Rate My Professor Jonathan Falconer

Dr. Jonathan Falconer is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Otago, part of the School of Pharmacy within the Division of Health Sciences. He holds a BSc and PhD, with his doctoral training completed at the University of Utah in pharmaceutical sciences. Following his PhD, Falconer served as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Otago. In his current appointment, he is actively involved in undergraduate teaching, serving as convenor for PHAL241 Pharmacology: Drugs to Medicine and contributing to PHAL312 Pharmacology: Drugs and the Brain. These courses cover foundational and advanced topics in pharmacology, including the mechanisms of drug action, neuropharmacology, medicinal chemistry, and toxicology. Falconer is also recognized in the University of Otago Faculty of Biomedical Sciences staff expertise database and supports Pacific student initiatives in Pharmacology and Toxicology.

Falconer's academic contributions include research on nanomaterials, drug delivery systems, and toxicology. His publications feature investigations into the transport and biological effects of silver nanoparticles and ions. Notable works are: Ennis, C., Tay, A. C. Y., Falconer, J. L., et al. (2021) 'Nanoscale Cu(II) MOFs formed via microemulsion: Vibrational mode characterization performed using a combined FTIR, synchrotron Far-IR, and periodic DFT approach' in the Journal of Physical Chemistry C; Falconer, J. L., & Grainger, D. W. (2018) 'In vivo comparisons of silver nanoparticle and silver ion transport after intranasal delivery in mice' in the Journal of Controlled Release; Falconer, J. L., Alt, J. A., & Grainger, D. W. (2018) 'Comparing ex vivo and in vitro translocation of silver nanoparticles and ions through human nasal epithelium' in Biomaterials; Falconer, J. L., et al. (2016) 'Live RB51 vaccine lyophilized hydrogel formulations with increased shelf life for practical ballistic delivery' in the International Journal of Pharmaceutics; and Falconer, J. L., Jones, C. F., & Grainger, D. W. (2015) 'Carbon nanomaterials rescue phenanthrene toxicity in zebrafish embryo cultures' in Environmental Science: Nano. These studies address nanomaterial characterization, translocation across biological barriers, vaccine formulation stability, and toxicity mitigation in model systems.