December 1, 2015
Anthony Hickey, Ph.D., professor emeritus in the Division of Molecular Pharmaceutics at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, was presented the David J.W. Grant Research Achievement Award in Physical Pharmacy by the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. The award, given at the annual meeting in Orlando, is presented every two years.
“It’s an enormous and poignant honor for me because David Grant was a friend of mine when he was active in research,” Hickey said. “Over the years, he became a mentor to me. There is only one award named after David, and so for me, it’s very important. And then I think on top of that, it is probably the highest honor I could aspire to in my discipline.”
Hickey has made substantial contributions to the field of physical pharmacy of dispersed systems delivered as pharmaceutical aerosols. His efforts have elaborated important phenomena underpinning the behavior of micro- and nanoparticles and self-assembled systems in aqueous, nonaqueous and powder-based formulations. His work on physic-chemical factors influencing the performance of metered-dose inhaler and dry-powder inhaler products has contributed substantially to understanding of these dosage forms.
The importance of his work is in facilitating delivery of small molecular weight and more complex macromolecular drugs and vaccines to treat or prevent a variety of diseases, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, tuberculosis, influenza, diphtheria and hepatitis. As a consequence of Hickey’s findings, several novel technologies have been developed from which products have emerged.
Hickey is the founder of two pharmaceutical companies, Cirrus Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Oriel Therapeutics, Inc. Oriel was purchased by Sandoz, a division of Novartis, in 2010. He has served as president and CEO of Cirrus since its founding. He currently serves as a distinguished fellow at RTI International.
“If it had not been for some very bright and dedicated graduate students and postdoctoral students and the support from the faculty, none of it would be possible. I owe a huge amount of gratitude to folks at the School and the people who have worked with me over the years,” Hickey said. “I’m identified for the award as being both from RTI and from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and I think that is entirely appropriate.”
Hickey obtained his Ph.D. and D.Sc. in pharmaceutical sciences from Aston University in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Following postdoctoral positions at the University of Kentucky, he joined the faculty at the University of Illinois at Chicago before coming to UNC, where he was a professor at the School from 1993 to 2010.
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