Teaching & Academic Contributions

• PharmD Courses:
  • PHRM 251: Med.Chem III
  • PHRM 152: Med.Chem II
• Graduate Teaching:
  • PHSC 8128: Principles of Drug Discovery
  • PHSC 8009: Advanced Medicinal Chemistry I
  • PHSC 8051: Graduate Seminar
  • PHSC 8125: Journal Club
  • PhD Student Advisor:  1 current doctoral PharmSci students (TUSP)

                                       1 current doctoral QA/RA student (TUSP)

                                       1 Current doctoral Chemistry Student (CST)

• • Postgraduate Advisor: 1 Current Postdoctoral Fellow

Research Focus & Interests

Phenotypic and Target-Based Drug Discovery Approaches for discovering innovative Therapeutics:

• Use of receptor homology, bioisosteric replacement strategies, rational and structure-based drug design approaches
• Utilizing natural products as a unique resource for discovering innovative therapeutics.
• Applying enabling technology platforms and in vitro ADME  to evaluate drug-like properties of all discovered molecules to ensure clinical effectiveness of drug candidates.
• Design of chemical probes in support of translational medicine

Key Interests: Phenotypic and Target-based Drug Discovery approaches to discover innovative therapeutics for various diseases including drug addiction, chronic pain and neuropathic pain. My Research Laboratories are focusing on the Glutamate Transporters-1 (GLT-1) Enhancers Project.  GLT-1 is the most critical determinant of glutamate clearance in the brain, and our research contributions have opened a new chapter in our ability to target GLT-1 for clinical uses. We discovered a drug-like, brain-penetrant GLT-1 enhancer MC-100093 that has impacted several groups' research in Cocaine and alcohol addiction and treatment of alcohol use disorders including anxiety and depression, and cerebral palsy.

Selected Awards and Honors:

Outstanding Faculty Service Award, Temple University Faculty Senate (2022)                                                                 

Heroes of Chemistry Award:  Awarded by the American Chemical Society for Discovery of Effexor (2014)

PA Bio Award & Educator Researcher of the Year Award: Awarded by Philadelphia Business Journal (2014)                                                                                             

Grand Hamadan Award:  Awarded by the Hamadan Award Office, UAE, for excellence in Medical Sciences       (2014)                                                                                                            

Select Publications and Patents (From 139 Publications & 140 Patents)

Publications:

1. W. Childers, K. Elokely and M. Abou-Gharbia, Dezocine and Addiction: Friend or Foe?, Pharmaceuticals, 18 (3), 386, 2025.

1. Hanghang Zhang, Chen Huang, John Gordon, Sijia Yu, George Morton, Wayne Childers, Magid Abou‑Gharbia, Yi Zhang, Jaroslav Jelinek and Jean‑Pierre J. Issa, MC180295 is a highly potent and selective CDK9 inhibitor with preclinical in vitro

and in vivo efficacy in cancer, Clinical Epigenetics, 6:3, 2024.

1. Leon BE, Peyton L, Essa H, Wieden T, Marion N, Childers WE, Abou-Gharbia M, Choi D-S, MC-100093, reduces sex-specific ethanol preference and depressive-like behaviors in mice, Neuropharmacol., 232, 109515, 2023.

1. Alhadad H, Wong W, Abou-Gharbia M, Childers W, Melenski E, Bell RL^, Sari Y, Effects of a Novel beta lactam compound MC-100093 on the expression of glutamate transporters/receptors and ethanol drinking behavior of alcohol preferring rats, J. Pharmacol .Exp. Ther, 383, 208–216,2022
2. “I’ll be Back”: The Resurrection of Dezocine, Wayne Childers W, Abou-Gharbia M, ACS Med.Chem. Lett., 12, 961-968, 2021.

US Patents:

https://patents.justia.com/inventor/magid-a-abou-gharbia  

5-Hydroxytryptamine receptor 7 activity modulators and their method of use,

D. J. Canney, B. E. Blass, R. Gao, M. Abou-Gharbia US 11,897,870 (2024)

Functionalized N,N-dialkylamino phenyl ethers and their method of use

M. A. Abou-Gharbia, W. E. Childers, M. A. Jacobson, R. Fan,R. L. Martinez, US  11873267 (2024).

Administrative & Service Roles

• Director, Moulder Center for Drug Discovery School of Pharmacy (2008-2020)
• Associate Dean for Research: School of Pharmacy (2009-2019)
• Joint Professor appointment: College of Science & Technology (CST) (20092009-Present)
• Tenure Track Committee: School of Pharmacy (2020-Present)
• Honor Council Committee: School of Pharmacy (2020-Present)
• CST Board of Visitor (BOV): College of Science and Technology (2009-Present)
• Senate Personnel Committee: Temple University Senate (2023-Present)

Research misconduct Committee: Office of Vice President of Research (OVPR) (2024-present)

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