{"id":237325,"date":"2025-10-29T12:16:06","date_gmt":"2025-10-29T16:16:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=237325"},"modified":"2025-10-29T12:29:30","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T16:29:30","slug":"two-uconn-students-chosen-as-afpe-pre-doctoral-fellows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2025\/10\/two-uconn-students-chosen-as-afpe-pre-doctoral-fellows\/","title":{"rendered":"Two UConn Students Chosen as AFPE Pre-Doctoral Fellows"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0<\/span>Liam\u00a0Carman: Advancing Research in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Originally from Staten Island, Liam received his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from the College of Staten Island.<\/span> He also has two years of biopharma experience at <\/span>GenScript, where he s<\/span>olidly advanced as a bench scientist and <\/span>realized he wanted to both direct and execute industry projects as he might do after completing doctoral training.<\/span>\u00a0The combination<\/span><\/span> of\u00a0<\/span>his<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>undergraduate<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>industry<\/span>\u00a0experience<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0led Liam to apply to the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>pharmacology-toxicology graduate<\/span>\u00a0program\u00a0<\/span>in<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the UConn School of Pharmacy Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.\u00a0<\/span>I<\/span>n 2022, <\/span>he\u00a0<\/span>was accepte<\/span>d\u00a0<\/span>to<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>p<\/span>rofessor of\u00a0<\/span>p<\/span>harmacology and\u00a0<\/span>t<\/span>oxicology<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Brian<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Aneskievich\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0lab. The<\/span>\u00a0prestige\u00a0<\/span>of the\u00a0<\/span>gra<\/span>duate program<\/span>, combined with Liam\u2019s desire to stay close to home and the<\/span>\u00a0energetic\u00a0<\/span>department\u00a0<\/span>atmosphere, has allowed Liam to thrive for the past three years.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Headshot
Headshot of Liam<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Under the guidance of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Aneskievic<\/span>h<\/span>, Liam focuses his research on chronic inflammatory disorders,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>mainly o<\/span>f<\/span>\u00a0the skin.\u00a0<\/span>Combined with his advisor\u2019s experiences with skin as a target organ system, Liam and his colleagues have<\/span>\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>disease<\/span>–<\/span>relevant\u00a0<\/span>and hands-on<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>research<\/span>\u00a0experience<\/span>\u00a0to investigate a protein called\u00a0<\/span>TN<\/span>I<\/span>P1<\/span>, the cell\u2019s natural defense against inflammation.\u00a0<\/span>In his research project he<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>submitte<\/span>d<\/span>\u00a0to AFPE, entitled \u201cAssessing Biomolecular Protein\u00a0<\/span>Condensates<\/span>\u00a0as Sites for Restricting Cytoplasmic Progression of Signaling in Chronic Inflammatory\u00a0<\/span>Disease<\/span>s<\/span>,\u201d Liam explores the<\/span>\u00a0cell-<\/span>level<\/span>\u00a0o<\/span>rganization of\u00a0<\/span>proteins\u00a0<\/span>like TNIP1\u00a0<\/span>and how\u00a0<\/span>they<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>fight<\/span>\u00a0inflammation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Liam strives to share his research with the greater pharmaceutical world through publications, with the\u00a0ultimate goal\u00a0of developing new mechanisms and therapeutic\u00a0angles\u00a0to help those struggling with chronic inflammatory disorders.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When asked about his research, Liam explains the impactful role\u00a0the graduate program\u00a0has had in cultivating and carrying out his passion for\u00a0pharmacology.\u00a0Liam\u2019s project is also partially supported by a UConn Research Excellence Program (REP) grant to\u00a0Aneskievich.\u00a0Additionally, Liam credits\u00a0the\u00a0School,\u00a0department,\u00a0and\u00a0Aneskievich\u2019s\u00a0guidance\u00a0in helping him pursue his research\u00a0and\u00a0stay on track.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Since becoming a Husky, Liam capitalized on these resources to expand his research, presentation skills, and professionalism. Attending and speaking at student seminars has helped Liam with his public speaking. Attending conferences has also given Liam opportunities to network with others in academia and the pharmaceutical industry.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Liam\u2019s research advancements have\u00a0been recognized on campus by his receipt of the Cohen\/Rosenberg Research Fellowship, the Khairallah Research Fellowship, and regionally by a poster award at the 2025 Northeast Society Toxicology Research Conference.\u00a0Receiving his\u00a0AFPE\u00a0fellowship award came as a surprise to Liam and\u00a0has\u00a0motivated\u00a0him to keep\u00a0expanding on\u00a0his research and\u00a0working hard\u00a0in the lab.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor scientists on the review committee to\u00a0<\/span>actually look<\/span>\u00a0at my work and\u00a0<\/span>determine<\/span>\u00a0it to be promising and worth studying \u2013 it gives me motivation to continue to work hard.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With the extra funding Liam received\u00a0through this award, he is looking forward to gathering more materials and integrating advanced technology in his research.\u00a0Being an AFPE fellow\u00a0has introduced Liam to a new\u00a0community\u00a0of well-respected and successful pharmaceutical\u00a0scientists,\u00a0and\u00a0he himself plans\u00a0to\u00a0mentor\u00a0students in the future.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When asked,\u00a0Liam would\u00a0absolutely recommend UConn to prospective Ph.D. students. From the\u00a0industry\u00a0connections to the diversity of projects, Liam has learned things he never expected to learn.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking to the future, Liam hopes to start his career as an industry scientist in clinical safety sciences\u00a0or\u00a0drug screening.\u00a0With a background of research from UConn\u00a0and his\u00a0title as an AFPE pre-doctoral fellow, Liam is excited for his future!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Luke Burroughs:\u00a0<\/span>Advancing Research in Parenteral Drug Products<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

With\u00a0a\u00a0bachelor\u2019s\u00a0degree in chemistry from Calvin University,\u00a0Luke worked on\u00a0Covid-19\u00a0vaccine manufacturing at Pfizer for two years before\u00a0coming\u00a0to UConn in 2022,\u00a0where he started research\u00a0in\u00a0Board\u00a0of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutics\u00a0and\u00a0Pfizer Distinguished Endowed Chair in Pharmaceutical Technology\u00a0Diane\u00a0Burgess\u2019 lab.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Headshot
Headshot of Luke<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While completing his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the School, Luke has received multiple awards including the\u00a0American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists\u00a0(AAPS)\u00a0best abstract award, AAPS\u00a0travelship, and\u00a0R.E.\u00a0Singiser\u00a0Memorial Fellowship Award for the past three years. Additionally, Luke is the President of the AAPS-UConn student chapter and a graduate student representative on UConn\u2019s School of Pharmacy\u00a0Professionalism Committee.\u00a0<\/span>A member of many professional associations, including AAPS, the Controlled Release Society (CRS), the AAPS Northeast Regional Discussion Group (NERGG), and the Center for Pharmaceutical Processing Research (CPPR), Luke remains passionate for pharmacy both within and outside of UConn.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Luke has excelled in Burgess\u2019 lab, working on a continuous manufacturing\u00a0skid\u00a0for complex parenteral drug products, such as liposomes and LNPs\u00a0while\u00a0operating\u00a0advanced\u00a0analytical technology\u00a0developed in Burgess\u2019 lab and\u00a0not found at\u00a0any\u00a0other\u00a0university.\u00a0Luke\u2019s\u00a0research project that helped him become an AFPE pre-doctoral fellow is titled\u00a0\u201cContinuous Manufacturing of Complex Parenteral Drug Products: Next Generation Control, Development, and Standards.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Working under Burgess has been\u00a0helpful\u00a0for Luke in\u00a0learning to\u00a0write\u00a0effective proposals and papers and becoming\u00a0involved on campus as a\u00a0leader.\u00a0Constantly refining his research, while collaborating with\u00a0other\u00a0students and faculty members in committees\u00a0he\u2019s\u00a0joined, Luke has\u00a0grown\u00a0his professionalism and pharmacy community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBurgess really helps us in every aspect of writing proposals or papers and helps shape our ideas.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Receiving this fellowship award,\u00a0the\u00a0Herb\u00a0and Nina Demuth Memorial Award\u00a0in Pharmaceutics, will help Luke perform more research and expand his interests.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With\u00a0future plans\u00a0to\u00a0continue\u00a0his career in the pharmaceutical industry, UConn and what\u00a0he\u2019s\u00a0accomplished\u00a0here\u00a0will always be special for Luke. One of his favorite memories is\u00a0hiking with Burgess and his colleagues during Thanksgiving break or in the summers, sometimes even traveling as far as Vermont!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UConn Pharmaceutical Sciences Ph.D. students, Liam Carman and Luke Burroughs, have been named 2025-2026 pre-doctoral fellows by the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education (AFPE) for their research. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":221,"featured_media":237336,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1864],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2644],"class_list":["post-237325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pharm"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-22 05:19:58","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/221"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=237325"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":237345,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237325\/revisions\/237345"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/237336"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=237325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=237325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=237325"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=237325"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=237325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}