UNC Pharmacology

10/13/2026

Congratulations to the work of Dr. Bryan Roth and the use of designer drug on a groundbreaking milestone! DREADD research is moving from neuroscience labs toward at least seven human clinical trials! 🧠🔬

Chinese researchers are testing DREADDs, a gene therapy to turn down neuronal activity, in the clinic

10/12/2026

Mark your calendar for October 19th at noon! 📅

Dr. Daniel Dominguez, associate professor at UNC Pharmacology and recipient of the 2026 Phillip and Ruth Hettleman Prizes for Artistic and Scholarly Achievement, will present his work to reshape and decode RNA regulation in health and disease!

Join us from 12-1 PM on Oct. 19 (online) to experience the first set of short research presentations by the recipients of the Phillip and Ruth Hettleman Prizes for Scholarly Achievement, Daniel Dominguez and Andrew Mann. Another Het Talk with Andrea Knittel and Carmina Valle will take place on Oct.....

10/09/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Adam Palmer on his promotion to Associate Professor with tenure!! 🎉

Congratulations, Dr. Palmer! 👏

10/09/2026

A well-deserved congratulations to Dr. Leon Coleman on his promotion to Associate Professor with tenure!! 🎊

Congratulations, Dr. Coleman! 🙌

10/08/2026

🔬 How can pharmacology data help predict drug activity across physiological systems?

Join Dr. Terry Kenakin on “Pharmacology for Chemists" to explore key concepts in pharmacology, drug discovery & medicinal chemistry.

▶️ Watch the full webinar: https://www.acs.org/acs-webinars/library/pharmacology-for-chemists.html

10/07/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Jude Samulski on receiving the Founders Award from the Chinese Society of Cell and Gene Therapy! 🎉 Dr. Samulski was recognized for his foundational work advancing the use of adeno-associated virus for the treatment of disease!

10/06/2026

Artwork by Francisco Enguita, created for a collaborative paper on SCA48 pathogenesis from the Schisler Lab and Brown Lab, is featured on the cover of the Journal of Biological Chemistry!

Read more: https://www.jbc.org/article/S0021-9258(26)02271-4/fulltext

10/05/2026

Collaborative work from our Schisler Lab and Brown Lab sheds light on the mechanisms driving spinocerebellar ataxia type 48 (SCA48) and the phenotypic heterogeneity observed across patients!

The carboxyl terminus of Hsp70-interacting protein (CHIP, encoded by STUB1) combines co-chaperone and E3 ubiquitin ligase activities to regulate protein quality control. Heterozygous mutations in STUB1 cause spinocerebellar ataxia type 48 (SCA48), a progressive cerebellar ataxia with variable extrap...

10/02/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Kirsten Bryant on being selected as the UNC Lineberger Community Outreach & Engagement Faculty Liaison for the Cancer Cell Biology Research Program! 🎉🔬

Learn more about UNC Lineberger Community Outreach and Engagement: https://unclineberger.org/community-outreach/

10/02/2026

As Dr. Avner Schlessinger joins UNC Pharmacology as our incoming chair, his work aims to accelerate structure-based discovery of new small-molecule therapeutics, with research spanning disease mechanisms, drug discovery and precision medicine!

Avner Schlessinger, PhD, has been named chair of the UNC Department of Pharmacology. He will begin his work in the role in February 2027. Henrik Dohlman, PhD, will step down as chair in February and will remain with the department as a faculty member. “Dr. Schlessinger is a world-renowned research...