5th NDSU AAPS-Pharmaceutical Research Symposium: NDSU AAPS Student Chapter members, speakers and participating students
by Bruna Rodrigues, chair, NDSU AAPS Student Chapter
Since its inception in the spring of 2005, North Dakota State University (NDSU) AAPS student chapter has been committed to promoting pharmaceutical sciences research and encouraging intellectually stimulating academic, scientific, and social interaction among graduate students, faculty, and pharmaceutical scientists. The student chapter also supports networking and student outreach activities, including fundraising to support Cookies for Kids’ Cancer organization.
Primarily, we have the mission to convey a knowledge-based environment not only to the School of Pharmacy, but also to the College of Health Professions at NDSU. This student chapter has been organizing the AAPS-NDSU Research Symposium annually since 2014 to provide a platform for scientific growth by promoting networking among peers in the biomedical sciences community. We invite eminent speakers for lectures and poster presentation sessions with exciting awards. The event activities strive to help graduate students fill the gap between academia and industry and further expand their professional network. Additionally, the symposium offers a good opportunity for presentation, discussion, and collaboration regarding advances in biomedical sciences among graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, industry representatives, and other research professionals. We aim to widen the area of pharmaceutical sciences to encompass a more interdisciplinary approach that will draw scientists from other areas of study such as biochemistry, animal and plant sciences, coatings and polymeric materials science, engineering, etc.
Research Symposium
The NDSU AAPS student chapter organized the 5th NDSU-AAPS Pharmaceutical Research Symposium on October 25, 2018. In collaboration with the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and guidance of Jagdish Singh, Ph.D., this entirely student-planned symposium provided the opportunity for students and faculty to share their research and encourage collaborations. The symposium was focused on recent advancements in biomedical sciences and the drug discovery and development process. We invited three eminent speakers, Jann N. Sarkaria, Ph.D. (Mayo Clinic Department of Radiation Oncology, Rochester, Minn.), John H. Woodcock, Ph.D. (School of Medicine, Department of Neurology, University of Colorado, Colo.), and William Elmquist, Ph.D. (College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota, Minn.). Sarkaria’s talk emphasized The effective translation of novel therapeutic strategies for brain tumors. Next, Woodcock discussed The therapeutic enigma of Alzheimer Disease, which covered the difficulties to understanding and treating this disease. And finally, Elmquist lectured about The treatments for brain tumors and the reasons for their failure and the future perspectives for the therapy. This symposium was attended by 50 students and faculty members from various departments of NDSU, including biological sciences, biochemistry, and engineering. Students from the first year Pharm.D program (NDSU Pharmacy department) were also invited to attend the scientifically stimulating talks to promote their interest in science and pharmaceutical research. Additionally, students had the opportunity to present their research data during the poster session, which provided an enriched environment for discussion and learning.
We are proud of what we have achieved during the past year and we are looking forward to coming events.