Richard Ivey Chair in Molecular Toxicology

We are delighted to announce the renewal of Dr. Gideon Koren as the Richard Ivey Chair in Molecular Toxicology at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. His second term is to commence July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2014.

Dr. Koren is currently a Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Paediatrics and Physiology & Pharmacology at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, as well as the Founder and Director of the "Motherisk Program" for antenatal counseling of drug/chemical exposure, at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. This is the first such program in North America and is a prospective project which assesses both exposed mothers and their offspring.

In his first term as the Ivey Chair, Dr. Koren established a course on human molecular toxicology, which is the only case-based course of its type in Canada, ranging from the molecular to the clinical aspects of the field. The course takes in more the 75 students a year and has been a favorite since its inception four years ago.

The investment in Dr. Koren's research through the Ivey Chair has had a substantive and positive impact on Schulich during his first term. His research has evolved towards an increasingly translational paradigm. He has successfully married skills in pharmacologic epidemiology and toxicologic epidemiology to research capacity in basic pharmacology and more recently, in pharmacolgenetics and pharmacogenomics. His current research activities in paediatric pharmacology include; the disposition and effects of drugs on the developing organism with special interest in the very low birth weight infant and in pediatric cancer chemotherapy - which involves both basic and clinical studies. In his next tenure as the Ivey Chair, Dr. Koren will continue to lead the development of a national network in human toxicology which will be centered at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.

Dr. Koren's numerous contributions as the Ivey Chair, to both research and teaching, have granted international recognition and prestige, both to the Ivey Chair as well as the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and The University of Western Ontario. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Koren on his renewal as the Ivey Chair in Molecular Toxicology

Sincerely,

Carol P. Herbert
Dean
Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry
The University of Western Ontario