Pharmacotherapy

Neurological Pharmacotherapy

PI -Jenna Bloemer, PharmD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences

Adiponectin is a hormone that exerts a number of beneficial effects on the brain including promotion of neurogenesis, the growth of new brain cells, in response to exercise. Recent evidence indicates that signaling through adiponectin receptors in the brain may reduce Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating neurodegenerative memory disorder that lacks effective treatment in reducing neurodegeneration. The objective of this project is to explore adiponectin receptor agonists as disease modifying medications in Alzheimer’s disease and determine mechanisms by which adiponectin receptor signaling can reduce Alzheimer’s disease pathology.

Bloemer J, Pinky PD, Smith WD, Bhattacharya D, Chauhan A, Govindarajulu M, Hong H, Dhanasekaran M, Judd R, Amin RH, Reed MN, Suppiramaniam V. Adiponectin Knockout Mice Display Cognitive and Synaptic Deficits. Front Endocrinol. 2019 Nov 22;10:819. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2019.00819.

Bloemer J, Pinky PD, Govindarajulu M, Hong H, Judd R, Amin RH, Moore T, Dhanasekaran M, Reed MN, Suppiramaniam V. Role of Adiponectin in Central Nervous System Disorders. Neural Plast. 2018 Jul 29;2018:4593530. doi: 10.1155/2018/4593530.

“Chemobrain” is a term used to describe impairments in learning and memory that can occur during and after chemotherapy. Patients may report symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, a feeling of mental fogginess, and trouble with remembering events or images, and these symptoms can persist months or years after treatment. The reason for why some patients experience chemobrain remains unclear. The objective of this project is to explore mechanisms by which a class of chemotherapy drugs called anthracyclines can lead to memory impairment through effects on the hippocampus, an important area of the brain for learning and memory.

Alhowail AH*, Bloemer J*, Majrashi M, Pinky PD, Bhattacharya S, Yongli Z, Bhattacharya D, Eggert M, Woodie L, Buabeid MA, Johnson N, Broadwater A, Smith B, Dhanasekaran M, Arnold RD, Suppiramaniam V. Doxorubicin-induced neurotoxicity is associated with acute alterations in synaptic plasticity, apoptosis, and lipid peroxidation. Toxicol Mech Methods. 2019 Jul;29(6):457-466. doi: 10.1080/15376516.2019.1600086. *these authors contributed equally

Infectious Disease Pharmacotherapy

PI -Roopali Sharma, BS, PharmD, BCPS (AQ-ID), Associate Professor, Pharmacy Practice

Research is focused on infectious diseases including antimicrobial agents, gram-negative resistance, HIV and antimicrobial stewardship.

Park J, Arafath S, Sharma R, Dixit D. Primer on the Management of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors Associated Toxicities Introduction. The Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. (Accepted for publication, 2020).

An Initial Environmental Scan of APPE Readiness Assessment. Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning. July 2020; Volume 12 Issue 7.

Sharma R, Hammerschlag M. Treatment of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Infections in Children: a Reappraisal of Vancomycin. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2019 Sep 5;21(10):37. doi: 10.1007/s11908-019-0695-4.

Arafath S, Sharma R. Prevalence of and Risk Factors for Prediabetes in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infected Patients. Diabetes Spectrum. 2018 May; 31(2): 139-143.

Cani E, Moussavi F, Sharma R, Eilerston B. Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae vertebral osteomyelitis in a renal transplant recipient treated with ceftazidime-avibactam. Transplant Infectious Diseases. 2018 Apr;20(2):e12837. doi: 10.1111/tid.12837. Epub 2018 Feb 19.

Kim Y, KC S, Sharma R. Community-Acquired Pneumonia. Pharmacy Times. January 23, 2018.