Advanced degree programs within the College rely on original research and discoverythrough rigorous scientific investigation in order to advance our understanding of the world.
Student centered and outcomes oriented, these graduate programs offer preparation for careers in the pharmaceutical industry, the health fields, and academia. Programs draw upon the expertise of internationally recognized faculty who specialize in designing and developing new therapeutic agents and tools, evaluating the physiological effects of drugs, and investigating the biological bases of disease.
Stellar education and prime location lead to tremendous outcomes
St. John’s University has an alumni network of more than 183,000—more than 80% of whom reside in the New York metropolitan area. These contacts in a hub of international biomedical, health care, and pharmaceutical industries lead to impressive outcomes for students.
Recent graduates from the College’s global student population are currentlyworking for Avon, the EnvironmentalProtection Agency, Estee Lauder, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Novartis, Pfizer, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as elitemedical schools across the country. Increasingly, St. John’s international graduates return to their home countries to assume research and leadership roles in these growing industries.
Evolving technologies
In 2018, the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences announced the acquisition of the new Anatomage virtual dissection tables at the University’s Queens campus and Dr. Andrew J. Bartilucci Center. The Anatomage is theworld’s first and most technologicallyadvanced virtual dissection table for anatomy education, and it can effectively replace expensive and cumbersome cadaver laboratories.
The ultramodern laboratories and research facilities within St. Albert Hall on the Queens campus also include numerous other state-of-the-art technologies and instrumentation that include gas chromatograph/mass spectrometers, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometers, tissue culture labs, real-time polymerase chain reaction instruments, dissolution instruments, hot melt extruders,thermal gravilometric analyzers, particle size analyzers, and analytical scanning and transmission electron microscopes.
Research is key
Grants for the College have amassed over the years. Most recently, Vivek Gupta, PhD, Assistant Professor, obtained two grants from the American Heart Association (AHA) and theNIH totaling more than $600,000 for his research in treating pulmonary hypertension.
The AHA grant will screen drugs already approved by the FDA against cells isolated from patients who sufferfrom the disease and observe the drugs’impact on pulmonary hypertension symptoms. Instead of a 15–20-year process, Dr. Gupta said the potential exists for it to take only two to three years to reach the market. The drugs will be screened using robotics, which could reduce the cost by 60%–70%. The grant is for two years, and funding is for $154,000.
The NIH grant is derived from research Dr. Gupta already conducted regarding the antimalarial drug Amodiaquine to treat pulmonary hypertension. Dr. Gupta said he will be able to conduct pre-clinical trials to test its efficacy. The hope is that it will reverse the effects of the condition. The grant is for three years and totals $492,000.
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