F. David Horgen PH.D.

College of Natural and Computational Sciences - Department of Natural Science

Professor of Chemistry

Head, Shared Instrumentation Facility

Faculty Athletics Representative

Principal Investigator, Laboratory of Marine Biological Chemistry

Chair, Dive Control Board

Biography

Dr. David Horgen is a Professor of Chemistry at Hawai‘i Pacific University whose work integrates natural products chemistry, chemical biology, bioanalytical chemistry, and drug discovery. His research program uses biologically active natural products both as molecular tools for understanding human disease and as starting points for therapeutic development. A major focus of his research has been the discovery and development of modulators of transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels, particularly TRPM7, with collaborative applications in neuroprotection, cancer, immunology, and other areas of biomedical research.

Dr. Horgen’s research is highly interdisciplinary, linking natural-product discovery and analytical chemistry with synthetic chemistry, pharmacology, cell biology, and translational biomedical research. He also leads HPU’s Shared Instrumentation Facility and has played a central role in building research infrastructure and expanding research opportunities for students and faculty. Student researchers participate directly in the design, execution, analysis, and dissemination of research and frequently work within collaborative teams that include investigators at major research institutions.

Research Areas

• Natural products chemistry and chemical biology
• Drug discovery and development
• TRP ion-channel pharmacology, with emphasis on TRPM7
• Bioanalytical chemistry and mass spectrometry
• Biological screening, assay development, and structure–activity relationships
• Translational biomedical research

Current Research

Natural products remain a foundation of Dr. Horgen’s research program because their structural and biological diversity provides unusual opportunities to discover molecules that interact selectively with important biological targets. His laboratory combines natural-product isolation and characterization with biological screening and modern analytical methods to identify active compounds and determine how chemical structure relates to biological function.

A longstanding focus is waixenicin A and related xenicane diterpenoids as modulators of TRPM7, an ion channel-kinase involved in magnesium homeostasis, cellular signaling, immune function, and neurological disease. Current collaborative work extends from natural-product discovery through medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, and preclinical evaluation, with the goal of developing selective TRPM7 modulators as research tools and potential therapeutic leads.

Additional collaborative research uses advanced analytical chemistry and chemical biology to investigate molecular mechanisms associated with human disease. These projects provide a setting in which HPU students can contribute to substantive biomedical research while gaining experience with contemporary instrumentation and interdisciplinary scientific problem-solving.

Student Research Opportunities

Research training is a central component of Dr. Horgen’s work at HPU. Undergraduate and graduate students can participate in projects involving natural-product isolation, chromatography, mass spectrometry, chemical characterization, biological screening, and collaborative biomedical research. Students are encouraged to move beyond performing techniques to understanding the scientific questions that drive a project, interpreting their results, presenting their work, and contributing to publications when appropriate.

Education

• Postdoctoral Fellowship, Marine Natural Products Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
• D., Pharmacognosy, Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, University of Illinois at Chicago
• S., Biology, Florida International University

Courses Taught

• CHEM 3030 – Organic Chemistry I
• CHEM 3031 – Organic Chemistry I Laboratory
• CHEM 3032 – Organic Chemistry II
• CHEM 3033 – Organic Chemistry II Laboratory
• CHEM 2052 – General Chemistry II
• CHEM 2053 – General Chemistry II Laboratory
• CHEM 3043 – Instrumental Analysis Laboratory
• CHEM 4030 – Biochemistry I
• CHEM 4031 – Biochemistry I Laboratory
• CHEM 4095 – Biochemistry Seminar
• CHEM 4901 – Senior Research
• CHEM 4950 – Research Practicum
• CHEM 6310 – Marine Natural Products Chemistry

Selected Honors and Awards

• 2017 – HPU Teacher of the Year
• 2014 – HPU Golden Apple Award for Scholarship
• 2011 – Visiting Professor (honorary), Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
• 2011 – Weinman Innovator Award for Translational Research, Weinman Foundation / University of Hawai‘i Cancer Center (Co-Investigator)
• 2009 – Jack L. Beal Award, American Chemical Society / American Society of Pharmacognosy
• 2004 – President’s Award for Outstanding Service by a Faculty Member, Hawai‘i Pacific University

Selected Recent Publications

• Parris, M. R.; Suzuki, S.; Kiledal, S. A.; Gong, X. B.; Zhang, X.; Penner, R.; Sun, H.-S.; Feng, Z.-P.; Horgen, F. D.; Fleig, A.; Hull, K. G.; Romo, D. Pharmacophore Directed Retrosynthesis Applied to Waixenicin A: Synthesis and Bioactivity of Derivatives Bearing a Minimal Proposed Pharmacophore. Lett. 2026, 28, 7947–7952. DOI: 10.1021/acs.orglett.6c01502.
• Madlmayr, A.; Hoelting, K.; Karner-Hoeger, B.; Lewitz, D.; Weng, M.; Hacker, S.; Eder, J.; Horner, K.; Schedlberger, C.; Haider, T.; Lechner, M.; Duggan, M.; Ross, R.; Horgen, F. D.; Sperandio, M.; Dietrich, A.; Gudermann, T.; Zierler, S. TRPM7 and Magnesium Orchestrate Human CD4 T-Cell Activation and Differentiation. Life Sci. Alliance 2025, 9, e202503357. DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202503357.
• Kataoka-Yahiro, M.; Horgen, F. D.; Buchwald, D.; Townsend Ing, C.; Manson, S. M.; Kaholokula, J. K.; Braun, K. L. A Scaffolded Training Series to Develop Clinical and Translational Researchers in Hawai‘i. Clin. Transl. Sci. 2025, 9, e203. DOI: 10.1017/cts.2025.10108.
• Yao, G.; Parris, M. R.; Kuo, W. C.; Pörzgen, P.; Castillo, B.; Mason, E. S.; Chinchilla, A.; Huang, J.; Suzuki, S.; Ross, R.; Akana, E.; Vander Schuit, S.; Miller, S. P.; Penner, R.; Sun, H.-S.; Feng, Z.-P.; Hull, K. G.; Romo, D.; Fleig, A.; Horgen, F. D. Transient Receptor Potential Melastatin 7 (TRPM7) Ion Channel Inhibitors: Preliminary SAR and Conformational Studies of Xenicane Diterpenoids from the Hawaiian Soft Coral Sarcothelia edmondsoni. Nat. Prod. 2024, 87, 783–797. DOI: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.3c00942.
• Luo, Z.; Zhang, X.; Fleig, A.; Romo, D.; Hull, K. G.; Horgen, F. D.; Sun, H.-S.; Feng, Z.-P. TRPM7 in Neurodevelopment and Therapeutic Prospects for Neurodegenerative Disease. Cell Calcium 2024, 120, 102886. DOI: 10.1016/j.ceca.2024.102886.
• Zheng, G.; Lv, K.; Wang, H.; Huang, L.; Feng, Y.; Gao, B.; Sun, Y.; Li, Y.; Huang, J.; Jin, P.; Xu, X.; Horgen, F. D.; Fang, C.; Yao, G. Piericones A and B as Potent Antithrombotics: Nanomolar Noncompetitive Protein Disulfide Isomerase Inhibitors with an Unexpected Chemical Architecture. Am. Chem. Soc. 2023, 145, 3196–3203. DOI: 10.1021/jacs.2c12963.
• Khalil, A.; Shekh-Ahmad, T.; Kovac, S.; Wykes, R. C.; Horgen, F. D.; Fleig, A.; Walker, M. C. Drugs Acting at TRPM7 Channels Inhibit Seizure-like Activity. Epilepsia Open 2023, 8, 1169–1174. DOI: 10.1002/epi4.12773.

Personal Interests

Outside the university, Dr. Horgen enjoys fishing, spearfishing, scuba diving, hiking, and hunting, and, especially, spending time with his wife and son.