Celebrex developer to address graduates
The 174th MUSC commencement ceremony will be held 9 a.m. on May 16 on the campus Horseshoe. Approximately 715 students are expected to receive degrees from the university’s six colleges.
Dr.
Philip Needleman
Philip Needleman, Ph.D., of Creve Coeur, Mo., the chief scientific officer at Pharmacia Inc., will present the commencement address. Needleman spent more than a decade—first in academia and then in industry—developing Celebrex as an arthritis medicine. His vision is future development of the drug as an anti-cancer medication.
Needleman also will be honored with a doctor of science, honoris causa.
Five other individuals will receive honorary degrees at the commencement ceremony. They are: Charles W. Coker, chairman of the board, Sonoco Corporation in Hartsville (doctor of humane letters); John R. Fulp, Jr. of Anderson, owner and president of Vanguard Industries Inc. and chairman of the board of the Abney Foundation (doctor of humane letters); Mary Starke Harper, Ph.D., D.Sc., R.N., Johnson and Johnson consultant for the Roslyn Carter Institute for Family Caregiving and Human Development (doctor of science, honoris causa); Thomas G. Keegan representative of District No. 106, Horry County, South Carolina House of Representatives (doctor of humane letters); and Robert V. Royall, United States Ambassador, United Republic of Tanzania (doctor of humane letters).
“Dr. Needleman combines intellect, with vision, enthusiasm and charisma to be one of the most effective leaders in science and the pharmaceutical industry,” said Perry Halushka, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the College of Graduate Studies, “Not only has he developed the number one launched drug of all time, he has also been instrumental in developing the careers of many successful scientists.”
Needleman and his research team were responsible for the basic research on the Cox-2 enzyme inhibitor that led to the development of Celebrex, a drug that has brought relief of symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis to millions of adults.
Cox 1 regulates normal body function, making blood clot and protecting the lining of the stomach. Cox 2 triggers pain and inflammation. The early nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as aspirin and ibuprofen inhibited both the Cox 1 and Cox 2 enzymes, reducing pain and inflammation, but also causing stomach ulcers.
Needleman and his team developed NSAIDS to inhibit only the Cox 2 enzyme. This drug is not necessarily more effective at reducing inflammation and pain than the older NSAIDS, but represents an advance over the older anti-inflammatory drugs because it does not cause ulcers.
Needleman is currently interested in developing the drug for treatment of a variety of cancers. He believes that the COX-2 enzyme also may fuel the growth of cancer so that a drug that inhibits this enzyme would be a potential cancer drug—one that is safe with few side effects. There are, in fact, ongoing clinical trials of the drug for treatment of colon cancer.
Needleman is a former chairman of Washington University Department of Pharmacology. There he was named Basic Science Teacher of the Year five times. A member of Rho Chi, the academic honor society in pharmacy, and Alpha Omega Alpha, the honor medical society, Needleman holds a large number of honors. These include the Industrial Research Institute Medal, the St. Louis Academy of Sciences Peter H. Raven Lifetime Award, the New York Arthritis Foundation Award, the Chicago Arthritis Foundation Award and the Missouri Arthritis Foundation Award.
Needleman was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences and
the Institute of Medicine.
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