On Wednesday, November 5, 2014, the Department of Pharmacology celebrated Dr. Bryan Roth’s election to the Institute of Medicine with a pizza party. Why pizza you may ask? Bryan likes pizza.
Election to the IOM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. Many members of the Pharmacology department attended the party to congratulate him.
“Roth…is a world-renowned scientist best known for creating an innovative scientific method that allows neuroscientists to manipulate and study brain circuits in health and disease.
Roth’s method, called DREADD – Designer Receptor Exclusively Activated by a Designer Drug – offers scientists an innovative way to study the basic biological mechanisms that play major roles in many conditions and diseases such as autism, addiction, depression, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and various forms of cancer. Roth first published his findings on DREADD in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in 2007. Since then, his paper has been cited by hundreds of scientists working to create better treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders and other diseases.” (except from SOM News by Mark Derewicz, “UNC’s Bryan Roth elected to Institute of Medicine”)