UB Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences enhances strengths in drug delivery and quantitative systems pharmacology with two new faculty

Youngjae You was hired as Professor of Empire Innovation.

One of You’s most critically acclaimed and original contributions is his research on click- and photo-unclicking chemistry to enable light-controlled precise drug release at the disease sites; this work has the potential to maximize tumor cell killing while minimizing systemic cytotoxic drug levels, a major clinical challenge in cancer medicine.

“Dr. You, with his training in pharmaceutical chemistry and his research focus on the design, synthesis, formulation, and evaluation of bio-active small or protein molecules, adds to the department’s growing strength in drug delivery,” says SUNY Distinguished Professor Marilyn Morris, department chair.

You received his BS and MS in pharmacy, followed by his MS and PhD in pharmaceutical chemistry, from Chungnam National University in Korea, and conducted his postdoctoral research at the University at Buffalo.  He was a faculty member at South Dakota State University and the University of Oklahoma before joining UB.

Sukyung (Sue) Woo (PhD ’07) was hired as an Associate Professor.

She obtained her BPharm and MS in Pharmacy from Chungnam University in Korea. She received her PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University at Buffalo, and her postdoctoral fellowship was in clinical pharmacology from the National Cancer Institute.  Woo was a faculty member at the University of Oklahoma before accepting this position at UB.

Her translational research involves computational modeling to advance development of new therapies and potential combination strategies to improve treatment outcomes.  Her research evaluates complex biological systems in cancer to better understand therapeutic response and resistance using quantitative systems pharmacology (QSP) modeling.

“With her strong research and excellent teaching backgrounds, Dr. Woo will provide additional strength to research and teaching in clinical pharmacology and quantitative systems pharmacology in our department,” says Morris.