Dr. Pancras C. Wong, Senior Research Fellow at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, is the recipient of the 2013 Robert R. Ruffolo Career Achievement Award in Pharmacology. The award was established in recognition of the contributions made to drug discovery and development by Dr. Ruffolo, former President of Research and Development at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and is given to recognize the scientific achievements of scientists who are at the height of their careers and who have made significant contributions to any area of pharmacology. Dr. Wong has dedicated 30 years to drug discovery research and has co-discovered two breakthrough medicines in two different therapeutic areas.
[Presentation of the award took place on April 20, 2013, after the Boston lockdown.]
After receiving his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Wong began his pharmaceutical career as a Senior Research Pharmacologist in Hoechst-Roussell Pharmaceuticals. He joined the DuPont Company in 1983 to conduct research in hypertension and heart failure.
While at DuPont, Dr. Wong played an integral role in the discovery of receptor subtypes for angiotensin II, AT1 and AT2, the characterization of the biological functions of these receptor subtypes, and the identification of losartan as a selective AT1 receptor antagonist. Losartan is now marketed under the trade name Cozaar.
At Bristol-Myers Squibb, Dr. Wong conducts research focused on developing new antithrombotic drugs. The research goal was to discover novel oral anticoagulants with improved safety, efficacy, and ease of use compared with warfarin, the standard of care. Dr. Wong’s work contributed to the development of apixaban to reduce the risk of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Recently, apixaban has been approved for this indication in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Canada.
Dr. Wong has published over 150 papers and book chapters. He was selected as a recipient of the American Chemical Society Award for Team Innovation in 1997 and the Ondetti & Cushman Award for Scientific Innovation from Bristol-Myers Squibb in 2011. He has been a longstanding member of ASPET and is an elected Fellow of the American Heart Association.
Dr. Wong will be presented the Robert R. Ruffolo Career Achievement Award in Pharmacology on Saturday, April 20 at the Business Meeting/Awards Ceremony of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics/Experimental Biology (EB) 2013 Meeting in Boston, MA. The ASPET Business Meeting/Awards Ceremony will take place at the Boston Convention Center, Room 107AB from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. immediately followed by the Opening Reception.