Harrison College of Pharmacy
Faculty and Staff Directory
Murali Dhanasekaran
Professor
Director of International Programs
Units: Drug Discovery and Development, Administration
Auburn University
Harrison College of Pharmacy
3306a Walker Building
Auburn, AL 36849
Email: dhanamu@auburn.edu
Phone: 334-844-8327
Fax: 334-844-8331
Bio
Education:
- B.Pharm. - Annamalai University
- M.Pharm. - Jadavpur University
- Ph.D. - Indian Institute of Chemical Biology
Academic and Scientific Training
- Post-doctoral Experience in the Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha (Under the guidance of Dr. M. Ebadi)
- Research Instructor in the Department of Physiology, Pharmacology, and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks (Under the guidance of Dr. M. Ebadi)
- Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Texas A&M, Temple / Scott and White Hospital (Under the guidance of Dr. B. Manyam)
Academic Achievements
- Teaching Undergraduate, Graduate, and Pharm.D Courses
- Teaching International Students (Ocean University, China, Indian University)
- Trained more than 150 Undergraduate Students ✓ Graduated 18 M.S.
- Ph.D. Students currently have 6 graduate students under his leadership and served/serving in a Graduate student committee of more than 60 students
- Have teaching, research, and outreach collaborations with more than 15 countries
Teaching Awards and Accomplishments
- Several School, College, and University level Teaching awards
- Initiated a new undergraduate program and serve as Program Director for B.S. Drugs and Biopharmaceutical Sciences
- Has also served on various committees at HCOP and Auburn University consistently for several years
Scholarly Activity
Our lab has developed and validated several in silico, in vitro, and in vivo models to understand the etiopathology of various neurological disorders. Using these models, we have investigated the novel synthetic and natural bioactive for their neuroprotective effects and elucidated their behavioral biochemical/neurochemical effects and pharmacodynamic actions attributed to the therapeutic effects.
Based on my expertise, have published peer-reviewed research articles (125), book chapters (55), books (7), and national/international abstracts (around 500). Alzheimer’s Association had awarded a grant to establish the neuroprotective effects of Centella asiatica in an Alzheimer’s model. Furthermore, we have continuous grants & contracts with pharmaceutical companies to establish the neuroprotective effects of their “product of interest.”
The current research focuses on the following:
- Novel and effective drug development for Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and Epilepsy
- Novel Pharmacological actions of “Designer drugs”
- Chemotherapy-Induced Neurological Impairment
- Pharmacodynamic actions and neuroprotective effects of the natural bioactive and its metabolites