Published October 22, 2013
Thoughts on Dermal and Pharmaceutical Research
By Bozena Michniak-Kohn PhD. Founder of the Center for Dermal Research at Rutgers University
Ever Wonder Where Our Drug Policies Come From?
Well, at the United States Pharmacopeia’s (USP) first-ever Forum held at the Center for Dermal Research at Rutgers University attendees received a comprehensive briefing. Choosing the venue at Rutgers was a major coup for our Center for Dermal Research (www.centerfordermalresearch.org.).
The United States Pharmacopeia USP http://www.usp.org is the main standard setting body in the world that helps to ensure the quality, safety, and benefit of all medicines and foods. The organization is one of the oldest in the pharma-medical arena as it’s roots go back to a meeting by a group of physicians that met at the U.S. Capitol in January of 1820 where the group first discussed how to regulate medicines. Then, in 1938 the Federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act legally recognized the USP standards and they were made enforceable by the FDA. Thus the USP became a very important organization with worldwide impact.
The USP continues to hold Forums globally. The fact that the CDR and Rutgers were chosen as host made this event quite unique. Other USP Forums scheduled in the next two months will be held outside of the US, with Moscow, Berlin, Paris and Buenos Aires, Argentina as venues this year.
The Center for Dermal Research CDR www.centerfordermalresearch.org at Rutgers organized this USP Forum on October 8th 2013 in the Life Sciences Building at Rutgers. The auditorium was filled with scientists from all walks of life, including the pharma industry to professors and students and companies that for example, manufacture gases for medical use. The five USP speakers informed the attendees all about the USP history, how the organization functions, how individuals can volunteer to help the USP make future decisions on the standards for medicines and foods. Other hot topics for discussions included: Heavy Metals/Elemental Impurities, Biotechnology & Biologics, Food Ingredients, Performance Verification, and the Testing Harmonization Process.
