Author: [AUTHOR] Published on 1/1/2021 12:01:00 AM

Marjorie Z. Imperial, BS, University of California San Francisco, CA

Marjorie is currently working toward her PhD at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). She is studying Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacogenomics. Her first introduction to clinical pharmacology and pharmacometrics began with a clinical pharmacology internship at Seattle Genetics during her undergraduate studies. She was mentored by an alumni from the chemical engineering program at the University of Washington. There, she learned about the parallels between engineering and PKs and PDs. She became excited about the potential of an “unconventional” career with an engineering degree. After that internship she reached out to the Pharmaceutics Department at the University of Washington and began to work with Dr. Jash Unadkat. They worked on a project studying the PKs of drugs of abuse during pregnancy. In 2015, she joined the Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacogenomics program at UCSF. Now she works mainly in Dr. Rada Savic’s lab developing quantitative tools for global health.

Marjorie explains that she has had several mentors who have helped pave the way for her to be where she is now. She is grateful that many of them worked with her even before she started developing an extensive clinical background when she was first introduced to the field. She believes that they have all taught her valuable scientific skills to be a successful researcher. Her relationship with her current mentor, Dr. Savic, has been an immensely rewarding experience. Marjorie has this to say: “She continually challenges me by identifying the aspects that need improvement and providing opportunities that can foster my professional development.”

Leveraging quantitative/problem‐solving skills gained in her engineering training to address clinical relevant questions is of particular interest to Marjorie. She is also interested in pharmacometrics and data science in clinical pharmacology. She wants to continue to discover how machine learning and related approaches can be used to analyze complex drug and toxicity datasets and make better evidence‐based decisions from more individualized treatments to preventive care.

Marjorie joined ASCPT because it is a diverse Society with leading experts from various scientific areas. She enjoys the way that ASCPT showcases cutting‐edge research. She is also grateful for the support and programs that ASCPT provides for young investigators as well as career development and networking opportunities.

Marjorie has been a member of ASCPT since 2017.