The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy will recognize professor Harold L. Kohn, PhD, for his contributions to contemporary teaching and scholarship in biotechnology with the prestigious Paul R. Dawson Biotechnology Award.
“It gives AACP great pleasure to recognize Dr. Kohn with this illustrious award,” explained Lucinda L. Maine, PhD, AACP executive vice president and CEO. “He is a pioneer of biotechnology research and a leader in scholarly activities and teaching, especially as applied to students and faculty mentoring.”
Kohn is the Kenan Professor of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. He is recognized worldwide as an accomplished and innovative medicinal chemist and a leader in molecular therapeutics. One of Kohn’s most significant achievements is the development of a drug treatment for a subset of epileptic patients. Lacosamide, a first-in-class anti-epileptic drug, is now marketed in the United States and Europe for treatment of partial-onset seizures.
“I am grateful to be included among the Dawson award recipients, a group that has made many notable contributions in the area of biotechnology,” Kohn said. “I am also thankful for the efforts and contributions of my students and for their willingness to travel down the different paths that our laboratory has taken over the years.”
Throughout his distinguished career, Kohn has made notable contributions to biotechnology and the academic community. From 1999 to 2005, Kohn served as chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products where he restructured the division to meet the challenges facing many academic medicinal chemistry programs. External funding for the division tripled and publications increased under his chairmanship. Kohn’s research studies have led to more than 160 peer-reviewed papers published in leading journals and nine patent filings in the United States and more than 25 abroad. These investigations have provided the framework for the training of 28 doctoral, seven master’s and 30 postdoctoral students.
“I was very pleased and proud to hear that Hal Kohn is being honored with the Dawson award,” said Robert A. Blouin, Pharm.D., dean of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. “It is an altogether fitting tribute to a scientist, educator, and mentor who has contributed so much to the field of medicinal chemistry.”
Kohn’s contributions have been recognized with the Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship and the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award. In 1993, he received the University of Houston Research Excellence Award and in 1995 was named M.D. Anderson Professor of Chemistry.
Kohn received a bachelor of science in chemistry from the University of Michigan in 1966 and a PhD in chemistry from Pennsylvania State University in 1971.
The award is named in honor of Amgen former vice president of marketing and sales, Paul R. Dawson, a staunch supporter of education in biotechnology. Kohn will receive a double helix glass sculpture and monetary prize during the Examining Excellence Awards Plenary at the 2010 AACP Annual Meeting and Seminars. Kohn will receive the award during the 2010 AACP Annual Meeting and Seminars in Seattle, July 10 to 14.