Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Commons^™

Immune-Related Adverse Events Associated With Pembrolizumab In Dmmr/Msi-H Colorectal Cancer: A Single Arm Safety Meta-Analysis, Joshi Simran, Saman Javid, Gaurav Sharma, Corinne Caissie, Armando Dominguez-Diaz

Posters

Pembrolizumab, a PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor, enhances immune response and has proven effective against various cancers, including melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Clinical trials have also shown its efficacy in treating various types of cancers with different mismatch-repair statuses. However, the spectrum and frequency of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in the dMMR (deficient mismatch repair) / MSI-H (microsatellite instability-high) colorectal cancer remain underexplored.

Therefore, this meta-analysis aims to evaluate pembrolizumab's safety profile in this colorectal cancer subset.

The Promise Of Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy For Opioid Use Disorder, Craig Kimble, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

The opioid epidemic presents a profound and escalating public health and economic crisis in the United States. According to the CDC, the economic burden of opioid use disorder and fatal opioid overdose in the U.S. reached an estimated $1.02 trillion in 2017 alone, encompassing healthcare costs, lost productivity, criminal justice expenditures, and premature mortality. While current pharmacologic treatments—such as methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone—have proven efficacy, they are not without limitations, including high relapse rates, issues with compliance, stigma, and insufficient engagement in long-term recovery. These shortcomings necessitate an exploration of innovative, cost-effective interventions. One such promising alternative is psilocybin-assisted therapy. …

Functional Characterization Of The C-Terminal Cholinesterase-Like (Chel) Domain Of The Thyroid Hormone Precursor Protein, Berenice Morales-Rodriguez

Pharmaceutical Sciences (MS) Theses

Vertebrate life is unsustainable without thyroid hormones. The only known precursor for thyroid hormone synthesis is thyroglobulin (Tg), composed of upstream regions I-II-III and a C-terminal cholinesterase-like (ChEL) domain, which bears 47% similarity to acetylcholinesterase (AChE). Mutations in Tg cause congenital hypothyroidism, the most common congenital endocrinopathy affecting 1 in 2,000-4,000 newborns, with a varying degree of phenotypic manifestations. Tg protein, regulated by TSH, is secreted to the lumen of thyroid follicles, where thyroxine (T₄) is formed primarily at the N-terminus, and triiodothyronine (T₃) is formed primarily in the ChEL domain. Previous in vitro studies indicated …

No Guts, No Glory: The Latest In H. Pylori Management, Charlie Wright Pharmd, Bcps, Ian Hendryx

Faculty Research ​and Publications

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) remains a significant global health concern, affecting nearly half the world’s population and contributing to peptic ulcer disease, gastritis, and gastric cancer. The management of H. pylori infection has evolved over time, with preferred treatment regimens changing due to increasing􀀠antibiotic resistance and the emergence of novel therapies. The American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) recently released its 2024 guidelines, refining the treatment approach to improve eradication rates and reduce antibiotic resistance-related failures.

Assessment Of H2s-Induced Cracking Susceptibility In Steam Line Pipes And Weld Zones During Geothermal Well Construction, Riene Kaelamanda Pragitta, Yudha Pratesa

Journal of Materials Exploration and Findings

The susceptibility of steam line pipes, especially in the HAZ (heat-affected zone) and weldment areas, to hydrogen sulfide in the geothermal industry is crucial to understand from the early stages, particularly during construction. The combination of tensile stress from residual stresses after welding and metallurgical phase transformation makes the joint areas vulnerable to sulfide stress cracking. This condition becomes even more extreme when the equipment operates during the well stimulation phase. This research assesses the severity of H₂S-induced cracking using NACE MR0175 and ISO 15156-1 standards, focusing on the effects of pH and partial pressure of H₂S (p_{H₂S …}

Exploring The Landscape Of Pharmacist-Led Hormonal Contraceptive Counseling By Indiana Pharmacists, Anna Rose Greathouse

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Indiana pharmacists were authorized to prescribe birth control in 2023. An over-the-counter birth control pill was approved in 2024. It is imperative to understand and address pharmacist comfort when counseling on these medications. The purpose of this research project is to understand pharmacist confidence in counseling on hormonal birth control and identify barriers to hormonal contraceptive counseling in pharmacies in Indiana. An 18-question survey was sent to all members of the Indiana Pharmacist Association listserv. Pharmacists were invited to participate in the survey. This study was approved by the Butler University Institutional Review Board. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze …

Advancing Drug-Drug Interaction Prediction Using Multi-Modal Feature Integration With Graph Neural Networks, Ernest C. Chianumba

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Pharmaceutical treatments are essential for managing medical conditions, but drug-drug interactions (DDIs) pose significant risks to patient safety and healthcare outcomes. This research integrates Knowledge Graphs and Graph Neural Networks to predict DDIs by exploring complex drug relationships. We construct a comprehensive knowledge graph using DrugBank data (1,000 drugs, 155,774 interactions) enriched with molecular features from PubChem. Our methodology introduces a novel multi-modal approach by integrating transformer-based embeddings (ChemBERTa, SPECTER, and SBERT) to create 1152-dimensional feature vectors that capture structural, biomedical literature, and semantic properties of drugs. Formulating DDI prediction as a link prediction task, we compare three Graph Neural …

Respect Rx Remedy: Dosage Of Decency, Decreasing Bullying And Incivility, Sophia Corso, Olivia Edwards, Elise Kimball, Lillie Le, Hannah Sauer

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

No abstract provided.

May 2025, Swosu Rural Health Center

RURAL ROCKS

This is the May 2025 issue of Rural Rocks from the SWOSU College of Pharmacy.

Detection Of Covid-19 Variants, Christina Aglieco

Honors Scholar Theses

The outbreak of Covid-19 in December 2019 was devastating to many but led to major advancements in vaccine research and development. The development of a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 infection offers protection for the public but cannot eliminate the risk of contracting Covid-19 due to the many viral mutations since the initial wild-type strain isolation in 2019. Analysis of these viral mutations will allow for the development of vaccines with greater protection against the new variants of the coronavirus. Secondary to Covid-19 infection seen in the pediatric population is Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children or MIS-C. Through qPCR analysis of pediatric …

Association Of Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor Use With Reduced Risk Of Alzheimer's Disease Risk, Joseph Magagnoli Ph.D., Ms, Meenakshi Ambati, Tammy H. Cummings, Joseph Nguyen, Claire C. Thomas, Vidya L. Ambati, S. Scott Sutton, Bradley D. Gelfand, Jayakrishna Ambati

Faculty Publications

INTRODUCTION

Inflammasome activation is implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD). We previously demonstrated that nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), drugs approved to treat human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B, also inhibit inflammasome activation.

METHODS

We evaluated the association between NRTI exposure and subsequent development of AD in the United States Veterans Health Administration over a 24-year period and in the MarketScan database over a 14-year period using propensity score-matched multivariate Cox hazards regression and Kaplan–Meier analyses.

RESULTS

We report that in humans, NRTI exposure was associated with a significantly lower incidence of AD in two of the largest health insurance …

Commencement Program 2025, Loma Linda University

Commencement Programs

CONTENTS

2 | Message from the President

3 | 2025 Events of Commencement

5 | The Academic Procession

6 | Institutional Administration

7 | Board of Trustees

8 | Significance of Academic Regalia

9 | University History Highlights

11 | Criteria for Institutional Awards

13 | Loma Linda University Health and Loma Linda University Honorees

The Programs, The School Honorees, and The Speakers

29 | School of Medicine

50 | School of Pharmacy

63 | School of Dentistry

81 | School of Public Health

94 | San Manuel Gateway College

101 | School of Allied Health Professions - Allied Health …

Case Report: Herba Epimedium (Horny Goat Weed) Toxicity With Severe Muscle Spasms And Elevated Creatine Kinase And Creatinine, Tucker A. Ledo, Dhara Patel, Wayne Tamaska, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Here we present the case of a 33-year-old male who presented to the emergency department (ED) with a complaint of severe muscle spasms of a ten-hour duration. He noted that he took a supplement which he purchased over the internet called Epimedium, also known as Horny Goat Weed, for the purpose of improving his mood and sense of energy and reducing his sense of anxiety. He noted that he started this supplement one month prior to ED presentation, coincident with the first episodes of muscle cramps. In the ED, he had elevations of his CK and creatinine and required hospital …

Evaluation Of Avenanthramide-A As A Skin Penetration Enhancer: In Vitro And In Vivo Testing On Permeation Of Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate And Diclofenac Sodium From Topical Gels, Darshil Dhiren Shah

Selected Full-Text Dissertations 2020-

Topical and transdermal drug delivery are favored to deliver active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to the skin as an alternative to oral administration for systemic effects. In either case, the active molecules must cross the stratum corneum and epidermis to reach the site of action. The stratum corneum serves as a primary barrier limiting compounds from fully penetrating the skin. Therefore, it is necessary to add penetration enhancers to topical formulations to enhance drug delivery through the skin. Often, penetration enhancers are also irritant to the skin. Earlier research in our pharmaceutical laboratory showed that an addition of colloidal oatmeal, produced …

A Review Of Praziquantel Resistance In Schistosomes And The Future Of Schistosomiasis Control, Gabriela G. Eastham

Senior Honors Theses

Schistosomiasis is a group of both acute and chronic parasitic trematode infections of the genus Schistosoma. Praziquantel (PZQ) has been the drug of choice to treat schistosomiasis for decades. Though it is effective against all three clinically relevant species, heavy reliance on PZQ has led to concerns of schistosome resistance, especially in areas that have implemented this drug in mass drug administration (MDA) programs. Although there is currently insufficient evidence to conclude that schistosomes are becoming resistant to PZQ on a large scale, other control methods are a necessity to best treat and eliminate schistosomiasis. This article summarizes the …

The Impact Of Cocaine On Inflammatory Markers In Sim-A9 Microglial Cells, Tyler Vaglivelo

Honors Scholar Theses

Substance use disorders are conditions in which an individual continues to use a drug or other substance despite adverse consequences to their health and well-being. It has been hypothesized that inflammation within the central nervous system plays a critical role in the development of substance use disorders. The resident macrophages in the brain, also known as microglia, release markers of inflammation in response to injury or infection. A better understanding of the inflammatory response mediated by microglia in response to drugs of misuse can validate this hypothesis and help guide drug development. In the current studies, the microglia cell line …

Channeling Relaxation Through Multiple Means: Tmem16a Antagonism For Asthma, Arun K. Jannu, Raymond B. Penn

Center for Translational Medicine Faculty Papers

No abstract provided.

Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices Regarding Antimicrobial Resistance And Antimicrobial Stewardship Among Healthcare Workers In Outpatient Medical Centers In Kenya: A Qualitative Study, Mary Kaniu, Wahu Gitakah, Rupali Jain, Ann Munyare, Rodney Adam, Aliza Monroe Wise

Paediatrics and Child Health, East Africa

Objective: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global health threat with a projected 10 million deaths globally by 2050. Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programs are coordinated efforts involving doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare providers. Understanding knowledge, attitudes, and practices of health providers is pivotal for implementing strategies to curb the spread of AMR. The aim of this study was to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices surrounding AMR and AMS among healthcare workers in Kenya.

Design: A qualitative study using in-depth semi-structured interviews

Setting: 12 private outpatient clinics in Kenya.

Participants: Healthcare workers including administrators and clinicians. …

Combined Inhibition Of Lysine-Specific Demethylase 1 And Kinase Signaling As A Preclinical Treatment Strategy In Glioblastoma, Lea Stitzlein

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Glioblastoma is the most common primary malignant brain tumor in adults, with limited treatment options resulting in a poor prognosis. Lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) is overexpressed in glioblastoma and contributes to tumor growth and treatment resistance. Inhibitors of LSD1 have shown preclinical promise but have had limited clinical development for glioblastoma. Given the frequent kinase pathway alterations in glioblastoma, the interplay between LSD1 inhibition and kinase signaling pathways was investigated to identify vulnerabilities that could be exploited through rationally designed combination therapies. We hypothesized that LSD1 inhibitors would activate kinase signaling pathways, such as MAPK, and the addition of kinase …

Machine Learning And Protein Engineering Approaches To Understanding Kinesin-5 Activity, Jason Eden Sanchez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Cancer is a term describing a collection of diseases that result in uncontrolled cell growth. Cancer has manifold etiologies and underlying cancers are rouge biochemical pathways involving many different proteins. In the current work, two approaches are used to enhance knowledge of kinesin-5, a potential cancer target involved in cell division. Kinesin-5 promotes cell division by cross-linking and separating microtubules in dividing cells. The first approach uses machine learning (ML) to identify small molecule inhibitors for kinesin-5. Though decades of research have uncovered classes of small-molecules which inhibit kinesin-5 in vitro and in vivo, no candidates have reached phase III …

Cross-Cultural Adaptation And Psychometric Validation Of The Medication Compliance Questionnaire (Mcq) For Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients In Indonesia, Much Ilham Novalisa Aji Wibowo, Angelia Yuliana Safitri, Didik Setiawan

Makara Journal of Health Research

Background: Medication adherence is critical for managing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The Medication Compliance Questionnaire (MCQ) is a widely recognized tool for assessing adherence but has not been adapted for T2DM in Indonesia. This study aimed to adapt and validate the MCQ in the Indonesian socio-cultural context.

Methods: A cross-sectional study at community health centers (May–Aug 2024) involved forward/back translation, content validation using Aiken’s V, and psychometric assessment among 230 patients. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) assessed construct validity, including convergent, discriminant, and reliability.

Results: Aiken's V index indicated strong content validity (average = 0.881). EFA identified …

Bibliometric Analysis Of Research Trends Related To Human Immunodeficiency Virus., Madyson E. Johnson, Kaitlyn R. Coffman, Valerie Rivas, Elizabeth Barrett

ATU Scholars Symposium

Human immunodeficiency virus poses major health burden across the globe including the United States of America and has its zoonotic origin from the Simian Immunodeficiency viruses of sooty mangabey monkey and chimpanzee in Africa. Epidemiological trends indicate that even though the mortality rates for HIV are falling globally, the rates of new cases have been rising since 2010 in several countries including the USA. An estimated 0.5% of the human population is currently infected with the virus with countries like USA, India, Nigeria and South Africa carrying the highest burden of the disease. Host receptors such as CD4 and coreceptors …

The Effect Of Cellular Glucose Levels On Inotersen-Mediated Target Reduction In In Vitro Cell Models, Andrea Durwin

Honors Scholar Theses

Antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) drugs are a new therapeutic modality to treat rare as well as common diseases. These drugs work to reduce disease by targeting the mRNA of the gene that causes the disease, therefore limiting the proteins that further propagate the signs and symptoms of the disorder. Many people who suffer from more severe diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), and a wide array of cancers, utilize ASO drugs for treatment, but the drug is also used with those suffering from more common diseases such as diabetes. The efficacy of ASO drugs to silence their mRNA …

Design And Structural Basis Of Selective 1,4-Dihydropyridine Inhibitors Of The Calcium-Activated Potassium Channel KCa3.1, Seow Theng Ong, Young-Woo Nam, Joshua A. Nasburg, Alena Ramanishka, Xuan Rui Ng, Zhong Zhuang, Stephanie Shee Min Goay, Hai M. Nguyen, Latika Singh, Vikrant Singh, Alicia Rivera, M. Elaine Eyster, Yang Xu, Seth L. Alper, Heike Wulff, Miao Zhang, K. George Chandy

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

The 1,4-dihydropyridines, drugs with well-established bioavailability and toxicity profiles, have proven efficacy in treating human hypertension, peripheral vascular disorders, and coronary artery disease. Every 1,4-dihydropyridine in clinical use blocks L-type voltage-gated calcium channels. We now report our development, using selective optimization of a side activity (SOSA), of a class of 1,4-dihydropyridines that selectively and potently inhibit the intermediate-conductance calcium-activated K+ channel K_Ca3.1, a validated therapeutic target for diseases affecting many organ systems. One of these 1,4-dihydropyridines, DHP-103, blocked K_Ca3.1 with an IC50 of 6 nM and exhibited exquisite selectivity over calcium channels and a panel of …

Determining The Bioaccumulation Of Minor Cannabinoids In Zebrafish Larvae, Kamdyn A. Holt

Honors Theses

Due to the increasing prevalence of cannabis product availability and usage in the modern United States, particularly among pregnant individuals, evaluating the bioaccumulation of minor cannabinoids to further understand the adverse effects of cannabinoids during early development is critical. This study quantitated the uptake of eight minor cannabinoids ((∆8-tetrahydrocannabinol (∆8-THC), ∆9-THC, ∆10-THC, cannabidiol (CBD), cannabigerol (CBG), cannabinol (CBN), tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), and hexahydrocannabinol (HHC)) in zebrafish larvae following water-borne 2 µM exposures from 6 to 96 hours post fertilization (hpf). Larvae were homogenized at 96 hpf and analyzed using a gas chromatography- mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method developed in this study. Bioconcentration …

Fluorescent Labeling And Size-Dependent Uptake Of Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles In Ovarian Cancer Tumor Spheroids, Kimberly R. Berardis

Honors Scholar Theses

Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy, with most patients presenting at an advanced stage. While surgical debulking improves survival, nonresectable tumors (<1 cm) contribute significantly to morbidity and remain difficult to treat. Nanocarrier-based drug delivery systems offer an innovative approach to targeted therapy and palliation. In vivo models have demonstrated that intraperitoneally delivered mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) preferentially accumulate in tumors with low systemic exposure, enabling targeted chemo- and radiotherapy.

MSNs are particularly suited for radiotherapeutic delivery, as their strong interactions with tumor extracellular matrices drive selective uptake. Additionally, they exhibit excellent stability under neutron flux, allowing for loading with stable isotopes and irradiation immediately prior to administration. High radionuclide retention after dilution further minimizes systemic exposure and toxicity.

A key …

Optimization Of Reaction Conditions For Synthesizing Kasa-Targeting Drug Candidates For Tuberculosis Treatment, Megan A. Baxter

Research and Creativity Symposium

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health challenge, with increasing drug resistance pressing for the development of novel treatments. KasA, a key enzyme in mycobacterial fatty acid biosynthesis, is a promising drug target for TB treatment. This research focuses on the design and synthesis of potential KasA inhibitors, specifically optimizing reaction conditions to efficiently produce 1-methyl-6-aminoindazole. This molecule is an intermediate in the synthesis of drugs targeting TB. Characterization of synthesized compounds is performed using NMR, mass spectrometry, and gas chromatography to confirm structure and purity. The first step involved optimizing the solvent and base for the methylation of nitroindazole. We …

Studies To Understand The Stability And Liabilities Of Legumain-Cleavable Antibody-Drug Conjugates, Michele Yi

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) offer targeted drug delivery of potent cytotoxic payloads, minimizing systemic toxicity. However, the stability of the linker is integral to ensure that there is minimal off-target payload release and little systemic toxicity. This study analyzes the physical and biological stability of our new legumain-cleavable vs traditional cathepsin-cleavable antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), with a focus on hydrophobicity, thermal stability, aggregation, and biological payload release. Our findings indicate that decreased hydrophobicity of the legumain-cleavable ADCs compared to cathepsin-cleavable ADCs is correlated with decreased aggregation (predicting lower uptake by liver macrophages and therefore slower clearance and less systemic toxicity) and lower …

Molecular Insights Into Antibiofilm Inhibitors Of Streptococcus Mutans Glucosyltransferases Through In Silico Approaches, Lubna Atta, Ali Raza Siddiqui, Mamona Mushtaq, Sajida Munsif, Mohammad Nur-E-Alam, Aftab Ahmad, Zaheer Ul-Haq

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Streptococcus mutans, a primary cariogenic bacterium, plays a central role in dental caries, one of the most widespread chronic diseases globally. Glucosyltransferases (GTFs) are key virulence factors in this process, as they synthesize extracellular polysaccharides that contribute to biofilm formation and pathogenicity. Targeting GTFs has emerged as a promising strategy for preventing dental caries, with previous studies demonstrating its potential efficacy. This study builds on our prior work by providing detailed molecular insights into the binding modes of previously identified GTF inhibitors. Using computational tools, including density functional theory, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics simulations, we examined the binding …

Enhancing Holistic Patient Care Of Black Individuals Diagnosed With Hiv And Comorbid Chronic Conditions, Marc Fleming, Saharnaz Nejdat, Jon C. Schommer, Crystal K. Hodge

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background

Pharmacists can play a crucial role in delivering the holistic care model. Research suggests that HIV-positive African American patients particularly benefit from this approach compared to other communities. Typically, pharmacists in community pharmacy settings are limited in their access to a patient's medical record, preventing holistic care delivery.

Objectives

This study addressed the impact of access to medical records on a holistic patient care approach among pharmacists engaged in medication therapy management.

Methods

This was a sub-analysis of a randomized controlled trial of the impact of community pharmacist access to medical records during MTM for African Americans diagnosed with …