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PDC gets $4.5 million boost for research  Dr. Michael “Mickey” P. Araneo, left, and Dr. Terry Osborn with portrait. Michael “Mickey” P. Araneo, a pioneer in discount pharmacy in Charleston, has designated the Pharmaceutical Development Center (PDC) at MUSC as the recipient of a $4.5 million gift.   His donation of highly appreciated stocks through the Health Sciences Foundation is structured partially as a current gift and partially as an irrevocable charitable lead annuity trust,  providing an immediate financial boost to the PDC as well as generous financial support for the future of the full-service research and drug development organization headquartered at MUSC.   The philosophy behind the gift, says its benefactor, whom many call Dr. Araneo, is “basically a return of capital.” For the past 50 years, he has invested heavily and very successfully in a multitude of pharmaceutical companies. Now, he says, he's simply “giving it back to the industry.”  Araneo established an endowed scholarship fund in the College of Pharmacy in 1992 to help enable students of limited financial means to continue their education.   “These days, school takes up too much of your time, and I don't think you can work and study and be proficient at both,” he says.   A New Jersey native, he graduated from the Rutgers University Pharmacy School in 1929 and managed three discount drug stores in Jersey City. Five years later, he happened to stop in Charleston while on a trip to Florida, and here he remained for more than 60 years. What he found on King Street in the early '30s—numerous store vacancies and only a couple of drug stores—served as just the encouragement he needed.   “At one store, the only thing in the window was a Thermos bottle with a million cobwebs all over it and a little bell that rang when you opened the door,” he says.    The approach he planned would alter the face of pharmacy practice in the Lowcountry.   The timing and environment, he felt, were favorable for introducing discount pharmacy to Charleston, a concept based on the drug stores he managed in New Jersey. His innovations were welcomed by the general public, and for nearly two decades his store was the leading drug outlet in the city.   During the years, he opened a series of stores in downtown Charleston and West Ashley. When he sold his last store in 1950, “it was the largest discount store in the southeast,” he says.   The pharmacy profession, of course, has changed considerably since then. Now, the large chain stores dominate, and only a handful of independent pharmacies remain.    Women have also become a significant force in the profession.    “Of the 169 pharmacy students in Rutgers, only two were women. And I didn't know any female pharmacists in Charleston in 1934. Now, I understand that 69 percent of the pharmacy students enrolled at MUSC are women,” he says.   Founded in 1979, the PDC is a cutting-edge facility whose dual mission incorporates educational and industrial opportunities. While it provides hands-on experience for Doctor of Pharmacy students and pharmaceutical scientists, it also generates extramural funding through contacts with pharmaceutical companies to manufacture drugs for clinical trials.   Araneo's gift emphasizes his confidence that the PDC will take its place as “one of the leading institutions in the country. Products that come out of that building will benefit all mankind all over the world. And I don't know what could be more essential than that,” he says.   “Dr. Araneo's donation will contribute greatly to the continued success of the PDC and allow it to move forward in assisting biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to develop new products for the world,” said Terry Osborn, Ph.D., PDC president and CEO.