College of Pharmacy

Research

1. Pharmacokinetics: Understand sources of variability in drug pharmacokinetics, with a special emphasis on adverse early life exposure. Prenatal and/or postnatal exposure to adverse environment has been linked to smaller birth weight and subsequently higher incidence of metabolic syndrome diseases – hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes during adult life. Mechanistic probing of this link suggests alterations in levels and release profiles of growth hormone, thyroid hormones, leptin, insulin, and cytokines. These endogenous molecules are also known modulators of various enzymes and transporters including those involved in pharmacokinetic processes – Absorption, Metabolism, and Excretion. His hypothesis is that early life exposure to adverse environment will leave a permanent mark on the status of enzymes and transporters relevant to drug pharmacokinetics. He uses biochemical (enzyme kinetics) and molecular biology (western blotting, RT-PCR) tools in testing this hypothesis.
   Modeling Pharmacokinetic data is another aspect of his pharmacokinetic research interests.
2. Bioanalysis: Another area of interest is bioanalytical method development. Spectrophotometric and chromatographic (HPLC, LC/MS, LC/MS/MS, GC/MS) techniques are employed in analyzing drug concentrations in various biological matrices (Plasma, Serum and Whole Blood).