Michael O'Connor

Michael O'Connor is a DDR drug discovery scientist at AstraZeneca who played a central role in developing WEE1 kinase inhibitor adavosertib (AZD1775) and ATR inhibitor ceralasertib (AZD6738). He characterized the synthetic lethal interactions between WEE1 inhibition and BRCA deficiency, TP53 mutation, and replication stress-high cancers, establishing scientific rationale for early clinical trials. His team also developed the clinical DDR biomarker framework using phospho-H2AX, CDT1, and RAD51 foci. His work bridges DDR basic science with pharmaceutical development of targeted DDR agents.