Current Research Projects
Joseph McQuail, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
School of Medicine Columbia
Research Goal:
Develop novel drugs targeting heteromeric NMDA receptors aimed at preventing or reversing
age-related memory loss.
Fiona Hollis, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
School of Medicine Columbia
Research Goal:
Test whether chronic unpredictable stress induces excessive mitochondrial fragmentation
via the elevation of glucocorticoids that increase Drp1 recruitment to the mitochondrial
outer membrane in a receptor-specific manner. Then examine whether disruption of these
specific Drp1-receptor interactions can prevent mitochondrial fragmentation and subsequent
inflammation and downstream behavioral alterations.
Katie Kathrein, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
Research Goal:
Find approaches to restoring the function of a tumor suppressor using a zebrafish
model.
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Generate potent and selective DDX3 inhibitors for the treatment of neurodegeneration.
Prior Research Projects
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Investigate Tyrosyl tRNA synthetase as a new target in Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative
diseases.
Ozgur Sahin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Overcoming in vivo resistance to chemotherapy in triple-negative breast cancer.
Eugenia Broude, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Develop new approaches to improving the efficacy of breast cancer therapy by combining
targeted drugs with novel transcription-regulating kinase inhibitors.
Mentors:
Hippokratis Kiaris, Ph.D.
Phillip Buckhaults, Ph.D.
Jing Fang, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Services, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Targeting of Gq/11 and calcineurin for leukemia therapy
Mentors:
Igor Roninson, Ph.D.
Lorne Hofseth, Ph.D.
Mythreye Karthikeyan, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, College of Arts and Sciences
Research Goal:
Validate and explore inhibin as a novel potential cancer target for antibody-based
and small-molecule drugs.
Mentors:
Igor Roninson, Ph.D.
Hippokratis Kiaris, Ph.D.
Michy Kelly, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & Neuroscience, UofSC School of Medicine
Research Goal:
Identify the molecular mechanisms that control Phosphodiesterase 11A (PDE11A) transcription
and/or catalytic activity in order to reveal new opportunities for developing PDE11A-targeted
therapeutics.
Mentors:
Igor Roninson, Ph.D.
Jim Fadel, Ph.D.
Norma Frizzell, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & Neuroscience, UofSC School of Medicine
Research Goal:
Validate and explore a new metabolic target for genetic neuropathological diseases
associated with aberrant mitochondrial function.
Mentors:
Lawrence Reagan, Ph.D.
Peisheng Xu, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Develop a highly selective and efficient system for drug delivery into the brain and
test this system in a model of Alzheimer’s disease.
Mentors:
Qian Wang, Ph.D.
Mark Kindy, Ph.D.
Michael Shtutman, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Research Goal:
Develop an anti-cancer drug that kills both dividing and non-dividing tumor cells,
while sparing normal tissues, by targeting coatomer protein complex.
Mentors:
Igor Roninson, Ph.D.
Kim Creek, Ph.D.