PHILADELPHIA, March 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- GlaxoSmithKline announced today that Patrick Vallance, Head of the Division of Medicine and Professor of Clinical Pharmacology, University College London (UCL), has been named Senior Vice President, Drug Discovery, effective May 1st. He succeeds Allan Baxter, who was recently appointed Senior Vice President, Medicines Development.
In his current position, Dr. Vallance manages one of the most research- intensive departments of medicine in the UK. He also maintains a practice in general internal medicine, cardiovascular medicine, and clinical pharmacology. He has served on the R&D Advisory Board at GSK since 2004.
Drug Discovery manages the progression of compounds in the “middle” of the R&D pipeline, from when they are considered promising leads to when they have reached proof of therapeutic concept.
Reporting to Dr. Vallance in his role at GSK will be the heads of the Centers of Excellence for Drug Discovery (CEDDs), the Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery, and Clinical Pharmacology & Discovery Medicine.
“Patrick combines scientific accomplishment with clinical insight born of broad experience in caring for patients,” said Tachi Yamada, Chairman, R&D.
“He has managed a staff of diverse scientific disciplines, and he understands the interdependence of different types of biomedical-research organizations, whether they are found in industry, academia, or government.
“We look forward to his leadership as our CEDDs sustain their strong record of filling our pipeline with promising new medicines.”
Dr. Vallance earned his scientific and medical degrees at the University of London. The division he currently heads at UCL comprises physicians, biologists, and chemists. His own research has focused on the role of the vascular endothelium in the regulation of vascular tone and blood cell-vessel wall interactions. That research ranges from structural biology and medicinal chemistry to clinical studies of basic mechanisms of vascular control in humans and trials of novel therapeutic agents.
His work has been funded by the British Heart Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, and the Medical Research Council, and has been recognized by numerous awards, including the Graham Bull Prize in Clinical Science from the Royal College of Physicians, and by election to the Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences. Currently he is Registrar of the Academy, which seeks to inform public policy regarding healthcare and to translate novel science from bench to bedside.
Dr. Vallance has chaired grants committees for the Wellcome Trust, and he serves on the editorial boards of Circulation and of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis & Vascular Biology. He has authored more than 200 research papers, review articles, editorials, and textbook chapters.
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