Rick G. Schnellmann earns career achievement award

Rick G. Schnellmann, PhD, dean of the University of Arizona R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy and the Howard J. Schaeffer Endowed Chair in Pharmaceutical Sciences, received the Career Achievement Award from the Mechanisms Specialty Section of the Society of Toxicology. 

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“I’m honored to receive this prestigious award,” said Schnellmann, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology. “I’ve dedicated my career to studying the mechanisms of toxicity. Most of all, the greatest privilege has been the opportunity to share this knowledge with my students. Teaching and mentoring the next generation are the most rewarding aspects of my tenure.”

Schnellmann, who is also a professor of medicine at the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson and a member of the BIO5 Institute, received the award at the Mechanisms Specialty Section reception during the Society of Toxicology’s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, in March. The Society of Toxicology is a professional organization dedicated to advancing the science and impact of toxicology.

In his nomination letter, Brian Cummings, PhD, dean and professor at the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Science at Wayne State University, cited Schnellmann’s groundbreaking work in the field of mechanistic toxicology.

“Dr. Schnellmann has outstanding and internationally recognized contributions to the field of mechanistic toxicology,” Cummings wrote. “The impact of his research is shown not only by his publications and funding but also by his patents and the translation of his findings.”

Schnellmann, who has been dean of the Coit College of Pharmacy since 2016, studies mitochondrial dysfunction and genesis, as well as identifying and developing drugs to treat acute kidney injury, diabetic kidney disease, stroke, spinal cord injury and Parkinson’s disease. His research has been funded continuously since 1987, totaling $38 million in grants.

He has been instrumental in founding three U of A and Medical University of South Carolina spinoff biotechnology companies focused on drug discovery and development, including drugs for acute kidney injury and new chemical entities that could lead to new treatments for kidney failure.

Earlier this year, Schnellmann was named a fellow of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.