Early on the path to discovery of a new drug, researchers must conduct a pharmacokinetic analysis

to determine how the body absorbs, distributes, metabolizes and eliminates the drug. The findings reveal important data about the optimal dose of a drug: how much, how often and when.

   “Each drug follows a unique path to perform its action,” explained Gallo. “Pharmacokinetics, a major part of the drug development process, reveals the course that a drug takes over time by measuring its presence in human fluids.

   “We need to understand this path to be able to design the safest, most effective drug dosages.”
School of Pharmacy faculty member Ellen Walker recently requested an analysis of morphine in brain tissue for her research on drug addiction. The team at the facility worked with her to design the most appropriate analysis methods and then conducted the analysis using the mass spectrometer, a sophisticated, precise tool used to measure exceedingly small amounts of drugs. In Walker’s case, this information served as crucial preliminary supporting information for a major NIH grant submission.

   Together with a Good Manufacturing Practices facility, which will produce tablets and capsules for drug research, the facility is expected to bring in new revenue for the school.
The new facility also is a boon for pharmacy students, enabling more opportunities for research and graduate fellowships. And with Gallo’s expertise, the school is now able to offer students a concentration in pharmacokinetics

   According to Ken Soprano, vice president of research and graduate studies, “This facility is an important resource to support our life science researchers. Our goal is to provide a stimulating, supportive environment where research can thrive and grow and where investigators can be successful researchers at all stages of their careers.”

   Gallo’s own research is primarily focused on experimental brain tumor treatments. He is specifically looking at how to enhance drug accumulation in tumors through an understanding of drug interactions and drug transport. For Gallo, it’s not enough that a drug can attack brain tumor cells in the lab dish; the drug needs to be able to overcome the impervious blood-brain barrier that surrounds the brain and to reach the tumors in sufficient amounts.

   To this end, Gallo and his team utilize various experimental systems, such as genetic knock-out models, to characterize the role various cellular barriers might play in drug distribution to tumors.
Another aspect of Gallo’s research is collaborating with clinicians on studies of new anti-cancer agents in phase I and phase II clinical trials.

   “In these types of studies, we will characterize the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of new drugs and combinations to learn the optimal ways to use them,” said Gallo. “All of these measurements can be turned into mathematical models that help us select improved drug dosage schedules.”

  Gallo, who joined Temple last year from Fox Chase Cancer Center, received a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, a Pharm.D. from the University of Florida College of Pharmacy, and a doctorate in pharmaceutical sciences from University of Arizona College of Pharmacy.

   For more information, contact James Gallo at 215-707-9699.