Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Phone: 618-650-5144
Fax: 618-650-5145
E-mail: kwitt@siue.edu
Personal webpage:
Pharmacology
B.S., 1994, Chemistry, Northern Michigan University
Ph.D., 2004, Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Arizona
TEACHING
• Instructor: PHPS 700, Drug Actions I (Lectures encompass: introduction to toxicology & teratology)
• Instructor: PHPS 701, Drug Actions II (Lectures encompass: CNS pharmacology, chemical transmission, amino acid transmitters, anxiolytics, neurodegenerative drugs, anesthetics, affective disorders, drugs of abuse, cancer chemotherapy, antibacterials, antivirals)
• Instructor: PHPT 726, Integrated Pharmacotherapeutics II: Endocrine-Metabolic-Nutrition (Lectures encompass: thyroid disorders, adrenal disease and corticosteroids, diabetes mellitus, diabetes insipidus, Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone Secretion (SIADH), obesity)
• Instructor: PHPT 727, Integrated Pharmacotherapeutics IV: GI-Rheumatology-Pulmonary (Lectures encompass: immune system, immunosuppressants, non-opioid analgesics, antirheumatics, anti-inflammatory, gout and inflammatory bowel disease, inhaled β-agonists, corticosteroids, cromolyn sodium, anticholinergics, mast cell stabilitzers, leukotriene modifiers)
RESEARCH
Dr. Witt’s research is focused on the blood-brain barrier (BBB), specific to pathophysiological assessment of the tight junctional complex, as well as CNS drug delivery. Current research projects focus on the hormonal regulation of the BBB tight junctions pertaining to menopause and stroke outcomes. Additionally, research is being conducted on novel compounds designed to enhance enzymatic degradation of Alzheimer’s associated plagues within the brain.
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES / AFFILIATIONS
• Society for Neuroscience (SFN)
• American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
• American Heart Association (AHA)
• American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)
• American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)
• Controlled Release Society (CRC)
GRANTS
• Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery grant (Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF), affiliated with the Institute for the Study of Aging (ISOA) (2007-)
Somatostatin Agonist Treatment for Cognitive Aging and Dementia
• FUR Institutional grant (SIUE) (2006)
Novel Somatostatin Agonist Treatment to Mitigate Amyloid-Beta Expression
• National Research Service Award, NINDS F32 NS43046 (2002-2005)
Blood-brain barrier changes via hypoxia/reoxygenation
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
K.A. Witt, K.S. Mark, and T.P. Davis. Biphasic alteration of in vivo blood-brain barrier tight junctions in rat after post-hypoxic reoxygenation. (in progress)
A. M. Crider and K. A. Witt. Somatostatin sst4 Ligands: Chemistry and Pharmacology. (Accepted, 2007) Mini-reviews in Medicinal Chemistry.
K.A. Witt, and T.P. Davis. CNS Drug Delivery: Opioid Peptides and the Blood-Brain Barrier
AAPS Journal, 2006 Feb; 8(1): E76-E88.
K.A. Witt, K.S. Mark, J.D. Huber, and T.P. Davis. Hypoxia Inducible Factor and Nuclear Factor Kappa-B Activation in Blood-Brain Barrier Endothelium Under Hypoxic/Reoxygenation Stress Journal of Neurochemistry, 2005 Jan;92(1):203-14.
K.A. Witt, K.S. Mark, S. Hom, and T.P. Davis. Effect of hypoxia/reoxygenation on rat blood-brain barrier permeability and tight junctional protein expression. Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol. 2003 Dec;285(6):H2820-31.
R.D. Egleton, K.A. Witt, and T.P. Davis. Peptides and the BBB Enhancing Peptide Bioavailability to the brain: Blood-Spinal Cord and Brain Barriers in Health and Disease. H. S. Sharma & J. Westman (eds.) Academic Press, pg 107-115, 2003.
J.D. Huber, C.R. Campos, R.D. Egleton, K.A. Witt, L. Guo, M.J. Roberts, M.D. Bentley, T.P. Davis. Conjugation of low molecular weight poly(ethylene glycol) to biphalin enhances antinociceptive profile. J Pharm Sci. 2003 Jul;92(7):1377-85.
K.A. Witt, J.D.Huber, R.D.Egelton, and T.P.Davis. Pluronic P85 Copolymer Enhances Opioid Peptide Analgesia. J. Phar. Exp. Ther. 2002 Nov;303(2):760-7.
K.A. Witt, T.J.Gillespie, J.D. Huber, R.D. Egelton, and T.P. Davis. Pepide Drug Modification to
Enhance Bioavailability and Blood-Brain Barrier Permeability. Peptides 2001 Dec;22(12):2329
43.
K.A. Witt, J.D. Huber, R.D. Egelton, M. J. Roberts, M. D. Bentley, L. Guo, H. Wei, H. I. Yamamura and T.P. Davis Pharmacodynamic and Pharmacokinetic characterization of poly(ethylene glycol) conjugation to met-enkephalin analog [D-Pen2, D-Pen5]-enkephalin (DPDPE). J. Pharm. Exp. Ther. 2001 Aug;298(2):848-56.
J.D. Huber, K.A. Witt, S. Hom, R.D. Egleton, K.S. Mark, and T.P. Davis. Peripheral Inflammatory Pain Induces Blood-Brain Barrier Tight Junction Reorganization. Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol. 2001 Mar;280(3):H1241-248.
K.A. Witt, J.D. Huber, R.D. Egelton, and T.P. Davis. Insulin Enhancement of Opioid Peptide Transport Across the Blood-Brain Barrier and Assessment of Analgesic Effect. J. Pharm. Exp. Ther. 2000 Dec; 295(3):972-978.
K.A. Witt, R.D.Egelton, J.D. Huber, V.J. Hruby, and T.P. Davis. Blood-Brain Barrier Permeability Assessment of Stereoselective Opioid Analogues. British J. Pharm. 2000 Oct; 131: suppl. 122.
K.A. Witt, C.A. Slate, R.D. Egleton, J.D. Huber, H.I. Yamamura, V.J. Hruby, and T.P. Davis. Assessment of Stereoselectivity of Trimethylphenylalanine Analogs of -Opioid [D-Pen, D-Pen2,5] Enkephalin. J. Neurochem. 2000 Jul; 75(1):424-35.
