Molecular Pharmacology

Faculty Contact:
Joan Heller Brown (jhbrown@ucsd.edu)

The Molecular Pharmacology Track is organized through the Department of Pharmacology, a basic science department in the School of Medicine and School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS) and includes faculty in several other School of Medicine and Campus departments.   An NIGMS training grant in Pharmacological Sciences provides financial support, travel and other educational benefits to selected students in this track.

Pharmacology is broadly defined as a discipline that investigates the effects of chemical interventions on biological systems.  The Molecular Pharmacology program at UCSD is renowned for its strength in elucidating basic cellular and molecular mechanisms of signal transduction that lead to drug target identification and ultimately to drug discovery.  Many of the faculty affiliated with this track have research efforts that impact directly on human health, supported by NIH grants on nuclear oncogenes, inflammatory diseases, the genetics of hypertension, cardiovascular regulation, pain regulation, and neurological disease.

Research directions also include computational and molecular science, catalyzed by an affiliation with the San Diego Supercomputer center, and focusing on structure-guided drug design and bioinformatics.  Cross campus efforts in environmental health sciences and pharmacogenomics, which include many Pharmacology Track faculty, have been launched through major NIH funded project grants.  Adjunct faculty at the Salk Institute, the Scripps Research Institute, the Burnham Institute and in the local biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry are also involved with graduate education in this track creating a natural bond for cross fertilization and communication that bridges the programs basic science efforts, and enhances endeavors in drug discovery. 

Participating BMS Faculty: