Graduate student awards

Department chair, Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, is delighted to announce the promotion of Clay Wang to Associate Professor effective immediately. (more on Wang, page 9).

Marco Bortolato has recently been appointed as Research Assistant Professor. He is a member of the laboratory of Jean C. Shih. ■

Tocagen grant for Wolf

Walter Wolf and his team, as part of his program using noninvasive 19F magnetic resonance spectroscopy (19F-MRS), is beginning to evaluate the ability to detect the (more on Wolf, page 4)

James Sanchez: AFPE Fellowship Clay Wang, Mentor

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Erik Serrao (L): USC Oakley Endowed Fellowship, Tino Sanchez (R): Dissertation Award, CHRP; Nouri Neamati, mentor

Shi (Ben) Xu: SSF Student Fellowship Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, mentor

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Statement by the Chair ..................2 Faculty Roster.................................2 Acknowledgement ..........................2 Faculty Trails James D. Adams, Roberta Diaz

Brinton, Enrique Cadenas ............3 Julio Camarero, Sarah

Hamm-Alvarez, Andrew MacKay, Nouri Neamati, Walter Wolf..........4

Clay Wang....................................9 Graduate Student News Li-Peng Yap Awards: Daya Iyer Perkins, James Sanchez, Tino Sanchez, Erik Serrao, Letisha Wyatt, Shi (Ben) Xu.................................5 Updates from our Alumni Uday B. Kompella Joan-En Chang Lin ......................6

LATE BREAKING NEWS:

Clay Wang promotion

Daya Perkins: Order of Arete Ronald Alkana, mentor

Walter Wolf

Letisha Wyatt, AFPE Fellowship Ronald Alkana, Daryl Davies, mentors

Visiting Scholars Jenan Abid, Luis Berrade Urbano, Fuhou Chang, Maria Charlotta Edman, Roberto Frau, Kuan-Han Lee, Sachin Patel................................. 8 Affiliations Carsten Ehrhardt ......................... 9 Baby News Nouri Neamati Lab babies: Leonardo Grande, Umesh Kumar Bhatt Gundla, Nicky Shi, Jayanth Dayam Shen’s 1st grandchild, Layla Natalie’s delight: Kaylee Grace and Michael ........................... 10 Seminar Series ............................. 11 Graduate Student Seminars ........ 11 Publications.................................. 12 Graduation Day pictures ............. 13

A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

2

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Roster

Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, Gavin S. Herbert Professor and Chair

James Adams, Associate Professor

Ronald Alkana, Professor & Associate Dean for Graduate Affairs and Curricular Development

Marco Bortolato, Research Assistant Professor

Roberta Brinton, Professor & R. Pete Vanderveen Chair in Therapeutic Discovery and Development

Enrique Cadenas, Professor & Associate Dean for Research Affairs

Julio Camarero, Associate Professor

Timothy Chan, Dean Emeritus & Professor

Kevin Chen, Research Associate Professor

Roger Duncan, Associate Professor

Ian Haworth, Associate Professor

Juliana Hwang, Research Assistant Professor

Andrew MacKay, Assistant Professor

Nouri Neamati, Associate Professor

Curtis Okamoto, Associate Professor

Igor Rebrin, Research Assistant Professor

Rebecca Romero, Lecturer

Wei-Chiang Shen, John A. Biles Professor

Jean Shih, University Professor, Boyd & Elsie Welin Professor

Rajindar Sohal, Timothy M. Chan Professor

Bangyan Stiles, Assistant Professor

Clay Wang, Associate Professor

Walter Wolf, Distinguished Professor

Liqin Zhao, Research Assistant Professor

■

University of Southern California School of Pharmacy 1985 Zonal Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90089-9121 (323) 442-3400 Office (323) 442-1390 Fax Website: http://www.usc.edu/schools/pharmacy/ ■

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AA hheeaarrttffeelltt ““tthhaannkk yyoouu”” ttoo

RRUUTTHH BBAALLLLAARRDD,, KKAATTHHII HHOORRGGAANN,, KKUUKKLLAA VVEERRAA for all their help in this issue.

ffààttààxxÅÅxxÇÇàà uuçç àà{{xx VV{{tt||ÜÜ Dear colleagues:

It has again been a busy and productive term.

My congratulations go out to Dr. Clay Wang who has just been promoted to Associate Professor with tenure, a much deserved recognition!

I’d also like to congratulate this year’s graduates:

Our MS degree recipients in PPSI include Melinda Hom, Pang-Yu Hseuh, Srikanth Janga and Ling Ren.

Our Ph.D. degree recipients in PPSI include Min Chen, Omar Khalid, Xu Li, Shanshan Liu and Daya Perkins.

Our graduate students fared well in a number of internal and national competitions for fellowship funding; my congratulations go out to our young stars featured on the front page of this newsletter.

Many faculty this term spent considerable time preparing applications for the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds made available to NIH, a much needed infusion of (unfortunately) short term cash into NIH. I congratulate all of these faculty for their extra efforts in responding to this challenge, and in serving on numerous additional study sections to evaluate this bolus of grants during the summer.

Of note in the newsletter, our newest faculty member, Andrew MacKay, has received his first research grant from the USC Research Center for Liver Diseases.

You will also note updates from two former PSCI graduates, Uday Kompella and Joan-En Chang Lin, on their lives post-USC (other graduates, please get in touch with us if you wish to be featured).

I wish you all a happy and productive summer! ■

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

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FFAACCUULLTTYY TTRRAAIILLSS

Jim Adams His new book, "Healing with

medicinal plants of the west - cultural and scientific basis for their use,” second edition, is now available for $20.33 in Abedu Press website (http://www.abeduspress.com).

Ran his 14th LA Marathon (his 18th–all marathons); his fastest for 26.2 miles: 5 hours, 7 minutes, 45 seconds. If you want to sponsor his effort, please go to http://firstgiving.com/jimadams or send a check to Child SHARE, 1544 West Glenoaks Blvd, Glendale, CA 91201. Your gift is tax deductible and benefits abused and abandoned children (www.childshare.org).

Led a medicinal plant hike in the Deukmejian Wilderness Park, Glendale CA, May 2.

Presented on the topic about Chumash healing at the Pasadena Sierra Club, April 1, the Montrose Sierra Club, Duekmejian Wilderness Park, April 4, and the Topanga Canyon Docents, Malibu Creek, April 5.

Attended meeting of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), NIH basic science study section, March 1-3. ■

Enrique Cadenas External reviewer for the

Nathan Shock Aging Center in San Antonio, Texas on February 3 and 4.

Invited speaker for the Spring 2009 seminar series of the University of California at Merced on February 5. Title of talk: Metabolic control of aging and neurodegeneration .

Attended the Gordon Research Conference: 2009 Oxidative Stress and Disease, in Tuscany, Italy on March 9-13, as a discussion leader in the Diabetes/Mitochondrial Dysfunction session.

Served as a moderator at a Conference on Micronutrients, Exercise, Energy & Aging Disorders in Paris, France on April 7-10.

Guest speaker at the 3rd International Congress of Molecular Medicine in Istanbul, Turkey on May 6, Title of talk: “Metabolic targets in a model of Alzheimer's disease.”

Attended the International Courses on Toxicology 2009 at the University of Coimbra, Portugal last May 7-8, as an invited speaker for two sessions:

Roberta Diaz Brinton Attended the Society for

Neuroscience Council Meeting in Washington, DC on May 26-27.

Invited Seminar Speaker, University of Vermont, College of Medicine, Psychiatry Grand Rounds, Burlington VT, May 1. Title of talk: Estrogen Regulation of Brain Mitochondria: Implications for Neurological Health and Disease.

Invited Seminar Speaker, University of Mississippi Medical Center, UMC Office of Research, Jackson, MI, April 27. Title of talk: Neurosteroid Regulation of Neurogenesis: Promise and Challenges of Regenerative Therapeutics.

Speaker of the Neuroscience Program Seminar Series at the Medical College of Georgia on April 29. Title of talk: Estrogen Regulation of Mitochondrial Bioenergetics: Implications for Neurodegenerative Disease Risk

Speaker at the HHMI (Howard Hughes Medical Institute), Occidental College’s "Science, Society 'n' You," on April 6. Title of talk: “The Science of YOU – It’s All About You All the Time...Really.”

Presented at the American Neuropsychiatric Association (ANPA) 20th Annual Meeting on February 21-22. Presentation title: "Estrogen Regulation of Bioenergetics in Brain: Implications for Alzheimer Disease Risk."

Led the discussion on translational research at the National Center for Research Resources workshop on February 10 at the National Institutes of Health. Brinton said she was surprised at how ubiquitous the barrier is for transitioning the discovery and translational development produced in academia into the business sector. Almost every university represented at the workshop identified this as a major barrier.

Attended the Geriatrics Research Branch of the NIMH workshop on "New Perspectives in the Translational Neuroscience of Late-Life Mental Disorders," last February 2-3. ■

CADENAS (continued)

Mitochondrial bioenergetics in neurodegeneration and Mitochondrial oxidative/nitrosative stress & the thiol/disulfide exchange system

Attended the Diet & Optimum Health Conference of the Linus Pauling Institute, in Portland, Oregon, on May 13-15. He is a member of the International Scientific Advisory Board of the Institute. ■

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A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

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Julio Camarero

Will be assisting the American Peptide Symposium in Indiana University in Bloomington on June 7-12, and the European Protein Society Meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, on June 13-18,

In both conferences he will be presenting recent work in the

development and use of protein splicing for the production and cell-based screening of molecular libraries using the cyclotide scaffold. Cyclotides are medium sized circular polypeptides naturally found in plants. Cyclotides contrast with other circular polypeptides in that they have highly defined, three-dimensional structures, and despite their small size, can be considered as miniproteins. Because of their unique circular backbone and knotted arrangement of the three disulfide bonds, cyclotides are exceptionally stable to thermal and enzymatic degradation. Further, their well-defined structures have been associated with a range of biological activities, including uterotonic, hemolytic, anti-HIV, insecticidal, and trypsin inhibitory activities, and inhibition of neurotension binding. These characteristics make cyclotides ideal candidates to be used as molecular scaffolds for new ligand/drug design and discovery. ■ Andrew MacKay

Barely a six-month old assistant professor, Andrew MacKay received a $37,500 award from the USC Research Center for Liver Diseases for his study entitled, "Hepatic trafficking and anti-tumor activity of genetically engineered glyco-celles." This is the RCLD's top award for pilot projects and is

renewable for two years. ■ Nouri Neamati

Panel reviewer of the following study sections: o The Department of Defense

(DOD) Prostate Cancer Research Program (PCRP) last March.

o The Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP) last April.

o NIH Drug Discovery and Molecular Pharmacology Study Section [DMP] last May 27-29.

Presented an abstract at the 100th annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Denver CO, on April 18-22. ■

Sarah Hamm-Alvarez Invited speaker at UCLA on May 19:

o Department of Human Genetics; title of talk: “Rabs and Myosins in lacrimal acinar secretory vesicle exocytosis .”

o Department of Molecular Medicine; title of talk: "Tear protein production and release by the lacrimal gland: insights into mechanisms associated with Sjogren's syndrome."

Attended the Keck Viterbi Research Retreat on May 12 and talked about the research in the School of Pharmacy.

Attended the ARVO (Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology) Meeting in Ft. Lauderdale on May 1-7. Lab presented two posters: o Xu S, Marchelletta RR, Chiang L, Okamoto C,

Hamm-Alvarez SF. "Rab11a Distribution and Role in Trafficking of the Polymeric Immunoglobulin A Receptor in Primary Rabbit Lacrimal Gland Acinar Cells."

o Contreras J, Wu K, Hseuh A, Hamm-Alvarez SF. “Efficient Transfection of Primary Rabbit Lacrimal Gland Acinar Cells by Nucleofection.”

Speaker at the Gordon Conference in Galveston Texas on February 8–13, for the Salivary and Exocrine Gland study section. Title of talk: “Trafficking of rab27b-enriched vesicles in lacrimal acini.”

Attended NIH study sections last February 3-5 and another upcoming one on June 3-4. The latter date will be her last session and she will be stepping down as chair of the Gene and Drug Delivery System study section.

Served as session moderator during the Annual West Coast Salt & Water Meeting in Morro Bay, CA on March 13–15. ■

Walter Wolf (continued from page 1) conversion of 5-fluorocytosine (5FC) to 5-fluorouracil

(5FU) in patients with brain tumors using the new 3T research magnet. Initial funding for such studies has been made possible by a gift from “Tocagen”, a biopharmaceutical company pursuing the discovery, development and commercialization of products for the treatment of cancer.

Organized and chaired (in collaboration with Prof. Lowell Schnipper, Theodore W. and Evelyn G. Berenson Professor of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA) the 5th annual session on Ethical Issues in Cancer Research. The topic in this year's meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research was: "Ethical Issues in Publications," and one of the four invited speakers was Vincent H.L. Lee, now Dean of Pharmacy at the The Chinese University of Hong Kong. This was again a very timely presentation exploring how scientists must stress both accuracy and honesty in publications.

Participated in the 2009 Imaging Biomarkers Roundtable in Chicago last March 16-17. ■

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Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

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GGRRAADDUUAATTEE SSTTUUDDEENNTT NNEEWWSS

Li-Peng Yap, a postdoc in the laboratory of Enrique Cadenas, gave a 25-minute talk entitled, “The energy-redox axis in aging and neurodegeneration,” summarizing current work carried out in their laboratory. She spoke at the SFRR (Society of Free Radical Research) Symposium in Paris, France on April 8-10, 2009. The French SFRR, a component of SFRR Europe, organized the 3rd symposium on “Nutrition, Oxygen, Biology and Medicine.” This symposium is a joint

meeting with the Oxygen Club of California (OCC). It was an international meeting drawing scientists from all over the globe, such as France, Germany, Spain, etc, aimed at discussing the mechanisms associated with exercise and nutrition in modulating age-related degenerative diseases. Other USC participants in the meeting were Lester Packer, Kelvin Davies and Enrique Cadenas. Dr. Cadenas served as one of the chairs in the section “Exercise, Energy Utilization, Oxidative Stress, and Antioxidants.” ■

AAwwaarrddss

Daya Iyer Perkins, from the laboratory of Ronald Alkana, is a recipient of a university-wide student recognition “Order of Arete” award. The word “arete” in Greek means valor and virtue constituting good character. Subsequently, she has been inducted to the “Rho Chi” and “Phi Kappa Phi” honor societies. Daya is a dual degree graduate this May: Ph.D. in Molecular Pharmacology & Toxicology and Master’s in Regulatory Science. ■

Tino Sanchez, from the laboratory of Nouri Neamati, is the recipient of the Dissertation Award by the California HIV/AIDS Research Program. The award came with a funding of $50,000 for two years. He is working toward the development of drugs for patients with HIV. The disease works by invading an immune cell, using three key enzymes - protease, reverse transcriptase, and integrase - for replication. His work targets the integrase enzyme as it is key in allowing viral DNA to invade host cells. Among HIV therapies, there is currently only one integrase inhibitor that is FDA-approved. ■

Shi (Ben) Xu, from the laboratory of Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, is awarded the SSF (Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation) Student Fellowship for his project, "Rab11a in the transcytosis of polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (pIgR) in lacrimal gland acinar cells." Katherine M. Hammitt, SSF's vice president of research, stated in her email announcing the award to Shi that “…the Research Review Committee had very high praise for your project in particular." The summer fellowship that will start on July 1 and end on September 30, 2009 came with a monetary award of $3,000. ■

James Sanchez, from the laboratory of Clay Wang, received the fellowship award from AFPE (American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education) beginning September 1, 2009 to August 31, 2010, for his research entitled, “The study of the Aspergillus nidulans metabolome in the post-genomic era.” The prestigious honor came with a $6,000 monetary award. AFPE wrote in their letter to James that he “… joined a distinguished group of men and women who have received this award in national competition since 1942.” ■

Erik Serrao, another graduate student from the laboratory of Nouri Neamati, has been awarded USC’s Oakley Endowed Fellowship for the academic year 2009-2010. The award includes a stipend of $19,000, up to 12 units of tuition in each of the fall and spring semesters, payment of health and dental insurance, and some mandatory fees. Erik’s project is entitled "Discovery of New Biomarkers and Development of Novel Anti-HIV Peptidic Compounds." Within this project Erik plans to uncover human proteins that actually facilitate HIV's replication cycle. These human proteins make specific interactions with HIV proteins. Once these human proteins are known and their roles in infection are characterized, Erik will proceed with developing novel compounds to inhibit the specific interactions that they make with HIV, while still leaving them free to carry out their natural function. ■

Letisha Wyatt, a graduate student from the laboratories of Ronald Alkana and Daryl Davies, is another recipient of the AFPE (American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education) Fellowship Award, also covering the dates from September 1, 2009 to August 31, 2010. Letisha is urged to identify herself as an AFPE Fellow, joining a group so bestowed deservedly since 1942. ■

A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

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Joan-En with husband, Dennis, and daughter, Joelle.

WWhheerree aarree tthheeyy nnooww?? UPDATES FROM OUR ALUMNI

UUDDAAYY BB.. KKOOMMPPEELLLLAA

I graduated with a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1994 under the supervision of Prof. Vincent H.L. Lee at USC. My thesis work involved investigations of the role of ion transport processes in drug transport across the conjunctiva of the eye. I currently serve as a Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences & Ophthalmology at the University of Colorado Denver (UCD). My research interests include the development of nanotechnology for drug and gene delivery as well as the development of therapeutic agents to treat neovascular and degenerative disorders. Specifically, my laboratory is working on improving the treatment options for diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and cancers. Additionally, I coordinate a graduate course entitled “Nanotechnology and Drug Delivery” at UCD. I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent at USC. It was a multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary experience for me. My friends originated from virtually everywhere in the world: Japan, Korea, China, Nepal, India, and even the US. My graduate thesis committee was almost as diverse with members from three different departments. A Physiology Department graduate course in biophysics became the basis for my graduate research. Some of my friends from USC have gone on to sponsor my research from industry. Although I joined USC with the intention of pursuing a career in industry, the examples set by my mentor as well as other Professors at USC convinced me to pursue an academic career instead. Prior to finding an academic position, I worked as a Research Scientist at Balance Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a USC start-up company, focused on developing nasal spray formulations of deslorelin, a peptide drug. In about five months of working experience with Balance, I got to visit

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JJOOAANN--EENN CCHHAANNGG LLIINN

I graduated from Dr. Vincent Lee’s laboratory in 2003 with a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences. It was one of the most challenging and exciting times of my life, as I was starting a career at Allergan, finishing my dissertation, moving to Irvine and starting a family with my husband, Dennis. I am very blessed to have trained in the ocular field under Dr. Lee’s guidance. The number of projects Dr. Lee provided during my graduate studies (e.g., grant writing, mini projects sponsored by companies, etc.) prepared me to contribute to ocular drug development and further broaden my ocular expertise at Allergan. I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Dr. Lee in Hong Kong while attending an ophthalmology conference and was reminded how grateful I am of his friendship/mentorship. I am blessed to have known and be mentored by great faculty at USC. Thanks to all faculty, staff and friends at USC for the memorable years. This blessing continued as I joined a great group of scientists at Allergan. Devin Welty became my manager; the kind of boss I had always dreamed to work for. Allergan felt like home from the very start, as I had former USC colleague and friend, Jie Shen, and former colleagues from NeXstar Pharmaceuticals (now Gilead Sciences), Eric Forssen and Alan Satorius, to welcome me. I am currently one of the Pharmacokinetics and Drug Metabolism (PKDM) principal scientists within Allergan’s Drug Safety Evaluation department. I have served as a representative for my department on a number of projects. My role as a project representative includes developing PKDM strategy, conducting (e.g. IND, NDA, MAA, etc.), and communicating/meeting with regulatory agencies

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Uday with daughters, Rohini and Swathi.

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

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Joan-En’s daughter, Joelle, newborn in 2005.

KOMPELLA (continued)

scientists of Southern Research Institute, Alza Corporation, and Inhale Therapeutic Systems, Inc. Perhaps the most exciting experience for me at this time was to accompany John Daniels (the co-founder of Balance Pharmaceuticals), along with my wife Syamala, in John’s personal aircraft with John at the controls. Somehow we got from Santa Monica to Palo Alto in one piece. What had started as a brief working experience turned into a rewarding long-term collaboration with Balance Pharmaceuticals, Inc. After my departure from the company, Balance Pharmaceuticals maintained my stock options and retained me as a consultant for several years. Although the company itself could not advance to late stage clinical trials due to hormone replacement therapy controversies, the experience helped me to develop a focus on respiratory drug delivery in my laboratory. Indeed, we are still continuing our work with deslorelin. Our nanoparticle technologies based on deslorelin are now the basis of a new startup company, NanoTrans Technologies, Inc., in New York. In the fall of 1994, I accepted an Assistant Professor position at Auburn University. Auburn is a pretty university town with a culture conducive to social interactions with colleagues. Also, Auburn ingrained in me a great respect for teaching and collegiality. It was at Auburn University that I initiated my research program in drug delivery through assistance from Balance Pharmaceuticals, Inc. as well as Alcon Laboratories, Inc. After four years as a faculty member at Auburn University, I was recruited by University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in 1998. The attraction of UNMC was the high degree of focus within our department on drug delivery and the interest of NIH in funding these sorts of projects. The move to Nebraska helped me to begin

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CHANG LIN (continued)

to address questions/issues that the agency may have. My role as a PKDM scientist also includes mentoring to technical staff and developing novel techniques to address ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination) of drug development. I interact closely with various groups such as toxicology/pathology, biological sciences, bioanalytical, clinical, formulation, and regulatory on projects during the drug development process. My ability to achieve department and company goals is accomplished with collaboration and help of colleagues that I interact with on a daily basis. This is truly a great team work environment. My early years as a teaching assistant in the PharmD program at USC made me realize that I really enjoy teaching and mentoring students. I am constantly reminded of my love for mentoring and teaching at the American University of Health Sciences (AUHS) where I serve as an adjunct faculty and an advisory board member in their PharmD program. I have also been asked to mentor students at Cal State Fullerton and the University of California, Irvine. In addition, I also meet with rotating PharmD interns from USC annually to talk about my role as a scientist at Allergan and answer any questions they may have about the drug development process. I have been blessed with many mentors in my life and if I can bless someone in the same way, I would have reached one of my personal goals. One major highlight of my life after USC has been the birth of my daughter, Joelle, in 2005. I have thoroughly enjoyed motherhood. Juggling a career and family had proven to be quite a challenge; one which I am enjoying every step of the way. I am happy to announce that we are expecting our second child (girl) in August of this year. All the best to everyone! ■

Professor Kompella’s research group at the University of Colorado, Denver.

Joan-En’s daughter, Joelle, as a newborn in 2005.

A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

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VVIISSIITTIINNGG SSCCHHOOLLAARRSS AAMMOONNGGSSTT UUSS

A newly-arrived short-term visiting scholar at the laboratory of Andrew McKay is Jenan Abid who is from Altrincham, Cheshire, England. She is an undergraduate student at the University of London, School of Pharmacy. While in USC until

June 2009, Jenan will be studying the development of ELP vectors for drug deliver. ■

Fuhou Chang, a visiting scholar at the Ron Alkana/Daryl Davies Laboratories, is from Inner Mongolia, People’s Republic of China. He is a professor at the Department of Pharmacology at the Inner Mongolia Medical College, Inner Mongolia University, his

alma mater for his medical master (pharmacology) and Ph.D. (zoology, molecular genetics) education. ■

Roberto Frau is from Italy. He completed his university degree in biological sciences (with honors, cum laude) and Ph.D. in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Cagliari in 2007. At this same

institution, he is currently on studentship specialization at the School of Pharmacology. As a visiting scholar at the laboratory of Jean C. Shih, he is studying the effects of 5-α-reductase inhibitors on the aggressive and compulsive behaviors in MAO A deficient mice. ■

Just like Jenan Abid, visiting scholar Sachin Patel is newly arrived and is also an undergraduate student from the University of London, School of Pharmacy. He resides in Wembley, London, England. He is working in the

Luis Berrade Urbano was born, raised and educated in Pamplona, Spain. His alma mater for higher education is Pamplona’s University of Navarra, finishing his Ph.D. with honors (cum laude) in 2007. Now he is in the laboratory of Julio Camarero for his

postdoctoral stint, studying synthesis of new photocaged polypeptides with medical application for the treatment of the pneumonic and bubonic plagues. ■

Maria Charlotta Edman is from Sweden. She finished her bachelor’s degree in medical biology at the Linköping University; her graduate studies at the University of Kalmar. She started as a visiting scholar in

2007 at the laboratory of Sarah Hamm-Alvarez and is now a postdoctoral research associate, studying the trafficking pathways of the polymeric immunoglobulin receptor in the mouse lacrimal gland. ■

Kuan-Han Lee is from Taiwan, Republic of China. He is a professor at the Graduate Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science. He finished his bachelor of science at the School of Pharmacy,

Kaohsiung Medical University. He took his master of science degree and graduate studies at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the same university. At the laboratory of Clay Wang he will be studying the genomic mining of secondary metabolism in fungi. ■

PATEL (continued)

laboratories of Drs. Ronald Alkana and Daryl Davies until June 2009. His project study is researching the effects of LPS on the Hpept1 transporter. ■

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

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AAFFFFIILLIIAATTIIOONNSS

Carsten Ehrhardt, adjunct faculty member of the department, is instrumental in cementing a new relationship between USC School of Pharmacy and the Trinity College Dublin School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Ireland. An academic exchange will be promoted by the two schools for the students (graduate and undergraduate), postdocs and faculty. Ehrhardt has been lecturing for the graduate students of the department and an invited speaker for the seminar series last March 27. The title of his talk was “Development of liposome aerosols for (lung) cancer therapy by inhalation.” Ehrhardt is a senior lecturer in pharmaceutics and pharmaceutical technology and the director of research at the Trinity College. He took his pharmacy degree at the Johann-Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt and Hamburg University. For his doctorate (doctor rerum naturalium), he graduated summa cum laude in Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany. For two summers in 2001 and 2006, Ehrhardt worked at the laboratory of Kwang-Jin

Kim of the Keck School of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. Kim has a secondary faculty appointment at the department. ■

FFAACCUULLTTYY TTRRAAIILLSS ((ccoonnttiinnuueedd))

Clay Wang As a visiting professor, he gave a series of three lectures to the students and faculty of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Toyama. His travel was hosted by Professor Ken-ichi Hosoya. ■ .

Pictured from right to left are Curtis Okamoto, Kwang-Jin Kim, Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, Wei-Chiang Shen, Carsten Ehrhardt and Daisy Shen.

Clay Wang is pictured with Professor Sakai outside the century-old pharmacy museum of Toyama City.

A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

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The Gundlas: Rambabu, Baby Umesh, and Pushpa.. ■

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ssuuppppoorrtt dduurriinngg mmyy pprreeggnnaannccyy.. BBeeiinngg aa mmoomm iiss aa mmaajjoorr mmiilleessttoonnee iinn mmyy lliiffee.. FFrroomm tthhee ffiirrsstt ddaayy ooff mmyy

WWeeii--CChhiiaanngg aanndd DDaaiissyy SShheenn’’ss ffiirrsstt ggrraannddcchhiilldd

LLaayyllaa SShheenn wwaass bboorrnn ttoo tthhee SShheennss’’ ssoonn,, JJeerrrryy,, aanndd wwiiffee,, LLaauurreenn,, oonn MMaarrcchh 1133,, 22000099,, wweeiigghhiinngg 77 llbbss.. && 44 oozz..,, 2200”” lloonngg.. ■

NNaattaalliiee’’ss ddeelliigghhttss BBoorrnn ttoo NNaattaalliiee BBiillbbrreeyy’’ss ddaauugghhtteerr,, HHeeaatthheerr NNeellssoonn,, oonn NNoovveemmbbeerr 1122,, 22000088,, iiss KKaayylleeee GGrraaccee,, wweeiigghhiinngg 66 llbbss.. aanndd 1133 oozz.. aanndd 1188..55““ lloonngg,, ttoo tthhee ddeelliigghhtt ooff bbrrootthheerr,, MMiicchhaaeell SSeeggeerr PPaallmmeerr,, wwhhoo ttuurrnneedd sseevveenn llaasstt FFeebbrruuaarryy 2200,, 22000099.. NNaattaalliiee bbeelloonnggss ttoo tthhee ddeeppaarrttmmeenntt’’ss bbuussiinneessss ooffffiiccee.. ■

pprreeggnnaannccyy,, II wwaass ssuurrrroouunnddeedd bbyy tthhee lloovvee aanndd ccaarree ffrroomm eevveerryybbooddyy iinn DDrr.. NNeeaammaattii’’ss llaabb.. II hhaavvee ttoo ssaayy tthhaatt wwiitthhoouutt tthheeiirr uunnccoonnddiittiioonnaall ssuuppppoorrtt,, II ccoouulldd nnoott hhaavvee ggoonnee tthhrroouugghh tthhiiss pprreeggnnaannccyy ssoo ssmmooootthhllyy.."" BBaabbyy NNiicckkyy wwaass bboorrnn ttoo XXuueeffeeii aanndd hhuussbbaanndd,, PPeeiiddoonngg SShhii,, oonn AApprriill 2244,, 22000099 aatt 33::3377 aa..mm.. bbyy ccaaeessaarriiaann--sseeccttiioonn.. SShhee wweeiigghheedd 88 llbbss.. aanndd 66 oozz..,, aanndd iiss 2211..2266”” lloonngg.. ■

TThhee llaasstt,, aanndd ssuurreellyy nnoott tthhee lleeaasstt ooff tthhee NNeeaammaattii LLaabb bbaabbiieess,, iiss RRaavveeeennddrraa DDaayyaamm’s bbaabbyy bbooyy,, JJaayyaanntthh,, wwhhoo wwaass bboorrnn oonn AApprriill 2288,, 22000099 aatt 11::1122 pp..mm..,, wweeiigghhiinngg 66..55 llbbss.. aanndd 1199”” lloonngg.. MMootthheerr iiss RRaavveeeennaa BBoollllaarraamm,, RRaavv’’ss wwiiffee.. ■

Leonardo with parents, Fedora and Nicola, during his baptism.

Picture on the left is Leonardo now . ■

Baby Jayanth DayamBaby Nicky Shi

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

11

SSEEMMIINNAARR SSEERRIIEESS Steve Pandol, UCLA, October 10, 2008 Faculty Host: Roger F. Duncan Title: Challenges in pancreatic cancer research and treatment George Kenyon, College of Pharmacy, University of Michigan,

February 6, 2009 Faculty Host: Nouri Neamati Informal Gathering Luncheon William A. Goddard, Caltech, February 27, 2009 Faculty Host: Nouri Neamati Title: Predicted 3D structures for coupled receptors G-protein and

ligand-GPCR complexes for agonists, antagonists, and inverse agonists

Xiaodong Zhang, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, Singapore,

March 3, 2009 Faculty Host: Jean C. Shih Title: Functional analysis of the neuronal-specific tryptophan

hydroxylase-2: implications for the role of serotonin In psychiatric disorders

John Shyy, UC Riverside, March 6, 2009 Faculty Host: Bangyan Stiles Title: Statin, Exercise, and AMPK Esteban C. Dell'Angelica, UCLA, March 20, 2009 Faculty Host: Sarah Hamm-Alvarez Title: Endosomal protein trafficking, Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome

and schizophrenia Carsten Ehrhardt, University of Dublin, Ireland, March 27, 2009 Faculty Host: Sarah Hamm-Alvarez Title: Development of liposome aerosols for lung cancer therapy

by inhalation ■

KOMPELLA (from page 7)

developing the biological aspects of my research. At UNMC my laboratory established and worked with animal models for diabetic retinopathy, choroid neovascularization, and lung cancer. Omaha is an excellent place for raising family. Both our kids, Swathi (8 years) and Rohini (4 years) were born in Omaha. My Nebraska experience was helpful in establishing my research in the area of drug delivery, especially retinal drug delivery. I was fortunate to have worked with some of the most accomplished drug delivery scientists at UNMC. After a rewarding 10 years experience at UNMC, in March 2008 I relocated to University of Colorado Denver along with all eight members of the laboratory. At UCD we have a Pharmaceutical Sciences Department that reminds me of the faculty at USC. In addition to pharmaceutics and biophysics, we have a significant focus on toxicology including alcoholism and oxidative stress research. In addition, the UCD School of Pharmacy, while being

GGRRAADDUUAATTEE SSTTUUDDEENNTT SSEEMMIINNAARRSS Ni Zeng, February 4, 2009 Advisor: Bangyan Stiles Student Host: Xiaoying Chen Title: Regulation of beta cell quiescence to proliferation by

PTEN Robert Mo, February 11, 2009 Advisor: Wei-Chiang Shen Student Host: Ni Zeng Title: Design of siRNA polyplex for enhanced cellular uptake Yumna Shabaik, March 4, 2009 Advisor: PCG Student Host: Robert Mo Title: Discovery and preclinical development of AS421 for

treatment of pancreatic cancer Liya Xu, March 17, 2009 Advisor: Ronald Alkana Student Host: Yumna Shabaik Title: Mutagenesis and cysteine scanning of transmembrane

10 of the human dipeptide transporter Jared Russell, March 24, 2009 Advisor: Stan Louie Student Host: Liya Xu Title: Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method

development for small molecules Anna Scott, April 7, 2009 Advisor: Jean Shih Student Host: Fei Yin Title: Inhibition of nitric oxide synthase in monoamine

oxidase-deficient mice Shi (Ben) Xu, April 14, 2009 Advisor: Sarah Hamm-Alvarez Student Host: Anna Scott Title: Rab11a-mediated cargo protein sorting and

transcytosis in lacrimal gland acinar cells ■

successful in being ranked in the top 10 schools of pharmacy for NIH funding, encourages and appreciates translational research as well. Indeed, the campus has a successful track record in commercializing technologies, especially those related to biotechnology. A key attraction at UCD and the affiliated National Jewish Hospital is its number one National Ranking in respiratory research. While continuing my research in retinal drug delivery, at UCD I hope to better establish myself in respiratory drug delivery. Also, Denver and the surrounding area is beautiful and offers many opportunities for outdoor activities including hiking and skiing.

Do visit us when you are in Denver! ■

A publication for the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of the Department

12

PUBLICATIONS

Roberta Brinton

Liu L, Wang J, Zhao L, Nilsen J, McClure K, Wong K, Brinton RD. Progesterone increases rat neural progenitor cell cycle gene expression and proliferation via ERK and Progesterone Receptor Membrane Components (PGRMC) 1 and 2. Endocrinology. 2009 Apr 9. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19359388

Brinton RD. Estrogen-induced plasticity from cells to circuits: predictions for cognitive function. Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2009 Apr;30(4):212-22. Epub 2009 Mar 18. PMID: 19299024

Asthana S, Brinton RD, Henderson VW, McEwen BS, Morrison JH, Schmidt PJ (for the Frontiers Proposal for Estrogen and Cognitive Aging Work Groups). Frontiers proposal. National Institute on Aging "bench to bedside: estrogen as a case study" Age (Dordr). 2009 Mar 10. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19277902 Ian Haworth

Tsai AG, Engelhart AE, Hatmal MM, Houston SI, Hud NV, Haworth IS, Lieber MR. Conformational variants of duplex DNA correlated with cytosine-rich chromosomal fragile sites. J Biol Chem. 2009 Mar 13;284(11):7157-64. Epub 2008 Dec 23. PMID: 19106104 Andrew MacKay

Wu YQ, MacKay JA, McDaniel JR, Chilkoti A, Clark RL. Fabrication of elastin-like polypeptide nanoparticles for drug delivery by electrospraying. Biomacromolecules 10(1):19-24, 2009 Nouri Neamati

Grande F, Yamada R, Cao X, Aiello F, Garofalo A, Neamati N. Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel hydrazide based cytotoxic agents. Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2009 May;18(5):555-68. PMID: 19388873

Martinez-Balibrea E, Plasencia C, Ginés A, Martinez-Cardús A, Musulén E, Aguilera R, Manzano JL, Neamati N, Abad A. A proteomic approach links decreased pyruvate kinase M2 expression to oxaliplatin resistance in patients with colorectal cancer and in human cell lines. Mol Cancer Ther. 2009 Apr;8(4):771-8. PMID: 19372549

Li H, Wang C, Sanchez T, Tan Y, Jiang C, Neamati N, Zhao G. Amide-containing diketoacids as HIV-1 integrase inhibitors: synthesis, structure-activity relationship analysis, and biological activity. Bioorg Med Chem. 2009 Apr 1;17(7):2913-9. Epub 2009 Feb 7. PMID: 19269185

Serrao E, Odde S, Ramkumar K, Neamati N. Raltegravir, elvitegravir, and metoogravir: the birth of "me-too" HIV-1 integrase inhibitors. Retrovirology. 2009 Mar 5;6:25. Review. PMID: 19265512 Rajindar Sohal

Sohal RS, Ferguson M, Sohal BH, Forster MJ. Life span extension in mice by food restriction depends on an energy imbalance. J Nutr. 2009 Mar;139(3):533-9. Epub 2009 Jan 13. PMID: 19141702

Enrique Cadenas

Lam PY, Yin F, Hamilton RT, Boveris A, Cadenas E. Elevated neuronal nitric oxide synthase expression during ageing and mitochondrial energy production. Free Radic Res. 2009 May;43(5):431-9. PMID: 19347761 Zhou Q, Lam PY, Han D, Cadenas E. Activation of c-Jun-N-terminal kinase and decline of mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase activity during brain aging. FEBS Lett. 2009 Apr 2;583(7):1132-40. Epub 2009 Mar 9. PMID: 19272379 Golden EB, Lam PY, Kardosh A, Gaffney KJ, Cadenas E, Louie SG, Petasis NA, Chen TC, Schonthal AH. Green tea polyphenols block the anticancer effects of bortezomib and other boronic acid-based proteasome inhibitors. Blood, February 2009; Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19190249

This study was featured in news media including MSNBC News, Japan Times, ScienceDaily, the National Cancer Institute Bulletin, and Medical News Today.

Axel Schonthal has a secondary appointment with the Department.

Wei-Chiang Shen

Amet N, Lee HF and Shen WC: Insertion of the designed helical linker led to increased expression of Tf- based fusion proteins. Pharm Res 26: 523-528, 2009. PMID: 19002568 Barnes M and Shen WC: Disulfide and thioether linked cytochrome c-oligoarginine conjugates in HeLa cells. Int J Pharm 369: 79-84, 2009. PMID: 19059469 Zaro J, Vekich J, Tran T and Shen WC: Nuclear localization of cell-penetrating peptides is dependent on endocytosis rather than cytosolic delivery. Mol Pharm 6: 337-344, 2009. PMID: 19191577 Patel L, Wang J, Kim KJ, Borok Z, Crandall E and Shen WC: Conjugation with cationic cell-penetrating peptide increases pulmonary absorption of insulin. Mol Pharm 6: 492-503, 2009. PMID: 19228019

Jean C. Shih

Wu JB, Chen K, Ou XM, Shih JC. Retinoic acid activates monoamine oxidase B promoter in human neuronal cells. J Biol Chem. 2009 Apr 28. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19401466

Bangyan Stiles

Stiles BL. Phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10: extending its PTENtacles. Int J Biochem Cell Biol. 2009 Apr;41(4):757-61. Epub 2008 Oct 2. PMID: 18950730 Stiles BL, Kuralwalla-Martinez C, Guo W, Gregorian C, Wang Y, Tian J, Magnuson MA, Wu H. Selective deletion of Pten in pancreatic beta cells leads to increased islet mass and resistance to STZ-induced diabetes. Mol Cell Biol. 2006 Apr;26(7):2772-81. PMID: 16537919 ■

Department of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, USC School of Pharmacy Newsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 May 2009

13

hhaappppyy ffaacceess!! ggrraadduuaattiioonn ddaayy!!

■

Xu Li with mentors, David Ann (R) and Wei-Chiang Shen (L)

Omar Khalid with Dean Pete Vanderveen and mentor, Ron Alkana

Shanshan Liu with the Dean and mentor, Stan Louie

Pang-Yu “Aaron” Hsueh

Shanshan Liu Aaron with Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, mentor Min Chen, Daya Perkins and Xu Li

The hooding of Daya by mentors, Daryl Davies and Ron Alkana

Kai-Jin Wu and Aaron’s prized moment – a pose with the Dean

Srikanth Janga with brother Ravi Kiran (L) and cousin, Kiran Sugana (R)

Wei-Chiang Shen and Walter Wolf

At the reception-champagne table: (Staff L-R) Josie Morales, Joanne Lee and Celso De La Cruz.

Daya Perkins with familly.

Faculty during graduation march: (L-R) Andrew MacKay, Bangyan Stiles and Clay Wang

Graduates lining up.