Associate Dean of the College of Pharmacy Dr. Kelley Kiningham recently published a chapter titled, “Manganese Superoxide Dismutase” in the book “Manganese in Health and Disease.” Kiningham’s chapter summarizes studies from the last 30 years on the antioxidant.

The mitochondrial enzyme is one of three superoxide dismutases in humans; however, it is the only one that is essential for life.  The enzyme has been shown to be protective in in vivo models of adriamycin, methamphetamine and taxol toxicity.  In addition various researchers, including Dr. Kiningham, have shown that expression of manganese superoxide dismutase is a tumor suppressor.

Clinical trials based on the work of Kiningham and other researchers in the field have lead to the development of synthetic drugs based on the MnSOD enzyme and are currently being tested in a variety of conditions where oxidative stress is known to occur.

Professors in the College of Pharmacy Drs. Eric Hobson and Alisa Spinelli and Dean of the College of Pharmacy Dr. Philip Johnston were published in The American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education with their article, “Staging a Reflective Capstone Course to Transition PharmD Graduates to Professional Life.” The article is the scholarly findings from a case study of a Belmont capstone class.

The objective was to develop and implement a course that would allow students to reflect on their development as a professional, assess and share achievement of the college’s outcomes, complete a professional portfolio, establish a continuing professional development plan and prepare to enter the pharmacy profession.

Findings concluded that the course provided an opportunity for student-based summative evaluation, direct observation of student skills and documentation of outcome completion as a means of evaluating readiness to enter the profession.

To read the full journal article, click here.