Science in the Making: Dr. Manik Chhabra
By: Andrew Liu, Dylan Millan
Introduction
Thank you for checking out the latest—and first, edition of Science in the Making! This year, along with our pre-existing newsletter, we will also be introducing a longer written section that features in-depth explanations of certain careers and fields, and interviews with accomplished health care practitioners.
Our goal with this series is to highlight individuals who are working behind the scenes in driving medical advancements, showcasing research and contributions. Our focus is meant to inspire you—our future doctors, nurses, researchers, and more—to become the next generation of scientists changing the world. Thus, “science in the making”! By connecting with healthcare professionals and exploring their experiences, we hope to provide a closer look at the processes and people behind the progress.
In every article, we will delve into one specific field in the health sciences/healthcare industry, and we will be featuring a professional in that related field as well. This article, we will be focusing on the field of pharmacology, featuring P.h.D. Candidate Manik Chhabra, from the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics at the Max Rady College of Medicine.
Pharmacology, Pharmacy…What’s the difference?
Pharmacology and pharmacy are two healthcare related fields that are closely related in practice. Both fields study the usage of drugs and their effects on the body, but the two studies have different focuses, and their respective careers contain different responsibilities.
Pharmacy on the other hand focuses less on the “why’s” and “how’s” of drug synthesis, and instead on the preparation, distribution and use of drugs. As pharmacology takes a science based approach, pharmacy integrates social aspects, with responsibilities including overseeing drug safety and manufacturing processes, verifying drug compliance with legal standards, and monitoring/educating patients in regards to their health.
Pharmacology is a branch of both medicine and biology, and focuses on the process of synthesizing drugs. Career paths within this field take a more science based approach, putting greater emphasis on things such as conducting experiments to understand drug effects, collaborating with other medical practitioners to develop drugs, and publishing research findings to databases for others to study and put into practice.
To get into pharmacy school, students must first complete at least 2 years of their undergraduate education. People usually do majors in fields such as biology, biochemistry, or in any other science related course, however there is no specific major needed to get in. Plenty of successful applicants come from fields in business, art, etc.. Note that there are no undergraduate programs that focus exclusively on pharmacy or pharmacology. In some countries however, an undergraduate degree is optional, and high school students with solid academic backgrounds can apply directly for pharmacy school. During pharmacy school, students typically have to complete clinical rotations, known as a clerkship, for hands-on training. Once pharmacy school is completed, additional residency may be taken to further specialize in fields such as oncology, or pediatrics. Pharmacy school may also be counted as a stepping stone to further research-focused education. Because a PharmD is considered equivalent to a master's degree, you can
Pharmacology is sometimes less recognized compared to pharmacy, even though it plays an equally vital role. In this newsletter, we will explore pharmacology in more depth, featuring insights from our interviewee Manik Chhabra.
Meet Manik Chhabra
Manik Chhabra is a P.h.D. candidate at the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics at the Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba. Previous to this, Manik completed his PharmD (Doctor of Pharmacy Degree) and clerkship in India, achieving the highest honors standing. Now, he is currently in his final year working on his P.h.D. thesis, exploring the impacts of cannabinoids, and how they can help in managing symptoms in children with certain conditions.
Education & Inspirations
Coming from a small village in rural India, he bore witness to a number of underprivileged people “without access to proper healthcare treatment”. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic acted as a turning point and catalyst that drove his research, revealing not only challenges in terms of public health, but in the way healthcare systems evolve and respond to global crises. When asking him why he chose to pursue a field in pharmacology, he states, “as a pharmacologist, I feel like I can help more people, compared to being a doctor”.
Manik credits much of his early career aspirations to the influence and motivation of his parents and high school teachers. He says that having positive early influences was crucial for building his goals, which allowed him to make the decision to attend pharmacy school. Additionally, in University Manik credits his professors for “showing him the importance of research” in the medical field.
By developing, synthesizing and producing different drugs and treatments, Manik hopes his research and contributions can be reproduced and standardized across the globe, helping even millions struggling with hard to treat diseases and conditions.
Research
As part of Manik’s PhD research, he has been studying the effects of cannabinoids, delving into the niche of how they can be used in a pediatric setting (using it to aid in treating children), and how they can be safely used. As he states, “Cannabinoids, especially, Cannabidiol (one form of cannabinoids) introduce the risk of negative effects as a result of interaction with other chemical entities, including other medications”, which are any unexpected side effects or negative reactions that might happen when a patient takes medicine.
Drugs affect people differently depending on factors like age, or health condition. This includes learning about what happens inside the body when someone takes a drug, and what effects the drug has on the body. The two interests tie into different disciplines in pharmacology, which are pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics. As adverse events result from unexpected drug interactions with other medications, in his research, Manik attempts to develop ways to take full advantage of cannabinoids and their therapeutic properties, without the risk of causing harm.
There are several benefits to using cannabinoids to manage symptoms, but because these treatments are new, they require a lot of study to ensure they’re safe. Manik says that treatments typically take around 10 to 15 years to be approved for regular use, emphasizing the time and labor it takes to get drugs from the lab to the shelf. In the future, Manik hopes to delve into a broader setting of cannabinoid research, expanding from pediatrics to all different age groups and to people with different health conditions. By doing this, he hopes to ensure safe access to effective medicine for people everywhere.
Advice
Manik’s biggest piece of advice for those interested in a discipline in pharmacology, and (as well as in the broader setting of general health sciences) is to be keen, interested, and actively engaged in looking for ways to get involved. There are a few things he recommends for high school students:
Reaching out to professors and other researchers to get hands-on experience
Can be done through things like cold calling, or cold emailing
Typically, ask to see someone over Zoom or for a coffee to talk about goals
Specify exactly what you want, ie. a summer research opportunity, a co-op, etc.
Volunteering at different organizations, for instance hospitals or labs to get a better sense of a specific career.
Typically, find a field that interests you, and look at a lab or organization that aligns with what you’re interested in
Becoming passionate about the things you want to research
For Manik, covid-19 was a massive motivator for him to pursue a PhD, after seeing the impact people at companies such as Pfiezer or Moderna had on the world.
Taking initiative early by learning skills applicable to laboratory-work. These skills can be especially important when volunteering in things like laboratory research, or when assisting researchers.
Hard skills: Coding, laboratory safety
Soft skills: Communication, teamwork
Final Regards
That concludes the first edition of Science in the Making, featuring Manik Chhabra. Pharmacology is a demanding field that incorporates various disciplines of science, making it a difficult path for people to pursue. Despite these, as Manik says, it is a rewarding field that creates real world change, and impact. Thanks for tuning in, we hope to see you next time!
References
https://www.ualberta.ca/en/pharmacology/about/what-is-pharmacology.html
https://asuonline.asu.edu/newsroom/online-learning-tips/is-pharmacology-hard-success-tips/
