Dr. Steven Kliewer, professor of molecular biology, has won awards from the Endocrine Society and Aventis for his contributions to the understanding of how proteins called nuclear receptors affect the way drugs interact in the body.
The Ernst Oppenheimer Award is presented annually by the Endocrine Society and given to a young scientist with distinguished research in the field of basic or clinical endocrinology. The Aventis Innovative Investigator Award is given annually by Aventis and recognizes scientific leaders who make significant contributions to the drug discovery process.
Dr Kliewer and his colleagues have shown that certain drugs can activate nuclear receptors, leading to their rapid metabolism, and effectively lowering their potency. If a person is taking more than one drug, all drugs are metabolized quickly when the receptor is activated by one of the drugs in the mix. This can adversely affect a multi-drug treatment program. Finding chemicals that can block the receptors would allow drugs to stay in circulation longer, making multi-drug treatments more effective.
Dr. Kliewer holds the Nancy B. and Jake L. Hamon Distinguished Chair in Basic Cancer Research.