A team made up of Pitt Pharmacy Research Scientist Katherine M. Eichinger, PharmD, PhD, MS (PhD ’19), graduate student Keito Hoshitsuki, PharmD (PharmD ’17) and Associate Professor Christian A. Fernandez, PhD, was recently awarded a Sponsored Early Career Leukemia/Lymphoma Research Grant (ECR) from the Hematology/Oncology Pharmacy Association (HOPA). It is supported by unrestricted funds from AcertaPharma, a member of the AstraZeneca Group.
Eichinger will serve as Principal Investigator supported by co-investigator Hoshitsuki and faculty mentor Fernandez. Eichinger’s funded proposal entitled “Inhibition of anti-PEG antibodies to maximize PEG-asparaginase treatment in pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia” will investigate the role of anti-PEG antibodies on PEG-asparaginase efficacy and screen pharmaceutical compounds that can inhibit anti-PEG antibody production. The end goal of this project is to improve acute lymphoblastic leukemia and other hematologic malignancy treatment outcomes by identifying strategies to stop the adverse effects of PEG-asparaginase. The early career grant will advance Eichinger’s path to becoming an independent investigator.
Eichinger is a Research Scientist and alumnus of the PhD graduate program in Pharmaceutical Sciences at PittPharmacy. Eichinger also currently holds a NIH Loan Repayment Program (LRP) award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). Hoshitsuki is a PhD graduate student and alumnus of the Doctor of Pharmacy program at PittPharmacy, and he currently holds a TL1 Postdoctoral scholar appointment through the University of Pittsburgh Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and Institute for Clinical Research Education. Fernandez is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, a member of the Center for Pharmacogenetics, and has a joint appointment as an Assistant Professor in the University of Pittsburgh CTSI. Fernandez is also funded by an R01 grant from the NIH National Cancer Institute.
