Welcome to the Department of BioMolecular Sciences!

The Department of BioMolecular Sciences is an exciting department created in 2014 at the School of Pharmacy – a result of our efforts to stay abreast of changing times. We developed a “super” department consisting of four divisions: Environmental Toxicology, Medicinal Chemistry, Pharmacognosy and Phamacology. Through these divisions, which all have historical roots going back many years in our School, we are able to offer a broad spectrum of resources to our students and researchers, and foster a productive research and education program. We invite you to browse the website and explore all that is happening in our department.

Recent News

Follow us on Twitter! @OleMissBMS

Follow us on Facebook! Department of BioMolecular Sciences

Ole Miss Pharmacy Graduate Students Recognized for Research Accomplishments

April 30, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – Numerous graduate students in the Department of BioMolecular Sciences within the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy earned awards for their presentations at the UM Neuroscience Research Showcase in April and the Mississippi Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting in February.

Erik Hodges, a graduate student from Norman, Oklahoma, was honored at the Neuroscience Showcase. Student award winners at the MAS meeting included Stephanie Burr of Eden Prairie, Minnesota; Amelia Clayshulte of Las Cruces, New Mexico; Mallory Harmon of Meridian, Mississippi; and Alaa Qrareya of Palestine.

Graduate Students Enhance Skills with Scientific Writing Workshop

April 23, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – For graduate students, the ability to summarize the results of a laboratory experiment can be as important as the result themselves.

To emphasize the skill of writing in science, the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy offered a Graduate Student Scientific Writing Workshop last month, sponsored by the school’s Graduate Student Program office, the BioMolecular Sciences department and Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery department.

UM Graduate Student Selected for Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Course

April 19, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – Amelia Clayshulte, a second-year Ph.D. student in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy’s Department of BioMolecular Sciences, was accepted into a tropical taxonomy course at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

The internationally competitive course takes place at the Bocas Research Station in Bocas del Toro, Panama, for 21 days this summer. Clayshulte, originally from Las Cruces, New Mexico, will be one of approximately 15 students participating in a course titled “Understanding Relationships of Non-bilaterian Metazoans: Sponges.”

Three Pharmacy Professors Win New Investigator Awards

January 24, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – Three faculty members in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy have won competitive 2019 New Investigator Awards from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, giving the school five winners over the past two years.

AACP honors a limited number of research projects from junior faculty across the country every year. UM’s three winners for 2019 were Marie Barnard, Sujith Ramachandran and Vitor Pomin, who join UM’s two 2018 recipients of the award.

Pharmacology Professor Awarded NIA Grant for Research on Aging Brain

January 17, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – Nicole Ashpole, an assistant professor of pharmacology in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, has been awarded a grant from the National Institute on Aging to research memory impairments in advanced age.

With this award, Ashpole and her team will explore a specific hormone in the body that decreases with age, as well as its ability to communicate with the brain and its effects on learning and memory. The hormone is insulin-like growth factor-1, or IGF-1.

Ole Miss Professor Earns Grant to Produce Anticancer Natural Products from Bacteria

January 10, 2019

OXFORD, Miss. – Cole Stevens, a faculty member in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy has been awarded a grant from the National Cancer Institute for cancer prevention research using natural products.

Stevens, an assistant professor of pharmacognosy in the Department of BioMolecular Sciences, is working to engineer bacteria to produce significant amounts of gephyronic acid, a polyketide that has potential as an anticancer therapy.

Pharmacology Professor Works to Reverse Impact of Opioids on HIV

December 20, 2018

OXFORD, Miss. – The opioid epidemic has reached new perils across the United States. Though opioid abuse can be dangerous for anyone, those diagnosed with HIV can see increased adverse effects on the brain and nervous system.

With a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy pharmacology assistant professor Jason Paris is working to combat opioids’ harmful effects on the HIV-infected brain.

BioMolecular Sciences Advocacy Council Enhances Graduate Student Experience

December 17, 2018

OXFORD, Miss. – The graduate students and faculty of the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy’s Department of BioMolecular Sciences have worked together to reestablish an organization that will benefit the many graduate students within the department.

The BMS Graduate Student Advocacy Council formed during the fall of 2018 as the department renewed its official student registration of the former BMS Journal Club. The organization plans to include more opportunities for interaction outside of the labs with faculty and student networking events, journal club meetings and football tailgates.

Ole Miss Professor Awarded NIDA Grant to Fight Opioid Addiction

November 27, 2018

OXFORD, Miss. – David Colby, a University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy professor, received a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to develop new treatments for addressing the opioid crisis.

Colby hopes to develop a therapy for drug addiction by studying the medicinal chemistry of certain compounds that can lower the anxiety some patients experience when withdrawing from an addiction.

Pharmacy Ph.D. Graduate Wins Scholarship for Drug Discovery Research

September 21, 2018

OXFORD, Miss. – Mohamed A. Albadry, a recent Ph.D. graduate from the Department of BioMolecular Sciences in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, has won the 2018 Harvey W. Wiley Scholarship from AOAC International.

AOAC International develops global quality standards for microbiological and chemical materials, ranging from food to pharmaceuticals, in an effort to ensure public health.

BMS Welcomes Back Students at Orientation, Awards Luncheon

August 17, 2018

The Department of BioMolecular Sciences kicked off the new school year with its Welcome Back Orientation on August 17. The day consisted of the Joseph Sam Distinguished Alumnus Lecture featuring 2018 recipient Randall Clark in the morning before the awards luncheon and department photo in the afternoon.

See more pictures at the Facebook gallery: “BMS Welcome Back Orientation”

Forensic Chemist Named Ole Miss 2018 Joseph Sam Distinguished Alumnus

August 13, 2018

OXFORD, Miss. – Randall Clark, a 1973 University of Mississippi graduate with a doctoral degree in medicinal chemistry, has been named the School of Pharmacy Department of BioMolecular Sciences’ 2018 Joseph Sam Distinguished Alumnus Award honoree.

Clark earned degrees in both biology and chemistry from Berry College in Mt. Berry, Georgia, before receiving his Ph.D. under the direction of late Ole Miss professor Ronald F. Borne. He has spent his 45-year academic career at Auburn University, where he is a professor of medicinal chemistry, mentoring over 50 Master’s and Ph.D. students.

Faculty, Researchers Honored at Pharmacy School Annual Retreat

JACKSON, Miss. – The University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy presented four faculty and researchers awards for their excellence in and commitment to research, teaching and service at its annual faculty retreat on June 14.

“We are fortunate at our school to have talented faculty and scientists committed to our mission, so it’s a privilege to award them for their outstanding efforts,” said David D. Allen, dean of the School of Pharmacy.