Category: Faculty
Gonzalez Receives $2M NIH Grant for Project on Childhood Obesity
October 9, 2018Daniel Gonzalez, Pharm.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics, received a $2 million NIH Research Project Grant for research focused on drug dosing in children with obesity. Gonzalez’s proposal aims to find a systematic approach to the development and evaluation of physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models to help treat children with obesity. These models are mathematical constructs that incorporate physiologic and body composition changes during childhood. “The majority of drugs prescribed to children with obesity lack recommendations for appropriate dosing for size,” Gonzalez said. “Physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models can be used … Read more
Kathleen Thomas Joins DPOP as Tenure-Track Associate Professor
October 2, 2018Kathleen Thomas, Ph.D., M.P.H., has been hired as an associate professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. She joins the Division of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy and will work from the School’s Asheville satellite campus. Thomas comes to the School from UNC’s Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, where she serves as the associate director of the NRSA training program in health services research for pre- and post-doctoral fellows. Thomas earned her Ph.D. in health economics from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and her M.P.H. in health policy from Yale University. She completed her … Read more
Crona Awarded ACCP Research Institute Futures Grant
September 24, 2018Daniel Crona, Pharm.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics, was awarded the American College of Clinical Pharmacy Research Institute Futures Grant Junior Investigator Award. Crona received the award and a $30,000 grant from the ACCP Research Institute for his proposal, “A Prospective Multi-Dose Study of Apixaban in Nephrotic Syndrome Patients.” “Currently, there is no established standard of care prophylactic for venous thromboembolic events in nephrotic syndrome patients,” Crona said. “However, direct oral anticoagulants, apixaban in particular, are appealing options for thromboprophylaxis. There is an unmet need to … Read more
Students Offer Perspectives on Diversity and Inclusion at Symposium
September 12, 2018The Office of Organizational Diversity and Inclusion hosted the Art and Science of Diversity and Inclusion Symposium on Sept. 7. Student, faculty, staff and alumni attendees reviewed research supporting the need for greater diversity in pharmacy education and discussed the infrastructure changes needed to support greater inclusion at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Interim Dean Dhiren Thakker, Ph.D., delivered opening remarks and Assistant Professor Antonio Bush, Ph.D., led a discussion on the need for diversity and inclusion in education. The symposium also included a panel discussion on student perspectives on diversity in the School. PY3 Rasheed Mohammed said that … Read more
UNC to Apply Machine Learning, AI to Improve Battlefield Medicine
September 10, 2018The University of North Carolina will use machine learning and artificial intelligence to help ensure that military health care providers are better prepared to handle the evolving conditions and traumatic injuries seen on the battlefield. The Department of Defense has awarded a grant of $1.6 million to the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy to fund the two-year project. The military has asked the research team for an analytical tool that can evaluate real-world patient data to predict the skills, training and patient care guidelines that military health care workers will need in different scenarios. The project is being led by … Read more
Diversity and Inclusion Retreat Highlights Opportunities for Improvement
September 5, 2018The UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy hosted the 2018 Transformative Diversity and Inclusion Retreat on Aug. 14. The diversity and inclusion core team, which includes 29 pharmacy faculty, staff and students, used the retreat to begin establishing a shared philosophy of inclusivity and collaboration within the School. The retreat was focused on expanding opportunities to enhance diversity and inclusion at the School. It featured conversations between the core team and faculty, staff and students at the School, who came to share their input on how the School could improve its outreach and inclusivity. “We must continue to foster a culture … Read more
Carolyn Thorpe Joins DPOP as Associate Professor
August 30, 2018Carolyn Thorpe, Ph.D., M.P.H., has been hired as an associate professor with tenure at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. She joins the Department of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy while having continued affiliation with the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Health System. This new partnership between the School and the VAPHS’s Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion will provide new training and research opportunities for postdoctoral fellows and graduate students at the School. Thorpe earned her Ph.D. at UNC Gillings School of Public Health in 2006 and her M.P.H. in epidemiology at George Washington University in 2001. She served as a … Read more
Stem Cells Show Promise as Drug Delivery Tool for Childhood Brain Cancer
August 28, 2018The latest in a series of laboratory breakthroughs could lead to a more effective way to treat the most common brain cancer in children. Scientists from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center reported results from early studies that demonstrate how cancer-hunting stem cells, developed from skin cells, can track down and deliver a drug to destroy medulloblastoma cells hiding after surgery. Previously, UNC Lineberger’s Shawn Hingtgen, PhD, and his collaborators showed in preclinical studies they could flip skin cells into stem cells that hunt and deliver cancer-killing drugs to glioblastoma, the deadliest … Read more
In Memoriam: Alan Forrest, Pharm.D.
August 27, 2018Alan Forrest, Pharm.D., 66, a clinical professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and expert in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics modeling, died Saturday, Aug. 25, at UNC Hospitals. “Alan contributed to the field of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling for well over 30 years as a highly productive and innovative researcher and an educator,” said Dhiren Thakker, Ph.D., interim dean of the School. “He was world-renowned for his work on the use of quantitative approaches and mathematical modeling to optimize patient therapy, and he significantly impacted drug development and pharmacotherapy through his contributions in evolving the field of pharmacometrics. “Alan will … Read more
Amanda Corbett Appointed Assistant Dean of Professional Curriculum
August 27, 2018Amanda Corbett, Pharm.D., has been appointed assistant dean for the professional curriculum of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Corbett is a clinical associate professor in the Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics and serves as the associate director of global engagement at the School. She is also a clinical associate professor in the UNC School of Medicine and global pharmacology coordinator for the UNC Institute of Global Health and Infectious Diseases. As assistant dean, Corbett will work with the faculty and students to implement educational innovation into the professional curriculum and integrate it with the School’s residential, experiential, global … Read more