Pharmacology pioneer at 黑料不打烊
Sir James Black, the man behind some of the biggest drug advances in recent medical history, will deliver two talks at 黑料不打烊 on September 23 and 24. A 1988 Nobel Prize winner for medicine, Sir Black is still lauded for his contributions to pharmacology and his development of beta adrenergic receptor antagonists (beta blockers) 鈥� the most commonly prescribed medication for hypertension and heart disease.
"What makes Sir James such a notable scientist is that he pioneered many of the approaches that we now consider to be the basis of classical pharmacology," says 黑料不打烊 pharmacology and therapeutics professor Derek Bowie.
Sir James realized that while one drug could have distinct effects on different organs, by acting through specific target proteins, his innovation was to take this idea and develop tailor-made drugs for specific targets and states of disease. "We take this for granted now yet this was a big breakthrough at the time," stresses Bowie.
During his visit to 黑料不打烊, Sir James will deliver a lecture on the past, present and future of beta blockers. His talk will include a personal account of his involvement in their discovery and will explain some of the still unresolved questions about the mechanisms underlying their effectiveness.
Sir James will deliver his first talk, The Greatest Benefit to Mankind, on Thursday, September 23, 2004, at 6 pm, Auditorium S 1/3, Stewart Biology Building (1205 Dr Penfield Ave.). He will also deliver the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics Mark Nickerson Memorial Lecture on Friday, September 24, at 11 am, in the Meakins Auditorium, fifth floor, McIntyre Building (3655 Promenade Sir William Osler).
Media wishing to interview Sir Black should contact Sylvain-Jacques Desjardins.
