Category: Centers
UNC Study Could Lead to Treatment for Angelman Syndrome
December 21, 2011Results of a new study by a team of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill may help pave the way to a treatment for Angelman syndrome, a neurogenetic disorder for which there is currently no effective therapy. The most characteristic feature of AS is the absence or near absence of speech throughout the person’s life. The disease, often misdiagnosed as cerebral palsy or autism, is caused by mutations or deletions in the Ube3a gene inherited from the mother, or the maternal allele. The Ube3a protein produced by that gene is a key component of an important … Read more
Associate Professor Wiltshire Receives Tenure
December 19, 2011Associate professor Tim Wiltshire, PhD, has received tenure at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Wiltshire joined the School’s Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics in 2007. He serves as the associate director of the UNC Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy. He also holds adjunct faculty positions in the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and in theDepartment of Genetics at the UNC School of Medicine. In addition, he is actively involved in several collaborations with the Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences. Before coming to UNC, Wiltshire was a senior research investigator at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research … Read more
Better Genetic Data Can Improve Malaria Treatment, UNC Scientists Say
November 16, 2011Malaria treatment in African nations could be more effective and less expensive if drug-policy makers paid more attention to how genetics affect a patient’s response to malaria treatments, say researchers at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. The researchers looked at how malaria is normally treated in malaria-endemic countries and then checked to see whether there was genetic information available that suggested that a different drug be used. The researchers’ recommendations were published in a commentary in the January issue of the Bulletin of the World Health Organization. “As part of the Pharmacogenetics in Every Nation Initiative, we looked at … Read more
IPIT Study Links Chemotherapy Response to Heritable Factors
October 26, 2011A new study from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy and UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center evaluated twenty-nine commonly used cancer chemotherapy drugs in the laboratory and found that how patients’ genes influence their response to chemotherapy varies widely between different drugs and different classes of drugs. The study was published online in the October issue of the journal Pharmacogenomics. “We know that chemotherapy works to kill cancer cells, but the problem is that we don’t know exactly why it works better for some patients than for others,” said project researcher Kristy Richards, MD, PhD, … Read more
Discovery by Jin, Roth Could Lead to Better Schizophrenia Drugs
October 24, 2011Scientists led by researchers at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy have discovered three first-in-class chemical compounds that could lead to safer, more effective medications for schizophrenia and related disorders. Schizophrenia is typically treated with antipsychotic medications, but the medications do not adequately treat a high percentage of patients. The drugs don’t address the negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia, and all current antipsychotics can lead to serious side effects such as cardiovascular conditions and weight gain with chronic use. The new compounds, which UNC has patented, will help address these problems by enabling researchers to better study which key … Read more
UNC Scientists Create “Excellent” Probe to Study Gene-Controlling Proteins
July 11, 2011Collaboration between University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Canadian scientists has resulted in a molecular probe capable of specifically targeting two proteins that affect a wide range of biological functions in humans by controlling the expression of certain genes. The probe, called UNC0638, is a small molecule created by the researchers that targets the proteins G9a and GLP, which play a role in a variety of conditions from cancer to cocaine addiction. The probe was created in collaboration with the Structural Genomics Consortium based at the University of Toronto and is detailed in a paper published in Nature … Read more
It’s Time Formularies Paid Attention to Genetics, UNC Researchers Say
May 19, 2011The science of pharmacogenomics—how individual genetics affects a person’s response to medicines—has matured enough that the creators of formularies need to start taking genetic data into consideration even though resources for doing so can be hard to find, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Lindsey Poppe, PharmD, and Mary Roederer, PharmD, conducted a review of health databases to determine to what extent genetic information is being used to develop formularies. Formularies are drug policies established by health-care organizations to govern the use of medicines by hospitals, insurance companies, government programs, and other groups that … Read more
Greece Joins UNC Personalized Medicine Initiative
March 31, 2011Greece is the latest nation to join the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Pharmacogenomics for Every Nation Initiative, an effort that seeks to help more than 100 countries make better medication choices based on the unique characteristics of their people. The Golden Helix Institute of Biomedical Research in Athens will work with the UNC Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy to expand PGENI efforts in the eastern part of Europe. PGENI works to integrate genetic risk data for an individual country and World Health Organization essential-medicine recommendations into public-health decision making without placing an extra burden on health-care … Read more
Persky Named Director of Center for Educational Excellence in Pharmacy
March 22, 2011Adam Persky, PhD, has been named director of the Center for Educational Excellence in Pharmacy at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Persky, a clinical associate professor in the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics, has been the center’s associate director. As director, he will continue to work with various people and committees at the School to help faculty members become more effective teachers and mentors by identifying innovative teaching practices and advocating for their integration into the curriculum. “Adam is a terrific teacher with a passion for the craft who never stops looking for new, innovative ways to engage … Read more
Cancer Expert Joins UNC’s Personalized Medicine Team
March 3, 2011Federico Innocenti, MD, PhD, has been appointed associate professor of pharmacy in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. He will serve as associate director of the School’s Center for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy and as a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. “Federico Innocenti is an internationally regarded expert in cancer pharmacogenomics and known for his formidable ability to translate novel laboratory findings into clinical use,” said Robert Blouin, PharmD, dean of the School. “His blend of clinical training and pharmacology expertise will complement and advance our individualized therapy program.” Innocenti elucidated the role of the enzyme UGT1A1 in … Read more