Department of Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics
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Postdoctoral Training in PharmacologyNIDA Training in Pharmacology of Drugs of Abuse: Interdisciplinary Training in Drug Abuse ResearchOverviewThis NIDA-funded program began in 1978 within the Department of Pharmacology. It has been expanded over the years to include an interdisciplinary training faculty whose primary appointments are in the Departments of Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Psychiatry, Community and Preventive Medicine, Neuroscience, and the Center for Anantomy and Functional Morphology at Mount Sinai and the Department of Psychology at Queens College, CUNY. This is a postdoctoral training program with emphasis on research training in basic and clinical research dealing with biological and psychological processes involved in actions of drugs of abuse. The program has supported 45 fellows since its inception. Graduates have gone on to faculty positions at Mount Sinai, Adelphi University, Loyola University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, University of New England, University of Texas, and University of Wisconsin, as well as to industry firms such as Genentech, Synaptic Pharmaceuticals, Memory Pharmaceuticals, and Trophix Pharmaceuticals. The range of research opportunities for trainees covers a broad range of experimental approaches extending from clinical research to in vivo whole animal studies to computer modeling of molecular interactions between ligands and receptors. Some projects deal directly with drugs of abuse, while others explore basic biological and psychological mechanisms relevant to the actions of abused drugs. Research projects relevant to actions of nicotine, opioids, and hallucinogens at molecular, cellular, and whole animal levels include: computational studies of macromolecules involved in signal transduction; molecular, biochemical, and electrophysiologic studies of signaling components, proteases, and channels; and behavioral studies in transgenic, knockout, and adenovirus gene-transferred mice. The list of Training Faculty provides links to the faculty's individual research interests. Address inquiries to: Lakshmi A. Devi, Ph.D.Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics |