Research Advancing Kentucky: Offering life-saving solutions
Researchers at the University of Kentucky play an important role in advancing the health, well-being and future of our Commonwealth.
Much of that work is done with support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). That support allows our researchers to find answers to many of the critical health issues facing Kentuckians.
Thomas Prisinzano, Ph.D., is supported by the National Institute of Drug Abuse, which aims to advance science on drug use and addiction prevention, and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
Prisinzano is a professor and chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the UK College of Pharmacy. He is also the director of the Center for Pharmaceutical Research and Innovation (CPRI) and director of the Drug Discovery and Development Core at the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS).
Prisinzano’s research focuses on the development of new medications to treat substance use disorders and pain. His lab investigates how chemical structure influences biological activity, aiming to address the drug epidemic in Kentucky by identifying new agents for safe medications.
“The NIH-funded centers and infrastructure allow me to hire and work with talented scientists on a variety of research projects in hopes of improving the health of Kentuckians. In addition, I can train the next generation of scientists and faculty members, protect intellectual property for potential commercialization of my research findings and start new companies to add to the biotechnology sector in the Commonwealth,” said Prisinzano.
“I truly believe we have the capacity to create, discover and apply new knowledge, and explore the most complex problems facing Kentucky, the nation and the world,” he said.
Prisinzano and other members of the research community shared the importance of NIH-funded research at UK in this video series from Research Communications.
Learn more about each featured researcher.
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