The Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (CU Pharmacy) Research Retreat returned to the Rockies for the first time since 2019. The Keystone Lodge provided lovely scenery and accommodations for the 172 participants, including incoming graduate students and a record number of Department of Clinical Pharmacy Faculty joining to Celebrate Research. A superb program developed by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Manisha Patel, PhD, and the 2024 retreat advisory committee composed of students, staff and faculty welcomed several distinguished keynote speakers. Highlights from the retreat include:
Guest keynote from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Mariana Socal, MD, PhD discussed drug shortages. Dr. Socal’s talk focused on drug shortages which are a major threat to human health. She highlighted that 23% of US generic drugs have critical vulnerabilities - 34% of APIs come from a single manufacturer which are discussed in an invited JAMA Network commentary.
Michael Verneris, MD, Professor and Translational Science Lead for CUSOM and the Gates Institute, provided the latest innovations on the translational aspects of CAR T cells for use in improving Cancer Therapy.
The basic science keynote speaker, a former journalist and #scicomm pro, Kortny Rolston-Duce, Director of Ecosystem Development at Quantinuum, described its evolution as a mashup of Cambridge Quantum and Honeywell Quantum Solutions. She expertly navigated the development and utility of quantum computing in health care and beyond.
Our very own Associate Dean for Education, Jennifer Trujillo, PharmD, addressed scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching and learning in pharmacy education. Her talk highlighted the importance of scholarship in education, an intriguing area of interest to all CU Pharmacy faculty and many students in the audience.
The closing keynote talk was enthusiastically delivered by Fernando Holguin, MD PhD, James C. Campbell Professor of Pulmonary Medicine Head, Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care. The audience was impressed with his slide presentation and his talk covering lessons in clinical and therapeutic translation for L-arginine metabolism in asthma patients.
Prem Subramanian, MD, PHD, Clifford R. and Janice N. Merrill Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology, Professor of Ophthalmology, Neurology, and Neurosurgery, Vice Chair for Academic Affairs, along with Cindy O’Bryant, PharmD, Associate Dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs and Professor in the Department of Clinical Pharmacy, did the faculty-focused breakout session on "Best Practices for Productive and Lifelong Mentorship."
Our new Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences chair, Blake Hill, PhD, moderated an interactive panel discussion with CU Pharmacy Core Directors (Drs. Dan LaBarbera, Philip Reigan, and Rick Reisdorph) to educate faculty and students on the state-of-the-art core facilities and the Animal Imaging Shared Resource (Directed by Dr. Natalie Serkova, CU School of Medicine).
Outstanding career panel for our CU Pharmacy MS and PhD students with our own MS graduate, Jordan Palan (Innovation Lab); David Tabano (Genentech/Principal Health Economist); and Dr. Brian Baer (formerly Pfizer Boulder, DMPK Director). Jordan Palan on working for a start-up vs established pharma/biotech medical devices: lots of big voices in small rooms, you must show the initiative to move things forward, no idea what the company or job will look like in a year but, “I thrive in chaos.”
Research Retreat ended on a high note as multiple awardees were recognized. Awards included the Teaching and Mentoring awards given to Laura Saba, PhD, for Excellence in Pharmaceutical Sciences Doctoral Teaching Award; Rebecca McCullough, PhD for Excellence in Toxicology Doctoral Teaching Award; Nichole Reisdorph, PhD for Excellence in Pharmaceutical Sciences Master’s Teaching Award; and Kristina Brooks, PharmD for Excellence in Graduate Mentoring Award.
The Harold C. Heim Award Winners were Hannah Work, Pharmaceutical Sciences PhD Graduate Program; Arthur Stem, Toxicology PhD Graduate Program; and Monica Bianchini, Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research Graduate Program. The Best Research Poster by a Graduate Student went to Jason Groegler, Pharmaceutical Sciences PhD Program; Baharak Davari, Toxicology PhD Program; and Mouna Dardouri, Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research PhD Program. The Best Research Poster by Other Professional Participants (PRAs, master’s and undergraduate students, postdocs) was presented to Isabella Coenen, an undergraduate student from the College of Wooster working in the Reisdorph Lab. The Best Research Poster Pitch was awarded to Anna Figueroa, PharmD candidate.
Photos from the retreat can be viewed here.