Xiuling Lu

Professor

Pharmaceutical Sciences

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Xiuling Lu, Ph.D., a Professor of Pharmaceutics at the University of Connecticut, received her Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2005. She joined the University of Kentucky as a Postdoctoral Scholar in 2006 and received a prestigious Benedict Cassen Post-Doctoral Fellowship Award from the Education and Research Foundation for the Society of Nuclear Medicine to work on dual imaging-therapeutic nanovectors in 2008. She continued this line of research as a Research Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2008 to 2011, and then joined the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy in 2011.

Dr. Lu’s research interests include nanoparticle-based drug delivery platforms for improving therapeutic indices of anti-cancer agents, image-guided drug delivery for optimizing cancer diagnosis and therapy, and neutron-activatable nanoparticles for radiation therapy. Dr. Lu is an ad hoc reviewer for more than 30 journals. Her research is supported by NIH, American Cancer Society, FDA, NSF etc.

EDUCATION

2001 – 2005       Ph.D., Biochemical Engineering

                           National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

1998 – 2001        M.S., Fermentation Engineering

                           Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, China

1994 – 1998       B.S., Biochemical Engineering

                           Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, China

 RESEARCH EXPERIENCES

2022-Present     Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut

2018-Present      Associate Director, Kildsig Center for Pharmaceutical Processing Research (Main site of the four member universities: University of Connecticut)

2017-2022           Associate Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut

2011–2017           Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut

2008 – 2011        Research Assistant Professor, Division of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy. 

2006 – 2008        Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky. Worked on a project related to the delivery of diagnostic and therapeutic agents to tumors via solid lipid nanocarriers.  

2004 – 2006        Research Associate, National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences.  Leader of research group on purification of proteins and protein modification. 

2001 – 2004        Research Assistant, National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Team leader for R&D project sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 20136020) and Key Project of Knowledge Innovation Program by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.  

1999 – 2001        Research Assistant, Member of group on a solid-state fermentation project supported by the Tianjin Natural Science Foundation of China.

 

HONORS AND AWARDS

2021               Women of Innovation Finalist in the Research Innovation and Leadership, Connecticut Technology Council and Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology
2019               Dean Robert L. McCarthy Faculty Service Award, University of Connecticut

2016               UConn-AAUP Excellence in Research and Creativity: Early Career Award

2013, 2015     Expert Panel for evaluation of a FDA GRAS application

2008               Benedict Cassen Post-Doctoral Fellowship Award from the Education and Research Foundation for the Society of Nuclear Medicine

2005               First – Grade Award of Beijing National Scientific and Technological Progress, Preparation and Application of Size Uniform and Controllable Microsphere and Vesicle

2004                Best Poster Award, Young Asian Biochemical Engineers’ Community, Japan

2004                Excellent presentation Award, 1st Chinese National Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Annual Meeting

2004                Presidential Award, Chinese Academy of Sciences

2002               Innovation Research Fund, Chinese Academy of Sciences

2001                6^th National Outstanding Student honor & 4^th Hu Chunan Excellent Student award (awarded only to the top 100   students in China each year)

2000                Prize winner at National Competition of Business Plan for Science and Technology Innovation for students

2000                  Award for Excellence at Competition of Business Plan for Science and Technology Innovation in Tianjin city

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Spring 2012, 2014, 2017, 2019 PHAR 6234    Advanced Biopharmaceutics – Instructor

Spring 2012, 2014, 2018, 2019 PHAR 3012    Pharmacy Research seminar-Lecturer

Spring 2012, Fall 2013,      CHEG 5395-002    Applied Nanomaterials –Guest Lecturer

Spring 2013-                       PHRX 3031            Foundation in Pharmaceutics I-Instructor

Fall 2013-                           PHRX 3030            Pharmacokinetics/Biopharmaceutics–Coordinator

2013-                                  PHAR 5293            Pharmaceutics Seminar – Coordinator

Spring 2015, 2017              PHRX 3012            Pharmacy Research Seminar-Coordinator

Spring 2018, 2020             PHRX 5240            Drug Discovery and Development

Spring 2020                       GRAD 5910            Responsible Conduct in Research

Service

2021    UConn Radiation Safty Committee

2021    Track Chair, AAPS PharmSci360 Scientific Programming Committee Formulation and Delivery Track

2021    NIH IGIS study section review panel

2020    NSF Review panel

2020    Faculty Committee Chair, National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education

2020    Editorial advisory board, Pharmaceutical Research

2020    AAPS PharmSciTech Theme issue editor: Advances in Nanotechnology-Based Drug Delivery

2020    2020 NIPTE Annual Research Conference Organizing Committee

2019-   NIH ad hoc Grant reviewer

2019    UConn IDEA Grant reviewer

2019    Grant Reviewer for Poland National Science Centre

2019    Grant Reviewer for Breast Cancer Now in United Kindom

2019    Faculty Committee Chair-Elect, National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education

2019    Editorial advisory board, AAPS PharmSciTech

2019    Co-Chair of Nano Focus Group, National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education (NIPTE)

2019    2019 NIPTE Annual Research Conference Organizing Committee

2018    Grant Reviewer for Israel Science Foundation

2018    Department PTR Committee member

2017-   UConn Research Excellence Program grant reviewer in 2017, 2018 and 2020

2017-   UConn IACUC member

2017-   UConn AAPS Student Chapter Advisor

2017-   School of Pharmacy Honors Committee

2017     Secretary,  Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association in CT                                                          

2017     Chair, Faculty Search Committee in Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences

2017     Book proposal review for CRC Press/Taylor and Francis

2016-    Excutive Committee,  Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association                             

2016-    Editorial board member of International Journal of Cancer and Clinical Research

2016   Grant Reviewer for Biomedical Innovation Fund of the French National Research Agency

2016     UConn IDEA Grant reviewer

2015-    Associate Guest Editor of BioMed Research International  

2015     Abstract reviewer for Society of  Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Annual Meeting

2014     Grant Reviewer for the Dutch Cancer Society

 

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists       2006-Present

Controlled Release Society                                            2008-Present

American Association of Cancer Research                    2010-Present

Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging     2014-Present

Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association in CT   2015-Present