol Struct, 1302, 137493.
Imran, S. et al. — Drug Metab Rev, 23(2), 243–269.
Imran, S. et al. — J Mol Struct, 15, 103505.
Imran, S. et al. — J Nat Prod, 82(9), 2430–2442.
Imran, S. et al. — Eur J Med Chem, 68, 90–104.
Research Grants
A decade of competitive grants spanning antidiabetes, antidengue, cancer, CYP3A4, and natural product discovery — as Principal Investigator and project member.
Postgraduate Supervision
Supervising PhD and Master's students across synthetic chemistry, computational drug design, and natural product research.
Completed Supervision
Ongoing Supervision
Teaching
Over a decade of teaching experience across undergraduate and postgraduate levels in organic chemistry, drug discovery, spectroscopy, and molecular modelling.
CMT667 · Postgraduate
Advanced ADME modelling, quantitative pharmacokinetics, and clinical applications for postgraduate pharmacy students.
CHM412/413 · Undergraduate
Core organic chemistry principles with synthesis, reaction mechanisms, and functional group transformations — with accompanying lab manual (2024).
Undergraduate
SAR, lead optimisation, molecular basis of drug action, and rational drug design bridging classical theory and modern approaches.
Undergraduate
NMR, IR, UV-Vis, and mass spectrometry for structural characterisation of organic and pharmaceutical compounds.
Undergraduate / Postgraduate
Molecular docking, virtual screening, QSAR, ADMET profiling, and pharmacophore modelling using AutoDock and related platforms.
Postgraduate
DFT, MD simulations, CYP3A4/SOM modelling, multivariate analysis, and network pharmacology for research students.
Laboratory
High-field NMR spectroscopy facility supporting structural characterisation, natural product research, and pharmaceutical analysis — open to internal and external researchers.
Atta-ur-Rahman Institute for Natural Product Discovery
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Puncak Alam, Selangor
Consultancy Services (Completed)
Professional Services · Head · RM 2,000
Services / Evaluation · Member · RM 14,824
Training · Head · RM 1,200
Contact
Whether you're a collaborator, student, or fellow researcher — reach out through any of the channels below.