Graduate Research Program
Major Programmatic Themes:
- Molecular Basis of CNS Drug Action
- Molecular & Cellular Physiology
- Molecular Basis of Disease
Robert Moreland, Ph.D., Program Director
“The Philadelphia region is rife with job opportunities in the sciences for applicants who have a variety of degrees, particularly in pharmaceuticals and medical research” [Philadelphia Inquirer, February 27, 2000]
Inquire about undergraduate research opportunities in the department: Robert.Moreland@drexelmed.edu
Graduates from our program have gone on to a wide variety of successful careers. Many of our doctoral graduates have remained in academics, pursuing postdoctoral fellowships and eventually faculty positions. Some of the institutions where our more recent graduates have done postdoctoral fellowships are: University of California at San Diego ; University of Cincinnati ; University of Pennsylvania . A few of our graduates have taken teaching positions. Others have entered pharmaceutical companies, including GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Wyeth Ayerst, taking positions in either basic research or clinical investigation. One graduate is working at a research consultant company. The opportunities for our doctoral, and masters, graduates are thus indeed substantial and wide.
Our department is located in our Center City campus. In addition to well-furnished laboratories, we now have several state-of-the-art imaging systems, encompassing CCD video microscopy, laser-scanning confocal microscopy, and two-photon microscopy.
Our graduate program offers courses of study leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees under three different themes. All of the students follow a core curriculum (e.g., biochemistry, molecular biology and genetics, cell biology) required of all biomedical graduate students in the first year, plus instruction in physiology. By the end of the first year, students will focus their interests and activities under one of the three themes. The second-year curriculum continues the specialization of each student’s program, including instruction in pharmacology. The basic course work is structured around research activity and the program fosters participation in laboratory-based research soon after a student enters the program. In addition, a current topics course (departmental journal club/research meeting series) runs throughout the school year, involving all members of the department, and serves to enrich the research experience. After two years of study, students in the Ph.D program must pass written and oral qualifying examinations, whereas students in the M.S. program must pass a written exam at the end of the first year of study. All students then prepare an original proposal that will form the basis of their thesis research.
With numerous faculty members participating in the program, both inside and outside of our department, students will have a highly diverse roster of research programs to consider. In addition, many of the faculty interact via close collaborations, offering students even wider opportunities for training.
The program "themes" are organized under related research activities. Under each theme, theme-specific four-week mini-courses will be offered in the spring of the first year in the program. In addition, opportunities for specialized, theme-related journal clubs exist. As for specific areas of investigation, they range from molecular biological approaches to electrophysiological studies to behavior analyses. For more detailed information about the research programs of individual faculty members, click on their names in each theme listing.
Molecular Basis of CNS Drug Action
Organizer: Kenny Simansky, Ph.D.
Participating Faculty: Simansky, Harvey, Nichols, Meucci, Rapp, Horwitz, Waterhouse
Studies involve neural mechanisms underlying learning and memory, and effects of neurotoxic and psychotropic drugs on classical conditioning (Harvey); neurochemical and peptidergic regulation of the reward pathways involved in normal function and addiction (Simansky); a multidisciplinary approach to nicotine addiction, including chronic nicotine alteration of presynaptic nicotinic receptor function (Nichols), drug discrimination (Simansky); molecular mechanisms in signal transduction, including, in particular, regulation of dopamine synthesis via peroxynitrite toxicity ( Horwitz ); effects of psychotropic drugs on cognitive event-related potentials in brain (Rapp); the characterization and role of chemokines in neuronal survival and the regulation of chemokine actions by opiates (Meucci); and the regulation and function of the central monoaminenergic systems in sensory processing (Waterhouse). These studies relate to: neuropharmacology, drug abuse, addiction, neuropsychiatric disorders, and ADHD.
Molecular & Cellular Physiology
Organizer: Robert Moreland, Ph.D.
Participating Faculty: Moreland, Lutz, Ellis-Davies, Tallent
Studies involve protein phosphorylation and calcium in smooth muscle contraction (Moreland); cellular and molecular mechanisms of mechanical injury in skeletal muscle (Lutz); the development and use of photochemically activated bioprobes (Ellis-Davies); the regulation of long-term potentiation (LTP) by neuropeptides (Tallent). These studies relate to: organ and muscle function and neurobiology.
Molecular Basis of Disease
Organizer: Alessandro Fatatis, M.D, Ph.D.
Participating Faculty: Fatatis, Meucci, Nichols, Simansky, Lutz, Moreland, Tallent
Studies involve platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) regulation of metastatic potential in prostate cancer (Fatatis); the characterization and role of chemokines in the nervous system in HIV-induced neurodegeneration (Neuro-AIDS) (Meucci); the regulation of neurotransmission and excitability by neuropeptides in normal and epileptic brain (Tallent); use of novel polymer-oligonucleotide-based drugs for treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (Lutz); neurochemical and peptidergic control of food intake (Simansky); presynaptic nicotinic receptors and their regulation by beta amyloid in Alzheimer’s Disease (Nichols); pathophysiology of smooth muscle contraction in a model for Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy (Moreland). These studies involve: cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, neuro-AIDS, epilepsy, eating disorders, muscular dystrophy, and prostatic hypertrophy.
Why Pharmacology & Physiology?
Studying Pharmacology and Physiology will provide the essential tools for understanding and treating medical problems and disorders. They form the cornerstone of modern biomedical science.
Why Drexel University College of Medicine?
In contrast to larger institutions, the environment here is strongly supportive, involving close interactions among faculty and students. The atmosphere is not competitive, but rather, cooperative, encouraging and flexible. The goal of each student is to gain expertise in state-of-the-art science while simultaneously building a sound foundation in pharmacology and physiology.
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