David J. Greenblatt

Research/Areas of Interest

Our research work has a focus on the following areas: molecular and clinical pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics; genetic and environmental factors regulating drug metabolism by Cytochromes P450 and glucuronosyl transferases, and energy-dependent transport by P-glycoprotein and other transporters; mechanisms, consequences, and in vitro prediction of metabolic drug-drug interactions attributable to enzyme inhibition and induction; effect of age, gender, body habitus, and dietary composition on drug disposition and response; drug interactions involving nutrients and natural substances; molecular and clinical determinants of ligand binding and pharmacodynamic response to centrally-acting drugs. Principal techniques used in the laboratory include: high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) and HPLC with mass spectroscopy for quantitation of drugs and metabolites; in vitro drug metabolism models based on human liver microsomal preparations and recombinant human enzymes; genetic identification and quantitation of single nucleotide polymorphisms altering drug metabolism phenotype; nonlinear regression procedures for pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics simulation and modeling.