Penni Black

Dr. Penni Black serves as Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Assistant Dean of the Professional Program at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy, with research and teaching responsibilities spanning oncology and pharmacogenomics. Her leadership role in professional education complements her active laboratory research program focused on therapeutic resistance mechanisms.

Her academic credentials include:

• Undergraduate Degree: Clemson University
• PhD: University of Florida
• Postdoctoral Training: Duke University (Cancer Biology and Computational Biology)

Dr. Black's research centers on lung cancer signaling pathways and therapeutic resistance, utilizing genomic data to personalize cancer treatments and predict responses to immune-targeted therapies. Her work bridges pharmacogenetics, computational biology, and clinical oncology, with particular emphasis on NSCLC biomarker discovery. Recent publications demonstrate innovative approaches to understanding drug resistance through miRNA signatures and pathway analysis, while her educational scholarship addresses critical gaps in pharmacy curriculum development and student assessment methodologies.

Analysis of her 15 most recent publications reveals three dominant research trajectories: (1) genomic mechanisms of resistance in lung and breast cancer (73% of publications), (2) biomarker-driven therapeutic personalization (13%), and (3) pharmacy education innovation (14%). Her oncology work consistently examines EGFR inhibitors, immune checkpoint blockers, and combination therapies, while her educational research pioneers active learning strategies and predictive assessment tools for pharmacy students.

As Assistant Dean, Dr. Black oversees professional program curriculum development while teaching cell biology, signaling pathways, and oncology content across PharmD and graduate programs. Her laboratory employs patient outcomes data and genomic analysis to identify therapeutic vulnerabilities in resistant cancers, with ongoing investigations into SHP-2/PD-L1 interactions and mevalonate pathway modulation.