Bridgette L. Jones, MD, MSCR
Marion Merrell Dow Endowed Chair in Pediatric Clinical Pharmacology; Staff Physician, Pediatric Clinical Pharmacology; Staff Physician, Allergy/Asthma/Immunology; Professor of Pediatrics, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine; Education Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Kansas School of Medicine
Full BiographyRose N. Gelineau-Morel, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine; Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Kansas School of Medicine
Full Biography
Bridgette Jones, MD, MSCR, Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, Children’s Mercy Kansas City, is a multiple principal investigator (MPI) along with MPIs Daniel Gonzalez, PhD, PharmD, Duke University, Daniel K. Benjamin, MD, MPH, PhD, Duke University, and Adriana H. Tremoulet, MD, MAS, University of California San Diego, on a Pediatric Clinical Pharmacology Research Career Development Award (K12 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) – project number 1K12HD113189-01.
The NIH K12 award funds a national program to support the development of pediatric clinical pharmacology researchers and strengthen the community of clinical pharmacologist investigators engaged in pediatric clinical pharmacology research.
This funding opportunity supports institutional research career development (K12) programs that support mentored research and career development experiences for scholars pursuing clinical, translational, and/or basic research in pediatric therapeutics. The program establishes a national network of mentors and scholars, in contrast to K12 programs that are based solely at a single applicant institution. A big part of this program is to ensure that there exists a pipeline of diverse and highly trained workforce available in pediatric pharmacology-related clinical and biomedical fields that currently have a limited number of researchers. This funding supports essential research career development opportunities and works to ensure “protected” time to pursue impactful research experiences for new faculty-level clinical pharmacologists, fostering the transition to productive highly skilled clinical pharmacologist investigators. Scholars are funded in the program for 1-2 years.
Rose Gelineau-Morel, MD, Neurology and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, is one of two who was funded through the first cohort of junior scholars within this program. She receives $108,000 for her first year, which ends in July 2024. She is expected to receive $135,000 for her second year, which would run through July 31, 2025, bringing her total over the two years to $243,000.
Specifically, the funding will be used to support Dr. Gelineau-Morel as she becomes an independent investigator in model-informed precision dosing to facilitate clinical trials for children with cerebral palsy (CP), and especially dystonia (DCP). DCP is a movement disorder with a similar incidence to Parkinson’s Disease and is the greatest determinant of functional impairment in children with CP. Yet, there are no FDA-approved treatments, and even off-label treatments are minimally effective.
Previous research has shown that Trihexyphenidyl (THP), a racemic mixture of R and S enantiomers, was effective but some participants had treatment-limiting side effects.
“These side effects support the need for precision dosing to optimize drug exposures,” said Dr. Gelineau-Morel.
This funding will expand Dr. Gelineau-Morel's skillset with additional training to systematically investigate pharmacogenetic sources of variability in drug exposure and develop model-informed precision dosing recommendations for exposure-controlled clinical trials.
In her role in this, Dr. Jones serves as the point of contact for scholars at Children’s Mercy interested in applying and a contact and mentor for those admitted into the K12 program.
The contents are those of the investigator and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by NIH, or the U.S. Government