Pharmacology and toxicology are broadly based biomedical sciences involving the study of the therapeutic and/or potential toxicity of chemical agents on biological systems. The focus of the department is on the pursuit of excellence in teaching and research.

Educational Mission

The educational mission of the department is related to teaching in the medical, nursing, graduate and undergraduate curricula. Teaching excellence is a priority of the department and the faculty put much effort into their lectures and practical science teaching. The programs of study are in the Master of Science in Pharmacology and Toxicology and the Ph.D. programs in Biomedical Sciences and Environmental Sciences. The master's program is a research-based program that recruits students from universities as well as the military and industrial sectors. Faculty also participate in the summer research training program for minorities and persons with disabilities (STREAMS) as well as the Biomedical Science Exchange (BSE) a research and education with universities in Brazil.

Research Mission The research foci of the department are: Toxicology – dermal, behavioral, immunological, cardiovascular, and nanoparticles Disease processes – hypertension, diabetes, stroke, autism, pain, and others Neuroscience – cellular physiology, ion transport, behavior, and volume regulation The methods used in these experimental approaches are molecular genetics, gene therapy, mass spectroscopy (proteomics), gene microarray expression, integrative cardiovascular biology, confocal microscopy and a low-level laboratory for the use of dilute chemical agents.

Some of the facilities available to the faculty and students are molecular biology, a genomics expression center, a proteome analysis laboratory, an imaging facility, a conference room, student offices and designated space within the Laboratory Animal Resources facility. Research support comes from the NIH, American Heart Association, Office of Air Force Research, Department of Defense, Department of Education, and Colgate Palmolive.

The department will continue its growth in the coming years with the addition of faculty, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and visiting faculty and students. There are close ties with the research scientists at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Air Force and Navy Research Laboratories) and Battelle Inc. in West Jefferson, Ohio. Many of these scientists participate in teaching and research programs as adjunct faculty. They have definitely enhanced our toxicological research and training opportunities.

Department News

Professor Alvarez-Leefmans publishes ground-breaking neuroscience book

Academic Press (Elsevier) has published Physiology and Pathology of Chloride Transporters and Channels in the Nervous System: From Molecules to Diseases, edited by Francisco J. Alvarez-Leefmans, M.D., Ph.D., WSU professor of pharmacology and toxicology, and Eric Delpire, Ph.D., a Vanderbilt University professor of anesthesiology. The first comprehensive book on the molecular structure and function of chloride transporters and channels and their impact on various neurological diseases published in almost 20 years, it was presented at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience held in October in Chicago.

"This book constitutes a tribute to Wright State University, and particularly to the Boonshoft School of Medicine," Dr. Alvarez-Leefmans says. "Eric Delpire began his academic career at WSU, and among the contributors are faculty members Norma Adragna, Mauricio DiFulvio, Peter Lauf and myself."

Department research touted by the American Heart Association

The American Heart Association (AHA) is publicizing findings by a team of Wright State University researchers led by Mariana Morris, Ph.D., vice president for graduate studies and chair and professor of pharmacology and toxicology in the Boonshoft School of Medicine.

On September 23, the AHA announced the findings of a study by Morris and her coauthors investigating sugar consumption habits in mice. The study found that when access to fructose, a dietary sugar, was limited to periods when mice normally sleep, the mice exhibited unusual blood pressure patterns, increased stress hormones and weight gain.

The study could have implications for human eating habits, according to Morris, who explained that "consideration must be given not only to the amount of calories consumed, but also the timing of intake."

The study was presented at the organization's annual High Blood Pressure Research Conference in Chicago in September. Co-authors are Swapnil V. Shewale, a master’s degree candidate, and Danielle Senador, Ph.D., a postdoctoral associate. A full press release describing the study, as well as a related investigation, is online at AHA Web site.

Groundbreaking held for Calamityville®

Representatives from Wright State University and the city of Fairborn, along with government officials and area business and military leaders, gathered at the site of the former CEMEX facility in Fairborn on Sept. 28 to mark the groundbreaking for the National Center for Medical Readiness Tactical Laboratory (NCMR-TL) at Calamityville®.

Developed by the WSU Department of Emergency Medicine, the National Center for Medical Readiness is a Wright State Center of Excellence that provides training and education, research, a product development test-bed and commercialization opportunities that integrate medicine with disaster response. Calamityville will be the site of the NCMR’s new tactical laboratory. The Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology plans to establish a research lab at the site. For more information, read the news release.

For more information, please contact:
Mariana Morris, Ph.D.
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
Wright State University
3640 Colonel Glenn Highway
Dayton, OH 45435
Phone: (937) 775-2168
Fax: (937) 775-7221
E-mail: pharmtox@wright.edu

Terry Oroszi, M.S., Director
Master of Science Program in Pharmacology and Toxicology
Phone: (937) 775-4832

For more information regarding the Master of Science Program, please contact:
Teresa Shannon, Graduate Program Coordinator
Phone: (937) 775-4091
E-mail: pharmtoxms@wright.edu