Jianqin Lu Receives $1.9M NIH Grant, AACP Research Award

Sept. 1, 2022
Male and female scientists gathered around a computer screen.

Jianqin Lu, BPharm, PhD, assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences, was awarded a $1.9 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant and recognized with a 2022 Research Award from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP).

Dr. Lu joined the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy in 2019. His work using nanotechnology for drug delivery to treat aggressive tumors has garnered national attention. The goal is a more targeted and efficacious drug treatment platform with less harmful side effects on cancer patients.

“Pharmaceutics is an important part of our department, with a long history of research excellence and a strong national reputation,” said Xinxin Ding, PhD, head of the department of Pharmacology and Toxicology and holder of the R. Ken and Donna Coit Professorship in Drug Discovery. “This recognition of Dr. Lu’s work is well deserved and showcases the talent and creativity, as well as the highly productive research environment, that we have here at the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy.”

The 2022 Pharmaceutics Research Award recognizes members of the AACP Pharmaceutics Section for their intellectual contributions in the form of peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Lu received the reward for his work on the project titled “Immunogenic camptothesome nanovesicles comprising sphingomyelin-derived camptothecin bilayers for safe and synergistic cancer immunochemotherapy”.

In addition to the recognition from the AACP, Dr. Lu received a $1.9 million NIH/NIGMS grant. The funding over five-years will serve as a stable source of financial support and a means for retaining and recruiting top talent to work in his lab.

“The research environment at R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy is outstanding, supportive, inclusive and collaborative,” Dr. Lu said. “All of which has helped me do my research to the best of my ability.”

Dr. Lu will speak on his research during the 20th International Nanomedicine and Drug Delivery Symposium on September 2 in Chapel Hill, NC and the 4th Annual Drug Discovery & Development Summit on Tuesday, September 27 in Phoenix.