The Skaggs School of Pharmacy Establishes its First-Ever Endowed Faculty Chair
Christina Aquilante, PharmD, is the first Debra S. Devereaux Endowed Chair in Translational Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. This is a new position, created to support research around translational pharmaceutical sciences - the discovery, development, and use of therapeutics - with a specific focus on personalized medicine and to advance the discovery of practical applications and advancements in the field.
Dr. Aquilante is the current Director of Pharmacogenomics for the Colorado Center for Personalized Medicine and Professor at CU Pharmacy, and her work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, American College of Clinical Pharmacy, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, pharmaceutical industry, and private foundations. This is the first endowed chair position at CU Pharmacy.
“It is an incredible honor and deeply humbling to be named the first endowed chair at the School of Pharmacy,” Aquilante said.
“This recognition not only acknowledges the work that I, along with many talented colleagues, fellows, and students, have put into advancing the field of personalized medicine but also represents a commitment to the future of translational pharmaceutical sciences here at CU.”
Personalized Medicine
Pharmacogenomics is the study of how a person’s genes affect their response to medications. A team of experts can evaluate a patient’s genetic sequence in the context of different medications, connecting the patient with the best possible medication for them. Aquilante and her colleagues have delivered over 700,000 pharmacogenomic test results to 73,000 patients at UCHealth in less than 3 years.
“I’m excited to leverage this support to continue to push the boundaries of genomic medicine, making pharmacogenomics part of routine clinical care and inspiring the next generation of pharmacists and researchers,” she said.
A Gift to Inspire
Inspiring the next generation of researchers was exactly what CU Pharmacy alumna Debra Devereaux, PharmD, had in mind when she gifted the school $2 million to create this position.
“My pharmacy degree from the CU Pharmacy has enabled me to excel and provide leadership in very diverse areas of healthcare,” Devereaux said. “I am thankful for all the opportunities that have come my way, and I wanted to support the research underway now to learn which medications can be utilized based on an individual’s genetic makeup--achieving maximum effectiveness with minimal adverse events.”
Devereaux was a principal consultant and founder of the Rebellis Group, a consulting firm formed to provide hands-on and advisory services to managed care and contracted organizations. She currently serves as an executive advisor at the Rebellis Group. She is a nationally recognized pharmacist leader with a diverse background in acute care, government programs, and managed care.
“Debra Devereaux is an exemplary alumna, and her gift will change lives in allowing us to focus on translational research, which directly benefits human health,” said CU Pharmacy Dean, Ralph Altiere, PhD. “When choosing an individual to step into this impactful role, Dr. Aquilante rose to the top. Her work with CU, the Colorado Center for Personalized Medicine, and UCHealth have challenged the scale and speed of traditional care models.”
Thoughts for the Future
“Being named to this position is a chance to think about the contributions I want to make in the second half of my career, in a way that contributes meaningfully to the lives of others,” Aquilante said. “In this new role, I hope to implement programs that are at the leading edge of translating research findings to the clinical setting. A big part of this is going to be exploring the intersection of personalized medicine and artificial intelligence, and how we use these tools in judicious and meaningful ways to improve patient care.”