During her career at Samford University, Bernadette D’Souza has taught first-year pharmacy students in courses such as Pharmaceutical Calculations, Drug Delivery Systems and Integrated Laboratory. She also provides opportunities for pharmacy students to conduct research through electives and summer internship training in her lab.

Her research concentration allows students to initiate projects and see them through completion during their four-year pharmacy education. She believes pharmacists can revolutionize patient care using evidence-based methods, a process nurtured and strengthened through scientific research. Additionally, she serves on PhD doctoral committees, mentoring students and providing guidance on career trajectories as they prepare for graduation.

Outside of work, she stays busy with her two children. She enjoys traveling, watching food shows and exploring new trails within a two- to three-hour radius of Birmingham.

Degrees and Certifications

• PhD Pharmaceutical Sciences, Mercer University
• MSEd, Samford University
• BS Pharmaceutical Sciences, Mumbai

Expertise

• Formulations, adjuvant systems, vaccines, drug delivery, dosage forms

Awards and Honors

• Amgen Research Award, American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists
• Graduate Alumni Award, Mercer University
• McWhorter School of Pharmacy Scholar Award, Samford University

Publications

• 1. D'Souza B, Broeseker AE. Ascertaining and promoting effective study skills and learning habits of first-year pharmacy students. Curr Pharm Teach Learn. 2022 May;14(5):561-571. doi: 10.1016/j.cptl.2022.04.011. Epub 2022 May 18. PMID: 35715096.
• Braz Gomes K, D'Souza B, Vijayanand S, Menon I, D'Souza MJ. A dual-delivery platform for vaccination using antigen-loaded nanoparticles in dissolving microneedles. Int J Pharm. 2022 Feb 5;613:121393. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2021.121393. Epub 2021 Dec 17. PMID: 34929312.
• Bansal A, D'Souza B, Kapoor DN, Singh P, Starr G, Muppireddy KK. Crafting
  Immunological Response Using Particulate Vaccines. Crit Rev Ther Drug Carrier Syst. 2022;39(4):49-82. doi: 10.1615/CritRevTherDrugCarrierSyst.2022040656. PMID: 35695658.
• Publications list

Presentations

• D’Souza B., Puri A., Bhatt P., Joshi M.D., American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy AACP Webinar on Bridging the Gap to Rx Success: Navigating Pharmacy Calculations, October 16th, 2024.
• D’Souza B. Research Seminar on Evaluation and Optimization of an Herbal product, Echinacea purpurea, for use as an adjuvant in Vaccine Formulations. University Pelitas Harrapan, Indonesia. Oct 30th – Nov 8th, 2023.
• D’Souza B., Adunlin G. Associating Student Learning and Metacognition with Performance in a First-year Calculations Course. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning SOTL Grant micro-presentations at Pharmacy Education 2023. AACP Annual Meeting, Aurora, CO. July 22-25.
• D’Souza B. Developing a Screening Technique for Immunotherapeutic Vaccine Adjuvants Using Ex-Vivo T-cell Activation. Rapid Fire Podium Speaker at the 2022 National Biotechnology Conference (NBC), Anaheim, CA. May 2022.

Involvement 

• • American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)
  • National Biotechnology Conference (NBC)
  • American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)
  • Controlled Release Society (CRS)