Category: Divisions
Batrakova Gets $1.7 Million Grant to Treat Parkinson’s with Cell-Delivered Gene Therapy
April 16, 2018Elena Batrakova, Ph.D., is principal investigator on a new R01 grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to explore cell-based gene delivery to the brain as a therapy for Parkinson’s disease. The grant is worth up to $1.7 million over five years. Batrakova and her team at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Center for Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery will genetically modify white blood cells called monocytes to produce glial cell–derived neurotrophic factor, or GDNF, and deliver it to the brain. Glial cells provide support and protection for nerve cells throughout the brain and body, and GDNF … Read more
Postdoc Gilliland Receives Spectroscopy Career Development Award
April 11, 2018Mac Gilliland, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, has been selected for the 2018 Postdoctoral Career Development Award from the American Society of Mass Spectroscopy. Gilliland is a member of the lab of Angela Kashuba, Pharm.D., the John and Deborah McNeill, Jr. Distinguished Professor and chair of the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics. He joined the Kashuba lab in May 2017 as a postdoctoral research associate and works under the direction of Research Associate Professor Eli Rosen, Ph.D., who is focused on developing a novel mass spectroscopy imaging technique called infrared matrix-assisted laser desorption … Read more
Brouwer Selected to Give 2018 ASCPT-FDA Abrams Lecture
April 9, 2018Kim. L. R. Brouwer, Pharm.D., Ph.D., will be honored by the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics as the recipient of the 2018 ASCPT and US Food and Drug Administration William B. Abrams Lecture Award. Brouwer is the associate dean for research and graduate education and the William R. Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. The William B. Abrams Lecture is a joint educational initiative of ASCPT and the FDA. The lecture series, supported in part by the Merck Company Foundation, was established in 1999 to honor William B. Abrams, M.D., an ASCPT president … Read more
Gerhart Receives 2018 ASCPT Presidential Trainee Award
April 5, 2018Jacqueline “Jackie” Gerhart, M.S., a first-year doctoral student in the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics, has received the 2018 American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics Presidential Trainee Award. The $500 award recognizes the top-scoring abstracts that were submitted by students and trainees to the ASCPT 2018 conference. Gerhart is working under the supervision of Assistant Professor Daniel Gonzalez, Pharm.D., Ph.D. Her research involves using plasma and cerebrospinal fluid samples obtained from infants to develop a physiologically based pharmacokinetic model for testing of fluconazole. Fluconazole is an antifungal drug commonly used in neonatal intensive care units for both treatment … Read more
UNC Releases Huge Database of Molecules to Support Artificial Intelligence Methods in Chemistry
April 2, 2018Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Florida have publicly released a massive set of data that they used to create an artificial intelligence that drastically cuts the time needed to design new molecules in drug discovery and other areas of chemistry. The high quality database is publicly available to aid other researchers in creating similar tools and contains over 20 million conformations — or structural variations — of more than 57,000 small, drug-like molecules. In 2017 UNC-Chapel Hill and UF scientists created the ANAKIN-ME method, a neural network that can calculate the … Read more
Pinelli Reitter promoted to Clinical Associate Professor
March 27, 2018Nicole Pinelli Reitter, Pharm.D., has been promoted to clinical associate professor in the Division of Practice Advancement and Clinical Education at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Pinelli Reitter is also the assistant dean of experiential programs: health systems. “Through her area of focus, Dr. Reitter has made a large impact on our school and the profession of pharmacy,” said Stephen Eckel, Pharm.D., M.H.A., interim chair of PACE and associate director of pharmacy at UNC Hospitals. “Her scholarship and publication record are especially noteworthy considering that she is still in the early stage of her career. In addition, it is … Read more
As Hawke Retires, Jarstfer Steps in as Graduate Education Assistant Dean
March 26, 2018After serving as the assistant dean for graduate education with distinction since the position was created in 2011, Roy Hawke, Ph.D., is stepping down in conjunction with his decision to retire. Associate Professor Michael Jarstfer, Ph.D., succeeded Hawke as assistant dean effective March 1. “Our graduate students and faculty owe Roy a big debt of gratitude for his selfless and tireless service on their behalf,” said Dhiren Thakker, Ph.D., interim dean of the School. “On behalf of the students, faculty and staff of the School, I am happy to welcome Mike to his new role and thank Roy for providing … Read more
McClurg Named Executive Vice Dean of Academic Affairs
March 21, 2018Mary Roth McClurg, Pharm.D., M.H.S., has been named to the new position of executive vice dean for academic affairs at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Interim Dean Dhiren Thakker, Ph.D., appointed Roth McClurg to the post on March 1. She was promoted to the rank of full professor in the Division of Practice Advancement and Clinical Education in February. “Our School’s mission is very broad and very deep, and we are not satisfied with just pursuing this mission to the best of our abilities. We constantly stretch ourselves in all that we do,” Thakker said. “As a result, we have a many consequential … Read more
Joyner Receives PAA Award for Distinguished Service to School
March 15, 2018Pamela U. Joyner, M.S.Pharm., Ed.D., is the recipient of the 2018 PAA Distinguished Service Award from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy Alumni Association. Joyner is retiring from the School April 1 from her position as executive associate dean for professional education, which she has held since 2010. As executive associate dean, Joyner has been responsible for all professional-education initiatives, including accreditation, the curriculum, experiential education and continuing education. Joyner previously served as associate dean for professional education since 1998. “As Dr. Joyner prepares to leave, we can all appreciate the positive effect she has had on this school, this … Read more
Group to Explore Transforming School’s Graduate Program
March 13, 2018The UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy has convened a working group to examine and consider a transformation of the School’s graduate program in the pharmaceutical sciences. The group consists of faculty members from the School’s five divisions, graduate students and a representative from the UNC Health Sciences Library. A contemporary, highly effective pharmaceutical sciences graduate program is a fundamental component of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, said Kim Brouwer, Pharm.D., Ph.D., associate dean for research and graduate education. “Our objective is to ensure that we enroll, educate, and graduate outstanding pharmaceutical scientists who are optimally prepared for success and … Read more