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Pharmacology Department News

2012

Jan 2012 Recent articles by Dr. Timothy Walseth and Dr. Jonathan Marchant were selected as "Papers of the Week" in the Jan. 20, 2012 issue of Journal of Biological Chemistry". read more

2011

The Basic Research Center on Molecular and Cell Biology of Drug Abuse is now accepting proposals for seed grants to support their unproven techniques or hypotheses in drug addiction research (read more). (Oct)

Dr. Li-Na Wei, is the recipient of the Distinguished Women Scholars Award in Science and Engineering for 2011. (Oct)

The Department of Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota invites applications for a tenured/tenure track faculty position (Assistant, Associate or Full Professor) (closed).

The Basic Research Center on Molecular and Cell Biology of Drug Abuse is now accepting proposals for seed grants to support their unproven techniques or hypotheses in drug addiction research (read more).

Dr. Li-Na Wei, is the recipient of the Ada Comstock Distinguished Women Scholars Award in Science and Engineering for 2011 (Oct).

Dr. Kevin Wickman was an invited keynote speaker at the Seventh Annual Northwest Regional Undergraduate Affiliate Network Meeting, held at Concordia College, Moorhead MN (Sept)

Dr. Li-Na Wei was invited to chair and speak at the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) conference "Retinoids 2011", held in Strasbourg, France. (Sept)

Dr. Horace Loh was invited to present the Israel Hanin Lecture at the Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University, Chicago. (July)

Li-Na Wei was invited as co-chair and spoke at the annual Society of Chinese Bioscientists in America (SCBA) symposium on Diabetes, Obesity and Energy Metabolism at Guangzhou, China (July)

Dr. Fang Li was an invited speaker at the 12th International Nidovirus Symposium held at Traverse City, Michigan. (June)

Li-Na Wei was invited to speak at Kappa Therapeutics international meeting at Seattle, Washington (June)

Dr. Kevin Wickman was promoted to Professor. (June)

Dr. Li-Na Wei served as co-chair and spoke at the symposium Epigenetics of Drug Abuse Genes at the CPDD/INRC held in Hollywood, Florida. (April)

Dr. Ping-Yee Law was a speaker at the Er Yi Innovation Forum, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Er Yi Innovation Forum is a special seminar series sponsored by Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences and Institutes of Medical Sciences at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. This forum provides an important platform for students and researchers from the School of Medicine and its affiliated hospitals, the Institute Pasteur of Shanghai, and the Institute of Heath Science of Chinese Academy of Sciences to communicate with world-renowned scientists and learn about the most recent discoveries from their research. (Jan)

Yuet-Fong (Angel) Kam and Ekaterina Posokhova awarded 2011 Beatrice Z. Milne and Theodore Brandenburg Awards. (May)

Ajay Yekkirala awarded the 2011 Dr. Marvin and Hadassah Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology (April).

Ping-Chih (Daniel) Ho awarded the 2011 Steer Family Award in Diabetics Research. (April)

Dr. Ping-Yee Law was invited to present his work at the Molecular Pharmacology Gordon Research Conference held at Ventura, California. (Jan.)

2010

Dr. Kevin Wickman and Dr. Kirill Martemyanov received a $1,508,000 research award from National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, NIH, to study the role of RGS proteins in the parasympathetic control of heart rate (read more). (Dec)

Dr. Horace Loh was a speaker at the Er Yi Innovation Forum, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Er Yi Innovation Forum is a special seminar series sponsored by Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences and Institutes of Medical Sciences at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. This forum provides an important platform for students and researchers from the School of Medicine and its affiliated hospitals, the Institute Pasteur of Shanghai, and the Institute of Heath Science of Chinese Academy of Sciences to communicate with world-renowned scientists and learn about the most recent discoveries from their research.June 2010. Dr. Horace Loh was named Regent Professor by the UniversityÕs Board of Regents. The designation is the highest level of recognition given to faculty by the University (read more)

Dr. Horace Loh has been named Regent Professor by the University's Board of Regents. (June)
The designation is the highest level of recognition given to faculty by the university. Loh is regarded as an outstanding scholar who has attained national and international prominence for his pharmacology research on addictions to morphine and related substances and the scientific basis for the treatment of opiate addiction. For more than 30 years his research has had a major impact on the understanding of how opioid drugs work on a cellular and molecular level. He has published over 580-refereed manuscripts, which have been cited over 15,000 times. He has mentored more than 30 Ph.D. students and over 100 post-doctoral fellows, many who have gone on to successful careers as directors of national institutes, heads of departments, professors, deans, founders of biotechnology firms, leaders in the pharmaceutical industry and scientists.

Dr. Loh was one of three scientists to receive the first MERIT, or Method to Extend Research in Time, Award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He received the Senior Scientist Award from the NIH numerous times. Loh was also among the first four inductees in the Academic Health Center’s Academy for Excellence in Health Research at the University of Minnesota and received the first Senior Investigator Award from the Medical School. Read the complete article here.

Dr. Horace Loh awarded the First Medical School Senior Investigator Award (May)
Dr. Loh, Frederick Stark Professor and Head of the Department of Pharmacology, is the first recipient of Medical School's Senior Investigator Award. This award is given to a faculty member in a Basic Science or a Clinical Department who has made significant and long-lasting contributions to the advancement of an area of biomedical, behavioral, clinical, or medical research. Recipients are chosen based on evidence of sustained, high quality research and research leadership. The recipient must have demonstrated a record of nationally and internationally recognized research and have made a significant contribution to his/her profession.

Dr. Loh is widely recognized as an international leader in understanding the molecular mechanism of and dependence on opioid drugs, the most widely used painkillers, and in developing treatment for addictive disease. For over 40 years, the focus of Dr. Loh’s laboratory has been solely on the molecular and cellular mechanism of opioid drug action and the utilization of his findings for new treatments of addictive diseases. His early studies included the discovery and laying the groundwork for understanding the pharmacology and physiological functions of the endorphins (the so-called brain’s own morphine) and their application in the treatment of addiction. Dr. Loh and his colleagues were the first to identify the structures of the three opioid receptor genes after the cloning of the receptors, which allowed them to address issues of genetic and epigenetic regulation of opioid receptor expression and the subsequent regulation of the pharmacological effects of opioid drugs. The latest scientific breakthrough from his research group includes the development of a method to make a non-addictive opioid pain killer and patenting a new gene therapy method that uses receptor engineering to treat pain with no addiction.

Nien-Pei Tsai is the recipient of the 2010 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology. (Feb)

2009

The research of Dr.Li-Na Wei is featured on UMNews - Read the article here: Dogma derailer

Dr. Kirill Martemyanov received a K02 (Research Scientist Development Award) grant from NIH.
Dr. Jonathan Marchant has been selected by the Medical School-MMF Honors and Awards Committee to receive a 2009 Outstanding Medical School Teacher Award.
Dr. Li-Na Wei was selected as a recipient of the University of Minnesota’s Distinguished McKnight University Professorship – a special award for the University’s most prominent mid-career faculty.
Hui Zheng recently learned he was awarded the Beatrice Z. Milne and Theodore Brandenburg Award, recognizing exceptional thesis research by graduate students in the basic biomedical sciences.
Qifang Wu received the Bacanar Research Award in Pharmacology, which recognizes creative research by graduate students.

Students defeat faculty 12-8 in the "Annual" Pharmaclogy Faculty vs. Students softball game. September 2008 Click here to go to 2008 Little Brown Drug Classic page.

Darcy Flora has been awarded a predoctoral fellowship from the American Heart Association.
Darcy’s project is titled "Mechanisms of Downregulation of Natriuretic Peptide Receptor-A". Dr. Lincoln Potter is Darcy’s advisor.

Garret R. Anderson ,Andrea R. Daniel ,Steve Davidson ,Nien-Pei Tsai , and Petter Woll are recipients of the
2008 Beatrice Z. Milne and Theodore Brandenburg Award .
The University of Minnesota Medical School, Minnesota Medical Foundation, and the Directors of Graduate Studies Council are pleased to announce that in addition to receiving a cash award of $6,000, each recipient will give an oral presentation on their research and present a research poster. The Beatrice Z. Milne and Theodore Brandenburg Award recognizes exceptional research by graduate students in the basic biomedical sciences. The award reflects the thoughtfulness and generosity of Ms. Beatrice Z. Milne and serves as a lasting expression of her commitment to improving the health of the people of Minnesota, the nation, and the world. The award is given annually to currently enrolled graduate students in one of the following graduate programs: Biochemistry, Molecular Biology & Biophysics (BMBB), Cellular and Integrative Physiology, Microbiology, Immunology & Cancer Biology (MICaB), Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology & Genetics (MCDB&G), Neuroscience, and Pharmacology.

Dr. Kevin Wickman was selected by the Medical School-MMF Honors and Awards Committee to receive a 2008 Outstanding Medical School Teacher Award.
This award recognizes faculty who have made outstanding contributions to the education of physicians and medical students.

Jana Ninkovic won the prestigious Arthur Falek Young Investigator Award for the best pre-doctoral poster at the 14th Conference of Society of NeuroImmune Pharmacology in Charleston, SC.

2008

Nien-Pei Tsai has been selected as the sole recipient of the 2008 Veneziale-Steer Award by the Medical School and MMF.
This award is presented for outstanding basic scientific research in the field of cellular growth regulation by a graduate student at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Andrea Daniel is the recipient of the 2008 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.

Dr. Kirill Martemyanov honored with a 2008-2010 McKnight Land-Grant Professorship.
The goal of the program is to advance the careers of our most promising junior faculty at a critical point in their professional lives. Recipients are honored with the title McKnight Land-Grant Professor, a special award they will hold for two years. The award consists of a research grant in each of two years, summer support, and a research leave in the second year. The winners were chosen for their potential for important contribution to their field; the degree to which their achievements and ideas demonstrate originality, imagination, and innovation; the significance of their research; and the potential for attracting outstanding students.

2007

Dr. Horace Loh receives the 2007 International Narcotics Research Conference (INRC) Founders Lecture Award.
The INRC is dedicated to the advancement of science related to opioid drug dependence and treatment, among other aspects of opioid research, by providing an international forum for information exchange among interested scientists from different disciplines. The lecture award honors individuals who have made a sustained and substantial contribution to opioid research. The term “Founder” is used to honor the scientfici integrity and vision of the INRC’s founders, as well as to recognize that the award recipients are founders in the sense that they have helped create the intellectual foundation of the current thinking in this field. On July 10, 2007, Dr. Loh was presented with the award and gave the Founder's Award Lecture in Berlin, Germany. His lecture was titled "Our search for the ‘ideal analgesic’ in pain treatment."

Dr. Douglas Yee becomes new Cancer Center director - March 2007
Distinguished University of Minnesota breast cancer expert Douglas Yee has accepted the position of Cancer Center director. He will assume his duties March 12. Yee earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago and trained at the University of North Carolina and the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda. Prior to coming to the U in 1999, Yee held faculty positions at Georgetown University Medical Center and the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. Founding director John Kersey will continue his research as the holder of the Children’s Cancer Research Fund Land Grant Chair in Pediatric Oncology.

Michael Boulware receives the 2007 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.
The Bacaner Research Award in the Basic Medical Sciences is sponsored by the Minnesota Medical Foundation to encourage intellectual achievement by graduate students, and is underwritten by a gift to the Foundation in memory of Jacob and Minnie Bacaner. Students in our department are selected for this award by the Graduate Committee on the basis of research conducted for the Ph.D. degree. This award recognizes creative research and is offered annually to graduate students in Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biophysics (BMBB), Genetics Cell Biology and Development (GCD), Microbiology Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB), Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Physiology.

Prof. George Wilcox receives the 2007 American Pain Society's Frederick W. L. Kerr Basic Science Research Award.
This honor will be conferred at the APS National meeting next May in Washington D.C. He will be the twenty-first recipient since the initiation of the award in 1987. This is the highest career achievement award for basic research in pain. The F.W.L. Kerr Memorial Award recognizes individual excellence and achievements in pain research, and is presented to a pain professional whose total career achievements have made outstanding contributions to the field. George is being recognized for his 27 years of scientific achievement in the area of spinal mechanisms of pain and analgesia, for leadership in the society, and for excellence in educating pain scientists and professionals.

2006

Jennifer Kelschenbach has been chosen to receive the 2006 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.
The Bacaner Research Award in the Basic Medical Sciences is sponsored by the Minnesota Medical Foundation to encourage intellectual achievement by graduate students, and is underwritten by a gift to the Foundation in memory of Jacob and Minnie Bacaner. Students in our department are selected for this award by the Graduate Committee on the basis of research conducted for the Ph.D. degree. This award recognizes creative research and is offered annually to graduate students in Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biophysics (BMBB), Genetics Cell Biology and Development (GCD), Microbiology Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB), Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Physiology.

Yan Zeng, Ph.D., joined the Department of Pharmacology as an Assistant Professor in January 2006.
Dr. Zeng was formerly a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Research Associate at Duke University. He received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Washington University at Saint Louis. Visit Dr. Zeng's web page for more information about his research on the biogenesis and function of regulatory RNAs.

2005

Cheryl Marker has been chosen to receive the 2005 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.
The Bacaner Research Award in the Basic Medical Sciences is sponsored by the Minnesota Medical Foundation to encourage intellectual achievement by graduate students, and is underwritten by a gift to the Foundation in memory of Jacob and Minnie Bacaner. Students in our department are selected for this award by the Graduate Committee on the basis of research conducted for the Ph.D. degree. This award recognizes creative research and is offered annually to graduate students in Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biophysics (BMBB), Genetics Cell Biology and Development (GCD), Microbiology Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB), Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Physiology.

Kirill Martemyanov, Ph.D., joined the Department of Pharmacology as an Assistant Professor in July 2005.
Dr. Martemyanov was formerly an Instructor at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the Institute of Protein Research at the Russian Academy of Sciences in Pushchino. You may read more about Dr. Martemyanov's research on the regulation of G protein signaling in neurons at his webpage.

2004

Dr. Hon Cheung Lee, Professor of Pharmacology, was recently inducted into the AHC Academy for Excellence in Health Research.
Dr. Lee accepted this prestigious University honor at The AHC Recognition of Excellence reception held at the Campus Club on June 16, 2004. The AHC Academy for Excellence in Research is the highest recognition of Academic Health Center. Honorees are chosen for their %quot;many contributions to the quality of the University of Minnesota through sustained, nationally and internationally-recognized health-related research in his/her field." Dr. Lee has been recognized for leading the way in the study of calcium signaling and for his discovery of two novel messenger molecules that pioneered investigations on calcium-based mechanisms in a wide range of physiological functions. The nominees for this award were evaluated by an external review committee comprised of highly respected members of the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine.
The other 2004 AHC Academy of Excellence inductees were Dr. Robert Hebbel (Medicine), Dr. Marc Jenkins (Microbiology) and Dr. Robert Kane (School of Public Health).

Guilin Wanghas been chosen to receive the 2004 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.
The Bacaner Research Award in the Basic Medical Sciences is sponsored by the Minnesota Medical Foundation to encourage intellectual achievement by graduate students, and is underwritten by a gift to the Foundation in memory of Jacob and Minnie Bacaner. Students in our department are selected for this award by the Graduate Committee on the basis of research conducted for the Ph.D. degree. This award recognizes creative research and is offered annually to graduate students in Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biophysics (BMBB), Genetics Cell Biology and Development (GCD), Microbiology Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB), Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Physiology.

Dr. Johnathan Marchant awarded a McKnight Land-Grant Professorship for 2004-2005.
Each year, the University of Minnesota Graduate School invites departments to nominate their most promising tenure-track assistant professors who earned their doctorates during the past seven years and whose appointment at the university began within the past three years. The McKnight Land-Grant program aims to advance the careers of promising junior faculty at a crucial period in their professional lives. Recipients hold the title McKnight Land-Grant Professor--an endowed chair--for two years. The winners are chosen according to their potential for important contributions to their fields; the degree to which their past achievements and current ideas demonstrate originality, imagination, and innovation; their potential for attracting outstanding students; and the significance of their research and their ability to convey their ideas to non-specialists.

2003

Dr. Horace H. Loh has been selected as one of the very first inductees into the AHC Academy for Excellence in Health Research.
Dr. Loh accepted this prestigious University honor at The AHC Recognition of Excellence reception held at the Campus Club on June 17, 2003. The AHC Academy for Excellence in Research is the highest recognition of excellence in AHC faculty research. Honorees are chosen for their " many contributions to the quality of the University of Minnesota through sustained, nationally and internationally recognized health related research in his or her field". Dr. Loh was recognized for his contributions to addictive disease research. The nominees for this award were evaluated by an external review committee that was comprised of highly respected National Academy of Sciences and Institute of Medicine members. For more information, please visit: AHC Academy for Excellence in Health Research.
The other 2003 AHC Academy of Excellence inductees were Dr. Jay Cohn (Medicine), Dr. Ashley Haase (Microbiology) and Dr. Philip Portoghese (Medicinal Chemistry). Several faculty members of the Department of Pharmacology were honored at the AHC Recognition of Excellence Reception on June 17, 2003 for their recent scholarly achievements:

Dr. Li-Na Wei is promoted to the rank of full Professor
Dr. Wei's lab is focused on the study of vitamin A (retinoids) signaling pathways and the regulation of opioid receptor expression.

Dr. Kevin Wickman receives McKnight Land-Grant Professorship
The McKnight Land-Grant program aims to advance the careers of promising junior faculty at a crucial period in their professional lives. Recipients hold the title McKnight Land-Grant Professor--an endowed chair--for two years. The winners were chosen according to their potential for important contributions to their fields; the degree to which their past achievements and current ideas demonstrate originality, imagination, and innovation; their potential for attracting outstanding students; and the significance of their research and their ability to convey their ideas to non-specialists. Dr. Wickman's McKnight Land Grant Professor Research Project is entitled, "From analgesia to addiction: toward a molecular understanding of drug action."

Dr. Carolyn Fairbanks and John C. Liebeskind receive the 2003 Early Career Scholar Award
The Liebeskind award recognizes exceptional accomplishment and promise in the field of pain research. Dr. Fairbanks' research focuses on development of novel compounds with a pharmacokinetic/dynamic profile ideal for spinal delivery for pain relief.

Dr. Colin Campbell has been selected to receive the 2003 Award for Best Director of Graduate Studies.
The recipients of this award are chosen by a special Graduate School faculty-student committee. Other recipients of the 2003 award include Francesca Cuthbert (Conservation Biology), Norman Dahl (Philosophy) and Marsha Lewis (Nursing). A special reception and ceremony to honor the Best DGS's was held on May 1st at Walter Library.

Dr. Ping Sun and Ms. Molly Shea have been chosen co-winners of the 2003 Bacaner Research Award in Pharmacology.
The Bacaner Research Award program is sponsored by the Minnesota Medical Foundation to encourage intellectual achievement by graduate students, and is underwritten by a gift to the Foundation in memory of Jacob and Minnie Bacaner. This award recognizes creative research and is offered annually to graduate students in Biochemistry Molecular Biology and Biophysics (BMBB), Genetics Cell Biology and Development (GCD), Microbiology Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB), Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Physiology.

2002

Dr. Horace H. Loh receives the 2002 Nathan B. Eddy Memorial Award This award is considered one of the highest honors for scientists working in the field of addiction and drug dependence, and is presented by the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD). The CPDD has been in existence since 1929 and is the longest standing group and largest society in the United States to address problems of drug dependence and abuse both in basic and clinical areas. Dr. Loh's laboratory continues its long-term investigations into the molecular neurobiology of opioid actions and addiction.