PH.D. IN PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES

The Ph.D.in Pharmaceutical Sciences is a 5-year research-oriented program designed to meet each student’s career interests and goals. Our nationally renowned faculty members have strengths in all areas of pharmaceutical science, and many have been recognized for teaching excellence, outstanding research and professional activities.

Research focus areas include the exploration and design of anti-infective agents, the design and development of innovative drug dosage forms, and the mechanisms and consequences of drug interactions with living organisms.

Program Outcomes

Upon graduation, pharmaceutical sciences graduate students will be competent to:

  • Expand the knowledge of their discipline(s), having developed:
    • Research and scholarship skills.
    • An extensive understanding of the knowledge base of the discipline.
    • A broad, general understanding of pharmaceutical and health biosciences.
  • Communicate research findings to improve the knowledge base in pharmaceutical sciences, having
    • Given oral presentations in scientific and public forums.
    • Written scientific manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals.
  • Enter the profession of pharmaceutical science, having developed:
    • A network of professional peers and role models.
    • An understanding of the requirements of academic, industrial, or other workplaces.
    • A sense of the culture of pharmaceutical science.
    • A deep appreciation for the ethical conduct of research.
  • Teach and mentor future pharmaceutical scientists, having experienced:
    • A compelling learning environment.
    • Opportunities to serve as a teacher and mentor.

Research Areas

The Drug Discovery research team is interested in bioorganic and natural product chemistry; biosynthesis of microbial secondary metabolites; and work at the interface of molecular genetics, enzymology, and chemistry toward the goal of creating and developing novel, pharmaceuticallyactive compounds that are useful in the treatment of infectious disease and cancer. Structurally complex natural products are being isolated from diverse biological organisms living in marine and terrestrial ecosystems all over the world.

The Gene Regulation & Disease research team is studying the mechanistic basis for control of gene expression by transcriptional regulatory proteins in developmental and pathological contexts; skin cancer and skin repair; diabetes and obesity; and neurological disorders. These studies require a multidisciplinary approach involving the fields of biochemistry, cell biology, epigenetics, and molecular, systems, network, and genetics.

The Targeted Drug Delivery research team is developing novel intelligent nanoparticle-basedsystems; phototherapy and heat, modified messenger RNA for treatment of neuro-degenerative disorders and cancer immunotherapy; and combination of radiation and chemotherapy. Thenanoparticle-based delivery systems are designed to silence key, cancer-driving genes in the tumors as well as directly induce tumor cell death within the tumor mass.