Chat Abeywickrama

Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences

Educational Background

• B.Sc. (Honors) University of Colombo (Sri Lanka), Chemistry
• M.S. The University of Akron, Chemistry
• Ph.D. The University of Akron, Organic Chemistry

Research Interests:

Chemical Biology:

• Visualizing lysosomal morphology dynamics using novel small-molecule fluorophores in various disease conditions (Cancer, Lysosomal Storage Disorders, etc.) and under drug-induced stress conditions
• Mechanistic studies on cellular drug trafficking pathways by Fluorescence Microscopy
• Mapping cellular Cathepsin B abundancy via small-molecule binding events by Fluorescence Microscopy
• Mechanistic studies on novel small-molecule fluorescent imaging dyes for their sub-cellular specificities

Drug Discovery and Development:

• Fluorophore-Drug Conjugates (FDC)
• Fluorophore-Drug Analogues (FDA)
• Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) Agents
• Fluorophore-guided drug trafficking and delivery 

Technology:

• Development of small-molecule fluorescent imaging dyes (tracking/labeling/sensing) for live and fixed cell imaging applications
• Development of fluorescent chemical/biochemical sensors
• Development of in vivo Imaging dyes
• Designing, synthesis, and development of novel fluorescent dyes in the near infra-red (NIR) range
• Fluorophore engineering to develop ultra-stable fluorescent dyes via controlled internal conversion (IC) and Inter-system crossing (ISC) events.