Grants/FundingDr. Kong is currently funded by NIH R01CA200129, R01AT007065 and R01AT009152.
Education & TrainingPhD – Pharmaceutics, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics – State University of New York, Buffalo, NY BS – Pharmacy with First Class Standing – University of Alberta, Canada Post-Doctoral Fellowship – Molecular Biology of Phase I/Phase II Drug Metabolizing Enzymes – National Institutes of Health Post-Doctoral Fellowship – Cellular and Molecular Signaling of T-cell Activation – National Institutes of Health
Research Areas
Natural & Botanical Products Drug Discovery & Development,
Epigenetics/epigenomics of oxidative stress/inflammation induced diseases including cancer and their prevention/treatment with botanicals/phytochemicals/drugs, Nrf2-mediated anti-oxidative stress/inflammation,
Pharmacokinetics (PK)/pharmacodynamics (PD) studies and modeling. Dr. Kong’s current research focuses on,
1) Studies of botanical/dietary/herbal medicinal phytochemicals-mediated epigenetics/epigenomics signaling and diseases prevention such as cancer chemoprevention,
2) Nrf2-mediated redox signaling in anti-oxidative stress, anti-inflammatory, and Phase II drug metabolizing enzymes (DME) /Phase III transporters, 3) Pharmacokinetics (PK)/ pharmacodynamics (PD) studies and PKPD modeling of botanicals/dietary phytochemicals/drugs. Dr. Kong is currently funded by NIH R01CA200129, and R01AT009152
Scholarly Activities
Member, President’s Committee on Academic Program (CAPR)
Director of the Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences
Founding Editor-in-Chief, Current Pharmacology Reports (Springer)
Serving on NIH study section panels
Scholarly Activities
2018 – Clarivate Analytics (formerly Thomson Reuters) Highly Cited Researcher – among an elite group recognized for exceptional research performance demonstrated by production of multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and year in Web of Science.
2016 – Fellow (Elected), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
2014 – Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher – in recognition of ranking among the top 1% of researchers for most cited documents, in Pharmacology and Toxicology
2013 – Visiting Professor, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, China
2012 – Visiting Professor, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
2011 – Guest Professor, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, China
2009-2013 – Elected Member-at-Large, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
2004 – Fellow (Elected), American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)
2003 – Alumni Association Distinguished Visitor” under the Alumni Association Rotating Visiting Professorship Program, The King Edward VII College of Medicine and The Faculties of Medicine, Universities of Malaya and Singapore
1998 – Recognized by the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy as Teacher of the Year
1998 – “Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award” from the first professional year class, University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy
1996 – “Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award” from the first professional year class, University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy
1994 – Young Investigator Award in Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics and Drug Metabolism from the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), Sponsored by Burroughs Wellcome Fund
Recent Publications
Mesia-Vela, S, Sanchez, RI, Roberts, KG, Reuhl, KR, Conney, AH, Kauffman, FC. Dietary clofibrate stimulates the formation and size of estradiol-induced breast tumors in female August-Copenhagen Irish (ACI) rats. Toxicology. 2008;246 (1):63-72. doi: 10.1016/j.tox.2007.12.025. PubMed PMID:18280627 PubMed Central PMC2441444
Stakhiv, TM, Mesia-Vela, S, Kauffman, FC. Phase II antioxidant enzyme activities in brain of male and female ACI rats treated chronically with estradiol. Brain Res. 2006;1104 (1):80-91. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2006.05.093. PubMed PMID:16822482
Mesia-Vela, S, Sanchez, RI, Reuhl, KR, Conney, AH, Kauffman, FC. Phenobarbital treatment inhibits the formation of estradiol-dependent mammary tumors in the August-Copenhagen Irish rat. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2006;317 (2):590-7. doi: 10.1124/jpet.105.096867. PubMed PMID:16421288
Kauffman, FC. Sulfonation in pharmacology and toxicology. Drug Metab Rev. 2004;36 (3-4):823-43. doi: 10.1081/dmr-200033496. PubMed PMID:15554249
Sanchez, RI, Mesia-Vela, S, Kauffman, FC. Induction of NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase and glutathione S-transferase activities in livers of female August-Copenhagen Irish rats treated chronically with estradiol: comparison with the Sprague-Dawley rat. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2003;87 (2-3):199-206. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2003.08.007. PubMed PMID:14672740
Mesia-Vela, S, Sanchez, RI, Li, JJ, Li, SA, Conney, AH, Kauffman, FC. Catechol estrogen formation in liver microsomes from female ACI and Sprague-Dawley rats: comparison of 2- and 4-hydroxylation revisited. Carcinogenesis. 2002;23 (8):1369-72. doi: 10.1093/carcin/23.8.1369. PubMed PMID:12151356
Pignatello, MA, Kauffman, FC, Levin, AA. Liarozole markedly increases all trans-retinoic acid toxicity in mouse limb bud cell cultures: a model to explain the potency of the aromatic retinoid (E)-4-[2-(5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-5,5,8,8-tetramethyl-2-naphthylenyl)-1-propenyl] benzoic acid. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2002;178 (3):186-94. doi: 10.1006/taap.2001.9340. PubMed PMID:11858735