P. Roy Vagelos
Pindaros Roy Vagelos , called Roy Vagelos, (born October 8, 1929 in Westfield , New Jersey ) is an American biochemist and former CEO and President of Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) .
Life
Vagelos was the son of Greek immigrants who owned a small restaurant in Rahway, New Jersey. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1950 and then studied medicine at Columbia University with an MD degree in 1954, followed by specialist training at Massachusetts General Hospital . Then was from 1956 at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda. He was there as a surgeon and later head of the comparative biochemistry department. During this time he dealt with lipid metabolism and discovered the enzyme ACP ( acyl carrier protein ). In 1966 he went to the University of Washington School of Medicine as head of the biological chemistry department. He founded the Department of Biology and Biomedicine there and was a pioneer in the creation of biology departments in student education at medical schools in the USA. In 1975 he joined MSD as Senior Vice President Research, becoming its CEO and President in 1984. In 1986 he became chairman of the board. From 1994 he retired at MSD. After that, he was, among other things, CEO of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals .
He published around 100 scientific papers and developed, among other things, cholesterol-lowering drugs ( Lovastatin , Simvastatin ) and, in the mid-1980s, ivermectin for river blindness at MSD . As MSD manager, he made sure that it was made available largely free of charge to the WHO in order to combat the disease in West Africa and other parts of the world.
In 1995 he received the NAS Award for Chemistry in Service to Society , in 1967 the Pfizer Award in Enzyme Chemistry from the American Chemical Society, the Prinz Mahidol Prize and in 1999 the Othmer Gold Medal . He received the Franklin Institute's 1999 Bower Award for management performance (for his role in fighting river sickness) and was inducted into the National Business Hall of Fame in 1995.
He and his wife donated large sums to both the University of Pennsylvania and the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons (to the latter alone they donated 50 million dollars).
He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (and the Institute of Medicine of the US national academies), the American Philosophical Society, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences .
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Vagelos, P. Roy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Vagelos, Pindaros Roy (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American medic, biochemist, and manager |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 8, 1929 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Westfield , New Jersey |