Rate My Professor Sepehr Eskandari

Sepehr Eskandari is a professor in the Biological Sciences Department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona), with expertise in molecular physiology and pharmacology of membrane transport proteins. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry in 1993 and a Master of Science degree in biology in 1995, both from Cal Poly Pomona. He then pursued a doctorate in physiology at UCLA, followed by post-doctoral training in neurobiology at the same institution. Eskandari joined the Cal Poly Pomona faculty in the Biological Sciences Department in fall 2000. Throughout his career, he has held significant leadership positions, including chair of the Biological Sciences Department, vice chair and chair of the Academic Senate, interim associate vice president for Academic Planning and Faculty Affairs, and associate provost effective June 2018.

Eskandari's research centers on the structure, function, and pharmacological modulation of GABA transporters, which regulate the concentration of the inhibitory neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the brain, with applications in treating epileptic seizures and mitigating stroke consequences. His laboratory elucidates transporter mechanisms and evaluates experimental and clinical drugs to support drug development. He has produced over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, including "Revised Ion/Substrate Coupling Stoichiometry of GABA Transporters" (2017), "Turnover rate of the gamma-aminobutyric acid transporter GAT1" (2008), "Remarkable commonalities of electrogenic and electroneutral Na+-coupled transporters" (2009), and "Mechanism of Anion Selectivity and Stoichiometry of the Na+/I Symporter" (2011). Eskandari has obtained nearly $3 million in external research funding, presented at 36 international, national, and local meetings, reviewed manuscripts for 11 journals, and delivered 11 invited seminars. He recently filed a patent for a mutant NIS protein. His mentorship has propelled many undergraduate and master's students into doctoral and professional programs. Eskandari received the 2011 CSUPERB Faculty Research Award and the 2005 College of Science Distinguished Teaching Award.