SIUE School of Pharmacy Student Practitioner Produces Research that Leads to Herbal Remedy; Sofija Prvulov Has Successful Summer Internship in Serbia

SIUE School of Pharmacy Student Practitioner Produces Research that Leads to Herbal Remedy; Sofija Prvulov Has Successful Summer Internship in Serbia

For three weeks beginning July 1, P3 student Sofija Prvulov in Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's School of Pharmacy (SOP), participated in a pharmacognosy research internship through the APhA-IPSF Student Exchange Program at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Belgrade, in Serbia.

Student practitioners are assigned a faculty member and in the case of Prvlov, she performed research under the guidance of Dr. Violeta Milutinović, who held her lectures and practical sessions in both English and Serbian.

Prvlov credits Milutinović with her introduction to Calendula officinalis, commonly known as the marigold flower.

"Calendula officinalis contains flavonoids and other bioactive compounds that contribute to its traditional therapeutic use, particularly for minor inflammation and wound healing," explained Prvulov. "Throughout the three-week internship, we followed the European Pharmacopoeia guidelines for our Calendula officinalis sample and conducted various quality control tests, including macroscopic and microscopic analysis, TLC analysis, assay, total ash, foreign matter and loss on drying."

In less than a month, the team's sample test produced a liquid extract and herbal product after successfully passing the required quality control tests for therapeutic use.

Prvlov said, "This experience strengthened my understanding of pharmacognosy and herbal product regulation while providing me with valuable experience in an international pharmacy setting."

PHOTOS: Sofija Prvulov; Prvulov and faculty mentor Dr. Violeta Milutinović at University of Belgrade in Serbia