New Vice Provost
for Research: Perry Molinoff
Dr. Perry Molinoff,
a renowned neuroscientist and the former chairman of the
department of pharmacology, has been named Vice Provost
for Research, effective immediately, according to an announcement
by Provost Robert L. Barchi. Dr. Molinoff was the A.N.
Richards Professor and Chairman of Pharmacology from 1981
until 1995.
Dr. Molinoff is an expert on
the structure and function of cell membrane receptors involved
in signal transduction. His early research focused on the
receptor for the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, but he has
published extensively on other important receptor molecules
that respond to amino acids or to biogenic amines such as
dopamine. Much of this research has had significant clinical
relevance for understanding and treating diseases ranging
from heart failure to depression, schizophrenia, and Parkinson's
disease.
"President Rodin and I are
thrilled that Perry will be heading Penn's extensive
research efforts," said Provost Barchi. "His depth
of experience in both academe and the private sector makes
him perfectly suited to guide our research operation. Perry
has been widely praised both for his personal research accomplishments
and for his academic leadership abilities. These superior
academic credentials, coupled with his experience in the
pharmaceutical and biotech industries will serve us well."
As the new Vice Provost for
Research, Dr. Molinoff will have policy and administrative
oversight for the University's $600 million research
enterprise. He will also deal directly with policy issues
relating to the conduct of research, including animal and
human research and clinical trials. He will also play a central
role in the strategic planning for research and will coordinate
the development of new research facilities.
Dr. Molinoff received his B.S.
from Harvard College and received his medical degree from
Harvard Medical School in 1967. He subsequently undertook
postdoctoral and fellowship training with Julius Axelrod
at the National Institute of Mental Health and as a Guggenheim
Fellow at the department of biophysics at University College
London. Dr. Molinoff spent 10 years in the department of
pharmacology at the University of Colorado. In 1981 he came
to Penn's Medical School where he was the A.N. Richards
Professor and chairman of Pharmacology. While Dr. Molinoff
served as chairman of this department, the NIH ranking for
grants received moved from 70th place (of 119), to sixth
in the country.
Upon leaving Penn in 1995, Dr.
Molinoff became vice president of Neuroscience and Genitourinary
Drug Discovery at the Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical
Research Institute. He was responsible for directing and
implementing the Institute's research efforts in these
two therapeutic areas. Dr. Molinoff established a multidisciplinary
structure to facilitate rapid development of therapeutic
targets across a broad spectrum of neurologic, psychiatric
and genitourinary diseases, including stroke, depression,
sleep disorders, obesity, Alzheimer's disease, analgesia
and neuropathic pain, urinary incontinence and male erectile
dysfunction. He was also a member of the leadership team
responsible for the licensing and development of aripiprazole,
a novel antipsychotic being marketed by Bristol-Myers and
Otsuka Pharmaceuticals.
Dr. Molinoff has most recently
been EVP for Research and Development at Palatin Technologies
in Cranbury, New Jersey, where he serves as a member of the
board of directors. At Palatin, Dr. Molinoff has been responsible
for early discovery programs in sexual dysfunction, obesity,
neurodegenerative disease and cancer diagnosis and treatment.
He has also been responsible for the clinical development
of a diagnostic imaging agent as well as the clinical and
preclinical development of a novel centrally acting melatonergic
agonist that has recently completed phase 2 clinical trials
for the treatment of male erectile dysfunction.
Dr. Molinoff said that he is
excited to be returning to Penn. "Enormous changes have
taken place both within the institution and with regard to
its interaction with the greater Philadelphia community," Dr.
Molinoff said. "I have many warm memories of Penn and
have stayed in touch with many former and soon-to-be current
colleagues. It is a real honor to be given the opportunity
to contribute to the future growth of this great institution."
Dr. Molinoff has numerous affiliations
with scientific societies including the American Society
for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics; American
Society of Biological Chemists; American Society for Neurochemistry;
American Association for the Advancement of Science; Society
for Neuroscience; Research Society on Alcoholism; The New
York Academy of Sciences; and the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.
He is, or has been a member of
multiple editorial advisory boards, including Molecular Pharmacology;
The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics;
The Journal of Neurochemistry; Molecular Neuropharmacology;
Current Opinion in CNS Drugs; Molecular Interactions; and
Journal of Studies on Alcohol. He has also been the author,
coauthor, or editor of six books, including Basic Neurochemistry
and Goodman and Gilman's Textbook of Pharmacology, and
of over 225 publications.
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