B.S., University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2004; Ph.D., University of Mississippi, 2010. Assistant Professor (tenure-track), Marshall University, 2016-2021; Assistant Professor (tenure-stream), University of Pittsburgh, 2021- .
Research in the Journigan laboratory focuses on the de novo design and discovery of small molecules for the transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8) ion channel based on the natural product (─)-menthol, for clinically unmet disease states. TRPM8, a thermosensor, is a polymodal nociceptor in the somatosensory nervous system and the major sensor of cold in humans. Our drug discovery efforts are aimed at correcting defects in sensory perception to cold, seen in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) and chronic neuropathic pain. To accomplish our ultimate goals of discovering novel small molecule chemical probes and therapeutics using current knowledge of TRP channel structural biology, we combine computational, synthetic medicinal chemistry and biochemical techniques. We collaborate with several research groups working in the TRP channel area on electrophysiology and rodent neurobehavioral assays, to evaluate the effects of our designed ligands in translational models.
2022 Invited lecture, Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
2021 NIDA Diversity Scholar , NIDA Office of Diversity and Health Disparities
2021 Invited lecture, Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Minnesota School of Pharmacy
2020 Inventor, WO 2020160464 A1
2020 Teacher of the Year , Marshall University School of Pharmacy
2020 Young Investigators Award, American Chemical Society, Division of Medicinal Chemistry (MEDI)
2020 NINDS Preclinical Screening Platform for Pain (PSPP) program, NINDS
2020 Early Career Reviewer (ECR), NIH Center for Scientific Review
2019 - 2022 Young Medicinal Chemists Committee, American Chemical Society , Division of Medicinal Chemistry
2019 Invited guest, Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, Editorial Board Meeting
2018 - 2021 Board of Grants , American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education
2018 - 2020 Pilot feasibility PI, University of Pittsburgh Computational Drug Abuse Research Center
2018 Selected attendee, Training in Neurotherapeutics Discovery and Development for Academic Scientists program (NINDS and NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research supported)
2018 Women in Medicine and Science , Marshall University School of Medicine (Special Guest: Nora Volkow, MD)
2018 Invited lecture, Computational Drug Abuse Research Center, University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy
2017 Invited guest, Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, Editorial Board Meeting
2017 Inventor, WO 2017096323 A1, US 20180155314 A1
2015 Presenter, American Chemical Society, Division of Medicinal Chemistry (MEDI) Oral talks
2010 Travel award , Society for Neuroscience Julius Axelrod Symposium
Journigan, V.B., Polgar, W., Zaveri, N.T. The Discovery and Opioid receptor SAR of AT-076, the First Small-Molecule Opioid Pan Antagonist with Nanomolar Affinity at Mu, Delta, Kappa and
Nociceptin Opioid Receptors. American Chemical Society, Division of Medicinal Chemistry (MEDI) General Oral Session. March 2015.
Journigan, V.B., Feng, Z., Rahman, S.,Wang, Y., Amin, A.R.M.R., Heffner, C.E., Bachtel, N., Wang, S., Gonzalez-Rodriguez, S., Fernández-Carvajal, A., Fernández-Ballester, G., Hilton, J.K.,
Van Horn, W.D., Ferrer-Montiel, A., Xie, X.-Q., Rahman, T. Structure-based design of novel biphenyl amide antagonists of human Transient Receptor Potential Cation Channel Subfamily M
Member 8 channels (TRPM8). American Chemical Society, Division of Medicinal Chemistry (MEDI) Young Investigators Symposium. August 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/scimeetings.0c00015
Journigan, V.B. Discovery of TRPM8 antagonist VBJ103, a candidate small molecule for NINDS PSPP. Presentation to the NIH/NINDS Preclinical Screening Platform for Pain (PSPP) program. December 2020, April 2021.
