Michigan Pharmacology

09/02/2026

A new paper (written by the Ferrario lab) was recently published in Psychopharmacology. The paper, “Effects of withdrawal from intermittent vs. long access co***ne self-administration on nucleus accumbens calcium permeable AMPA receptor transmission and incubation of craving in female and male rats” can be found here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42645530/

09/02/2026

Catherine Demery (Traynor Lab/ Anand Team) received a competitive F31 predoctoral fellowship from the National Institute on Drug Abuse this summer for her project entitled, "The Role of Gαo and Gαz in Opioid-Induced Respiratory Depression," co-sponsored by Drs. John Traynor and Erica Levitt.

Congratulations, Catherine!

09/01/2026

Welcome, President Raver!

C. Cybele Raver was confirmed as the University of Michigan’s 17th president today at a special meeting of the Board of Regents. Please join us in welcoming President-Elect Raver! myumi.ch/9JJEP

09/01/2026

On Tuesday, August 25th, the Pharmacology Outreach Committee hosted Prevention in Action, a Narcan distribution and education event near the Michigan Union. The committee distributed 144 boxes of Narcan (naloxone) to students and community members while also providing information about what naloxone is, how it works, and how to use it.

Although the event table had been scheduled for three hours, the committee distributed all of the supplies in just two hours! We are incredibly grateful to everyone who volunteered or signed up to help make the event a success. Based on the strong response, the committee hopes to organize another Narcan distribution event on campus in the future and during Welcome Week again next year.

The committee has also placed an order for free Narcan/naloxone that will be made available to members of the department who would like to keep it on hand. If you would like to obtain Narcan for yourself, you can also request it using this request form: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=h3D71Xc3rUKWaoku9HIl0SkvCtWzTqNAmxAorR-C4NFUQ09BNTYyRk9OM0ZERUpKS1QxSzlVVlhMNCQlQCN0PWcu

Thank you again to everyone who helped support this event!

09/01/2026

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Carrie Ferrario, who has been invited by President Grasso to serve as a senior fellow in the Michigan Society of Fellows.

The Society of Fellows serves a unique and important function in the University, particularly by creating a context in which sustained conversation can take place across disciplinary and generational lines. Dr. Ferrario's appointment is not merely honorary, but rather an active role. The Society meets monthly during the academic year for dinner, followed by presentations and conversation. These gatherings are intended to offer stimulating and fruitful discussion across disciplines. Beyond participating in the Society’s intellectual life, members also help sustain and shape its future. The Society’s most crucial duty is the selection of new postdoctoral fellows, a task fundamental to the charge it has undertaken. This work includes preliminary file review in late September and October, finalist review in early January, participation in the new fellows selection meeting, and selection of new senior fellows in the spring. Although it requires dedicated time, engaging with such exceptional candidates makes the process deeply rewarding. Senior fellows participate in these processes, especially in evaluating candidate materials, and typical commitments need not prevent thoughtful engagement except in cases such as absences longer than one year, planned sabbaticals, or leaves.

The Society of Fellows unites some of the University’s most esteemed faculty with an extraordinary cohort of postdoctoral fellows. Its work is central to fostering vibrant scholarly exchange. We are so excited that she was chosen to become a member of this remarkable community.

Congratulations, Dr. Ferrario!

08/31/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Paul Buscaglia on his promotion to Research Investigator!

08/31/2026

A new paper (written by the Courtney lab) was recently published in Molecular Therapy Advances. The paper, “Cytokine-independent activation of STAT5 promotes the persistence and function of CD4+ regulatory T cells” can be found here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42662613/

08/28/2026

A new paper (written by the Levitt lab) was recently published in The Journal of Neuroscience. The paper, “Opposing Control of the Respiratory Brainstem on Multiple Timescales Achieved by Noradrenaline and Glutamate Release from the Locus Ceruleus” can be found here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42521625/

08/27/2026

We are excited to share the Cardiovascular Research Education Certificate (CVRC), an interdisciplinary training opportunity offered by the Department of Pharmacology in collaboration with the Michigan Medicine Frankel Cardiovascular Center.
The CVRC provides training in basic and translational cardiovascular research for University of Michigan Medical School doctoral students, postdoctoral trainees, and clinical students and trainees and other university units who wish to complement their current academic or professional programs. The certificate is awarded by the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, with Michael Holinstat, PhD, FAHA serving as Faculty Lead.

Providing training in basic and translational cardiovascular research to the University of Michigan doctoral students, post-doctoral trainees and clinical students and or trainees across the Medical School and other university units who wish to complement their academic or professional programs.

08/26/2026

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Puthenveedu and his team on receiving one of the first-round UM Strategic Initiative Fund awards! Their award, A Novel Strategy for Effective and Non-Addictive Pain Management, proposes a strategy for effective, non-addictive pain management aimed at addressing the major public health and economic burden of acute and chronic pain. Pain affects a large share of adults in the U.S., reduces quality of life, and costs the economy an estimated hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Current pain treatments remain inadequate: opioids are effective but carry serious risks of addiction, overdose, constipation, nausea, dizziness, and dependence, while many non-opioid alternatives have limited efficacy or problematic side effects. The project seeks to develop a safer, non-opioid therapeutic approach that could improve pain treatment while avoiding the addiction risks and other adverse effects associated with current opioid-based care. If successful, the project could establish a new class of non-addictive pain therapeutics and position U-M as a leader in next-generation pain management.

Read more about their award and the SIF program here: https://looktomichigan.umich.edu/sif-projects/a-novel-strategy-for-effective-and-non-addictive-pain-management/

Congratulations, Dr. Puthenveedu and team!