Thankhoe Rants’o, BPharm, MS, PhD
Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical and Administrative SciencesAbout Dr. Rants’o
Dr. Rants’o is a cancer pharmacologist specializing in cancer metastasis, the principal cause of cancer-related death. He is a passionate pharmacy educator who seeks to help students discover their passion. He constantly stimulates the students’ innovative and creative thinking to nurture their readiness to tackle modern health challenges. With a background in pharmacy, Dr. Rants’o has extensive experience in both clinical practice and laboratory research. He is a certified reviewer and guest editor for drug discovery and pharmacological target identification and validation manuscripts in various research journals.
Education
Postdoctoral Fellowship (Cancer Pharmacology), Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (2026)
PhD Pharmacology, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa (2023)
MS Medicinal Chemistry, Auburn University, Auburn, AL (2017)
BPharm (Hons), National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho (2014)
Research or Areas of Specialty
The Rantso Lab studies solid tumors, generally focusing on two research themes: metastasis and acquired chemotherapy resistance (chemo-adaptation). Concentrating on highly aggressive cancers, including liver and breast cancers, his studies aim to identify the molecular mechanisms that drive solid tumor metastasis and/or chemo-adaptation. Specifically, the Rantso Lab targets protein kinases, the master regulators of cell signaling that are often dysregulated in aggressive cancers. We work on the integrated areas of cell signaling, cell migration & invasion, molecular imaging, bioinformatics, and molecular dynamics. Ultimately, the overarching goal of our work is to identify druggable bottlenecks in metastatic and adaptation signaling cascades in cancer.
Recognitions
- Suzan Cooper Jones Endowed Fellow in Cancer Research, USA (2026)
- Gastrointestinal Cancers Disease Centre Trainee Award, HCI, University of Utah, USA (2025)
- Best PhD Dissertation in Parasitology Award, PARSA, South Africa (2024)
- Best Presenter (1st Prize) Award (PhD/Post-Doc), WRIM, Wits University, South Africa (2022)
- Outstanding Mentoring Award, Wits University, South Africa (2020)
- Postgraduate PhD Merit Award, Wits University, South Africa (2018)
- 1st Annual Graduate Student Award, Auburn University, USA (2017)
- Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society Initiate, Auburn University, USA (2016)
- Dean’s Travel Award, DDD, HCOP, Auburn University, USA (2016)
- Fulbright Program Fellowship Award, Institute of International Education, USA (2015)
Classes at PC
- PHRM 6110 Principles of Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry II
- PHRM 7114 Principles in Human Genetics and Pharmacogenetics
- PHRM 5104 Human Biochemistry
- PHRM 5103 Molecular Physiology and Immunology
Organizations
- American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)
- American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
- Metastasis Research Society (MRS)
- American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
- Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society
Certifications
- Graduate Teaching Certificate, Graduate Teaching Institute, University of Utah (2026)
- Certified Peer Reviewer Certificate, Elsevier (2025)
- Cancer Course, American Cancer Society & The Jackson Laboratory (2025)
- Genetic Engineering, The Jackson Laboratory (2025)
- Pharmacist-Initiated Management of Antiretroviral Therapy (PIMART) Certificate, Southern African HIV Clinicians Society (2021)
- Health Sciences Supervisor’s Certificate, Wits University (2021)
- Online Facilitation Course, Wits University (2019)
- Precision Medicine, Wits University (2018)
- Graduate Certificate in Medicinal Chemistry, Auburn University (2017)
- Addiction and Substance Abuse Course, Auburn University (2015)
Publications
Please check my recent publications on the Google Scholar research directory and/or ORCID profile links below: