2009 News

Kroetz
UCSF researcher Deanna Kroetz, PhD, discusses the impact of genetic differences on how an individual responds to drugs in a KQED Quest radio interview that aired September 14, 2009. Fellow members of the interview panel were UCSF Chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann, MD, MPH, and UCSF breast cancer surgeon Laura Esserman, MD, MBA.
Assemi
Mitra Assemi, PharmD, UCSF School of Pharmacy associate professor of clinical pharmacy, has been named the School's assistant dean of accreditation and quality, effective September 1, 2009.
Kishi
Donald Kishi, PharmD, UCSF School of Pharmacy health sciences clinical professor of pharmacy, has been named the School's associate dean of student and curricular affairs by Dean Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD. The appointment was effective September 1, 2009.
Wenzhe
UCSF researchers have identified the two key circuits, compared to hundreds as previously thought, that control a cell's ability to adapt to changes in its environment. These circuits are key to a cell's ability to reset itself after responding to a stimulus.
Koda-Kimble
New chancellor: Desmond-Hellman; budget update: 4% to 10% salary cuts via furloughs, possibly to be renewed; risk of poison control system closure; new Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences; faculty honors and awards: Burchard, Peck, Desai, Roy, Bero, MacDougall, Hessol, Phillips, Tsourounis, Apollonio, Wells, Fujimori. Appointments: Babbitt, Sali, Wells, Benowitz.
Desai
Desai, a bioengineer who focuses on the design, fabrication, and use of advanced micro/nano biosystems, was chosen as a 2009 Emerging Scholar in Physiology by Diverse Issues in Higher Education.
test tubes
UCSF scientists describe how their research is aiming to make therapeutics sophisticated, highly effective, and tailored to the different needs of individuals.
Koda-Kimble and Speedie.
UCSF School of Pharmacy Dean Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD (image left), and Marilyn Speedie, PhD (image right), dean of the College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota, are advocating for immediate changes in how doctor of pharmacy programs are accredited in the United States. If these changes are not made, they call for the formation of a new accrediting body. Their editorial appeared in Pharmacotherapy, Volume 29, Issue 5, 2009.
Esteban Gonzalez Burchard
Esteban G. Burchard, MD, MPH, was elected in spring 2009 to the American Society of Clinical Investigation (ASCI). Established in 1908, the ASCI is one of the oldest medical honor societies in the US. More than 2,800 physician-scientists from all medical specialties are elected members of the Society based upon their records of achievement in biomedical research.
Desmond-Hellmann
Susan Desmond-Hellmann, MD, MPH, pioneering cancer researcher and biotechnology industry executive who most recently served as president of product development for the biotechnology company, Genentech, Inc., was named chancellor of UCSF on May 7, 2009 by the University of California Board of Regents and on the recommendation of UC President Mark G. Yudof, LLB. The appointment takes effect August 3, 2009. “Dr.
MRI Tumor Scans
Research under way at UCSF's Margaret Hart Surbeck Laboratory for Advanced Imaging applies powerful, non-invasive equipment to better understand disease and improve disease treatments. "Our overall focus is to develop new imaging techniques and apply basic engineering to biology- and disease-oriented research.
BTS Science Collage
The UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, which is UCSF's first department administered jointly by two schools, was announced today to the campus community by UCSF Chancellor J. Michael Bishop, MD. "Creation of this joint department was a notable achievement in the history of UCSF, and a tribute to the collaborative spirit that we value so highly," stated Bishop.
MacDougall
Conan MacDougall, PharmD, UCSF School of Pharmacy faculty member, will be honored April 8, 2009 with a 2008 - 2009 UCSF Academic Senate Distinction in Teaching Award. MacDougall will receive the Category 1 award, which is reserved for faculty members who have been at UCSF for five years or less. The awards ceremony will take place at 12 noon in Cole Hall on the UCSF Parnassus campus.
Giacomini and Peck
Kathy Giacomini, PhD, and Carl Peck, MD, faculty members in the UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences (BTS), received awards from the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (ASCPT) at the society's annual meeting held in National Harbor, Maryland, USA, March 18-21, 2009.
The UCSF School of Pharmacy faculty and its UCSF faculty colleagues are being aided by the campus in their requests for funds provided to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The act, which was signed into law by U.S. President Barack Obama on February 17, 2009, allocates US$10.4 billion to the NIH of the total US$787 billion in federal economic stimulus funding.
Koda-Kimble
Dire financial times, budget tightens. San Diego satellite program to end. Honors and Awards: Benet, Giacomini, Kroetz, Winter, Day, Yokoyama, Soller, Vogt, Wang, Saraiya, Elmore, Clemens, Rocklin, Heller. New associate deans Santi and Kayser. New faculty: Gartner, Roy. Pharmacogenomics: Phillips, Ikediobi, Shin. UCSF Medical Center collaborations, Paulson. In the news: Bero, Rising, Bacchetti, Wells, Woolley. Ranked #1 again by U.S. News and World Report.
Santi and Kayser
Two new associate dean positions have been created in the UCSF School of Pharmacy to expand the School’s partnerships with industry and extend its work globally. This work now will be coordinated by Daniel Santi, MD, PhD, associate dean of external scientific affairs and Steven Kayser, PharmD, associate dean of global affairs. The appointments took effect January 1, 2009.
Shanghai Gate
The UCSF School of Pharmacy was a key collaborator in the early January 2009 launch of a course in China that ultimately hopes to contribute to the improved quality and broader acceptance of Chinese pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical exports.
Genomics Paper Dolls
Pharmacogenomics research at the UCSF School of Pharmacy extends from a better understanding of information derived from the Human Genome Project to research on specific genetic differences in humans and how they might affect an individual's response to a medication. It covers clinical research that evaluates the real-life differences in patient response.