“My dream was to travel the world and find new drugs in plants — somehow to end up fulfilling that dream is quite surreal and something that I try to remind myself of,” shared third-year PhD in Pharmacological Sciences student Travis Dabbous, who researches the medicinal potential of plants in the labs of Dr. Amal Alachkar and Dr. Olivier Civelli.
“My research revolves around discovering and rediscovering plant natural products that modulate G-protein-coupled receptors implicated in neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders, pain, and/or obesity,” Dabbous explained. “One project I am particularly excited about focuses on the most medicinally impactful plant in history, the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). I am working to isolate, structurally elucidate, and fully characterize the biosynthesis and pharmacological properties of a novel opium alkaloid.”
Dabbous started at UC Irvine as a transfer student and eventually earned his BS in Pharmaceutical Sciences. As an undergraduate student, he took “PharmSci 1” and served as a seminar assistant for the course. The class provides transfer students in the UCI School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences with information about campus resources, educational and professional opportunities, and more. Dabbous shared details about careers in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries with the “PharmSci 1” students.
“It was a great experience to support the same program that helped me immensely through my own undergraduate journey, especially alongside our incredible counselors, Andrea Anema and Erin Harper,” he said.
Following graduation, Dabbous is considering a career in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries himself, as well as opportunities in academic research; currently, he’s focused on completing his PhD.
“I have been blessed with great peers, collaborators, and mentors,” he stated. “I am lucky to have people who believe in me and allow me the freedom to pursue ideas I would not have the opportunity to explore anywhere else.”
