The Alfred Newton Richards Professorship of Pharmacology

Alfred Newton Richards

The Professorship was established in 1978 through funds from the Merck Company Foundation to honor Alfred Newton Richards, PhD (1876–1966), an internationally regarded pioneer in the fields of pharmacology and renal physiology.

Dr. Richards was appointed Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at the Perelman School of Medicine in 1910 and stepped down in 1939 to become Vice President of Medical Affairs at the School, a position he held until 1948. Under his leadership, the Department was recognized for its research on the function of the kidney, which included demonstrating the first decisive explanation of the process involved in the secretion of urine. In addition to his contributions to the understanding of renal activity, Dr. Richards was instrumental—during both World Wars—in providing invaluable breakthroughs in the treatment of wound shock, gas poisoning in chemical warfare, and infectious diseases. During World War II, he was responsible for taking penicillin from a laboratory curiosity to a productive drug, saving the lives of millions of civilians and military personnel. In 1941, Dr. Richards was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Medical Research by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He received numerous awards and honorary degrees and was a fellow or member of over 50 societies and associations.


 

Ian A. BlairCurrent Chairholder
Ian A. Blair, PhD

Ian A. Blair, PhD earned his doctorate in organic chemistry from the Imperial College of Science and Technology (England) under the mentorship of the 1969 Nobel Laureate, Sir Derek H.R. Barton.

In 1997, Dr. Blair was appointed A.N. Richards Professor and became the first Director of the Center for Cancer Pharmacology at the Perelman School of Medicine. In 2002, Dr. Blair was appointed Vice Chair of the Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics. In 2014, he became Director of the Penn Superfund Research and Training Program Center. In 2016, Dr. Blair co-founded BluePen Biomarkers LLC, which provides a systems approach to biomarker discovery and validation for academia and industry.

Dr. Blair is an expert in the use of mass spectrometric methods for the structural elucidation and quantification of endogenous biomolecules. His current research addresses the development of biomarkers to establish genetic/phenotypes. Dr. Blair is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the Senior Editor of Future Science Open and is on the editorial boards of several journals. He has published over 370 refereed manuscripts and has an h-index of 62.

Previous Chairholders

  • Perry B. Molinoff, MD 1981–1994