Each month, the editors of three of the ASPET journals choose their Highlighted Trainee Authors. These early-career scientists are recognized for their innovative research published in The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Drug Metabolism and Disposition, and Molecular Pharmacology. This feature showcases selected young scientists, demonstrates what drives them, and reveals why pharmacology is important to them. This month we are featuring the August 2026 Highlighted Trainee Authors.
Ekta Gupta
The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
“My interest in biological research began with curiosity about how molecular mechanisms regulate human health and disease,” says Ekta Gupta, a Doctoral Researcher at Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence. During her academic training, she became fascinated by epigenetics and pharmacology. Gupta’s PhD training has strengthened this passion by allowing her to explore complex regulatory pathways involved in disease and tissue repair. Gupta credits Dr. Ashish Gupta’s mentorship and guidance and how it encouraged her to think critically, design meaningful experiments, and pursue scientific questions with persistence.
Gupta’s research, “Destabilization of TIP60-PXR complex by rifampicin impairs wound-induced cell migration,” investigates how proteins inside our cells communicate to control the body’s natural healing process after injury. Specifically, she studies how an epigenetic regulator called TIP60 interacts with the pregnane X receptor to regulate genes involved in cell migration and tissue repair. Gupta and her team found that disrupting this interaction can delay wound healing, revealing a previously unrecognized mechanism that may be targeted therapeutically.
“I hope my research will advance our understanding of how epigenetic regulators and nuclear receptors coordinate cellular responses during tissue repair,” Gupta says. The most rewarding aspect of her research has been discovering a previously unrecognized connection between an epigenetic regulator and a nuclear receptor in wound healing. Seeing their hypothesis supported through multiple experimental approaches has been incredibly fulfilling.
After the completion of her PhD, Gupta plans to pursue a postdoctoral study to strengthen her expertise in both computational and translational research. Ultimately, she aspires to lead an interdisciplinary research group that bridges informatics and pharmacology to develop innovative therapeutic strategies for diseases such as chronic wounds, inflammation, and cancer, while mentoring the next generation of scientists.
For Gupta, being published in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics is an honor and an important milestone in her scientific journey. “Having my work featured validates the significance of our research and provides an opportunity to share our findings with the global pharmacology community. Being recognized as a Highlighted Trainee Author is especially meaningful because it acknowledges the contributions of early-career researchers and motivates me to continue pursuing high-quality science.”
Aiden-Hung Nguyen, PharmD
Drug Metabolism and Disposition
“My career path grew from three elements: curiosity, opportunities for growth and development, and a desire to contribute to regulatory science,” says Aiden-Hung Nguyen, PharmD, a Clinical Pharmacology Reviewer at Food and Drug Administration. “I’ve always been curious about how regulation plays a role in drug development, and that curiosity pushed me into a career that integrates my background in preclinical and clinical research, and regulatory knowledge.” Ultimately, he wanted a career where he could apply his scientific training to support drug development from early stages through marketing approval.
Nguyen’s research, “Effects of Simulated Exogenous and Endogenous Lipid Microenvironments on Cannabidiol Disposition and Cytochrome P450 2C19-Mediated Drug Interactions: New Mechanistic Insights,” focuses on translational studies of natural product-drug interactions in clinical settings. The study evaluates the effects of endogenous and exogenous lipids on CBD disposition and CYP2C19-mediated drug interactions using human liver microsomes with physiologically relevant lipid conditions.
“Our research shows that lipids might enhance CBD’s inhibitory effects—particularly on CYP2C19—and highlighted the value of using liver disease-based enzyme models to better understand drug disposition and interaction potential. These insights can help refine how we evaluate natural product-drug interactions in population with metabolic dysfunction liver disease.” The most exciting part of Nguyen’s research has been integrating a real world disease model into in vitro studies, and can be furthered using simulation and modeling to bridge those findings to clinical research.
Although he’s transitioned to a regulatory role, Nguyen plans to continue focusing on natural product-drug interactions and the application of real-world disease models through side projects. While he’s no longer conducting bench-based laboratory work, his research will move toward preclinical and clinical data analysis supported by simulation and modeling, and regulatory science.
For Nguyen, being published in Drug Metabolism and Disposition represents his rigorous research, his dedication to advancing pharmacology, and validates not only his efforts but the importance of the research that he conducted. “I hope the work reaches a broader audience, informing better in vitro to clinical extrapolation, and ultimately improving patient care.”