The Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology

The Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology was formally established in 1922 with the arrival of the first Ph.D.- trained pharmacologist on the campus, and the construction of a building to house the laboratories of the department. Since that time, the department has had as its mission: to do research, to provide education, and to render service to the institution, the University system, and the State of Texas. A doctoral program in pharmacology was authorized by The University of Texas System in 1952, but without degree-granting authority. The department was thus allowed to train students who would actually receive their degrees from The University of Texas at Austin. A Graduate School was formally established on the UTMB campus in 1969. Since that time, the Graduate Program in Pharmacology and Toxicology has been an active and vital part of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

Members of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology have played an important role in development of UTMB and the Graduate School of Biomedical Services (GSBS). Chauncey Leake, a pharmacologist, was the only Ph.D. ever to be named President of the University. During his years of service (1942-1955), faculty were encouraged to seek federal and private funding for research. Their efforts were remarkably successful. Although those amounts awarded would today seem very small, by the standards of that time they were quite grand. Members of the Pharmacology faculty have also held leadership roles in the GSBS. J. Palmer Saunders was appointed Dean of the Graduate School in 1974, and served in that role until 1987. The current Dean of the GSBS, Cary W. Cooper, was Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology prior to his appointment as Dean in 1996.

Members of the Program who reside within the Pharmacology and Toxicology Department are housed in the Pharmacology Building, a modern, three-story research facility that was dedicated in 1985. The Pharmacology Building and its associated administrative facility contain approximately 21,000 square feet of research and office space. A state-of-the-art computer lab for image analysis, a P3 containment facility appropriate for research on hazardous biological and chemical agents, molecular biology facilities, equipment for specialized techniques, including liquid chromatography, dual wavelength spectrofluorometry, molecular modeling, single-unit extracellular recording, intracellular recording of neurons in brain slices, tissue culture, and observational and operant behavior analysis are all available within the Pharmacology Building.

Sixteen full-time depart-mental faculty members reside within the Depart-ment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, while an additional six individuals hold joint appointments and reside within other Medical School and Graduate School departments throughout UTMB at Galveston. Well-published and well funded, our faculty has scientifically diverse interests, which helps make the department well rounded. Research interests are broad and include areas of neuropharmacology, cancer pharmacology, molecular toxicology, and chemical biology.