RIYADH, 14 February 2008 — The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) has received a $450,000 grant from King Saud University to assist KSU’s College of Pharmacy in developing a clinical-practice faculty, implementing a Ph.D. pharmacy program, creating post-graduate residency and fellowship programs and conducting research.

Dr. Yousif A. Asiri, the dean of the KSU’s College of Pharmacy, said MCPHS President Charles F. Monahan, Jr. and KSU Rector Dr. Abdullah A. Al-Othman signed a Memorandum of Understanding at a ceremony held on the university campus last month. He said the agreement would pave way for collaboration between the two colleges in the pharmaceutical sector.

Asiri also announced that the college had embarked on a major initiative in the field of applied research to isolate active compounds from the local flora for the treatment of various diseases. The new measures, he pointed out, were in line with the vision of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to upgrade the standard of Saudi universities.

Dr. Saleh I. Alqasoumi, director of the Medicinal, Aromatic and Poisonous Plants Research Center, said the research center, located on the university’s campus, has collected and identified more than 9,000 herbarium specimens.

Alqaisoumi said 15 new species of plants have been identified and added to their herbarium. The medicinal plants garden undertakes cultivation of many plants, from date palm to some endangered species.

Alqaisoumi said the number of compounds isolated from plants indigenous to Saudi Arabia is 140, of which 60 were original discoveries.

He said about 100 expeditions have been made to various parts of the Kingdom, including the Farasan Islands and the Empty Quarter, to collect medicinal plants and gather information on their folkloric use in Arab traditional medicine to identify their potential.

Alqaisoumi said that the prime objective of the Medicinal Plant Research Unit, set up in 1976, was to conduct a thorough survey of medicinal, aromatic and poisonous plant species for their possible utilization in pharmacology.

Alqasoumi said the center has a 13-member technical and scientific staff. During their field trips they randomly collect plants for identification and addition to the herbarium for future reference.