In Memoriam

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Klaus A. Miczek, 1944-2024 (PDF)

Klaus A Miczek, PhD, Moses Hunt Professor of Psychology Emeritus at Tufts University, passed away at the age of 79. Klaus obtained his BA from the Padagogische Hochschule in Berlin, and completed his PhD at the University of Chicago. After several years as a professor at Carnegie-Mellon University, he joined Tufts University, where he remained until his passing. Dr. Miczek joined ACNP in 1995 and was an engaged and active Fellow Emeritus member of the College. Klaus was known internationally for his seminal research on aggression.

Burton M. Angrist, 1936-2024 (PDF)

Burton (Burt) Angrist, a Member Emeritus who was accepted into ACNP membership in 1975, best known in the field for his early contributions to the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia, died May 17, 2024. Burt’s descriptions of stimulant psychoses in humans led to translational work on schizophrenia in the context of the then emerging dopamine hypothesis using behavioral- and biochemical-pharmacology approaches in animals, and related approaches in humans (psychiatric symptomatology [positive and negative symptoms], neurological effects [akathisia, tardive dyskinesia, extrapyramidal symptoms], and neuroendocrine measures). Burt loved ACNP with a passion surely known by a handful of founding and early members but remarkable nonetheless. He attended all but a very few meetings from his acceptance to his death, and prepared assiduously beforehand for his own presentations, planned all the talks he would attend, whom to run with, swim or snorkel with, eat with, and drink with. For each of his many official and unofficial mentees he laid out personalized plans for the entire meeting with introductions to be made, symposia to attend, meetings to sit in on. Burt loved being amongst ACNP attendees, approaching them with his characteristic humility and respect. And he took great pride in organizing informal meetings at the bar to explore and resolve differences in the theory or practice of our science.

James B. Appel, 1934-2024 (PDF)

James B. Appel, PhD died March 8, 2024, just a few weeks past his 90th birthday. He was accepted into ACNP membership in 1970 and was a Fellow Emeritus at the time of his passing. Jim enjoyed a long and successful academic career. His formative years as an undergraduate at Columbia College inspired him to study Psychology at Indiana University where he obtained his PhD (1959/60). From Indiana, Jim moved on to the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University where he investigated the relationships between behaviorally active drugs and their neurochemical properties. Within this context, Jim’s research at Yale and subsequently at the University of Chicago focused on the behavioral characteristics of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) as well as a range of other drugs with similar characteristics (psilocybin). Jim’s seminal experiments with LSD revealed several important behavioral properties, such as their tendency to produce tolerance and to share stimulus characteristics. From the University of Chicago, he moved on to the University of South Carolina where he spent 30+ years and guided 16 students through to the completion of their doctoral degrees, received a MERIT award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and was named Distinguished Professor, much of these honors based on his elegant research revealing the power of well-developed behavioral assays to investigate pharmacological principles.

Larry J. Young, 1967-2024 (PDF)

The world of neuroscience and social behavior lost a titan with the passing of Larry Young, PhD, on March 21, 2024, a luminary whose contributions illuminated the intricacies of mammalian social connection. Dr. Young was accepted into ACNP membership in 2009. Larry completed his graduate training in zoology and received his doctorate with Dr. David Crews from the University of Texas. His tenure at Emory University, Atlanta, initially as a postdoc with Dr. Tom Insel, and then as a faculty member in 1996. One of Dr. Young’s most profound discoveries was the elucidation of neural mechanisms underlying social attachment. Beyond his scientific acumen, Dr. Young was revered for his generosity of spirit and dedication to mentorship. In addition to his groundbreaking research, Dr. Young was a prolific author whose writings bridged the gap between academia and the public sphere. In honoring Dr. Young’s memory, let us recommit ourselves to the pursuit of knowledge and the advancement of science for the betterment of humanity.

Arthur J. Prange, Jr., 1926-2024 (PDF)

Arthur J. Prange, Jr. died in Hillsborough, North Carolina on April 6 this year, at the age of 97. He was accepted into ACNP membership in 1965 and was a Fellow Emeritus at the time of his passing. His experiences there led him to enroll in a career in psychiatry and he was in the very first class of psychiatry residents at the University of North Carolina (UNC) beginning in July, 1954. Art remained in the UNC department for 40 years and he served as the Boshamer Professor of Psychiatry until retirement in 1994. He was recognized for his pioneering research, largely focused on the bidirectional relationship of the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis and depression. He was the first to demonstrate the lack of physiological effects of antidepressants in hypothyroid rats, the efficacy of thyroid hormone (T3) to accelerate the antidepressant effects of tricyclic antidepressants and to recognize the extra-pituitary effects of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) in the central nervous system.

Kenneth E. Moore, 1933-2024 (PDF)

Kenneth E. Moore, aged 90 years, died on January 9, 2024. He was an ACNP Fellow Emeritus and was accepted into membership in 1973. Ken obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in pharmacy from the University of Alberta and his PhD in pharmacology from the University of Michigan. He began his academic career at Dartmouth College. Subsequently, Ken was one of the first professors in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at Michigan State University (MSU), after joining in 1966. He chaired this department for 14 years. As professor emeritus, Ken continued to teach at MSU until 2001. Following his retirement, the department established the Kenneth Moore Distinguished Alumni Award in recognition of his devotion to training graduate students. His outstanding service to MSU was recognized in 1998 when Ken was awarded the Distinguished Faculty Award, one of the highest honors awarded to MSU faculty.

Brian E. Leonard, 1936-2023 (PDF)

With sadness, we mourn the passing of Prof. Brian E. Leonard, Emeritus Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Galway, Galway Ireland on December 27th, 2023 at the age of 87. Prof. Leonard was a Fellow Emeritus and was accepted into ACNP membership in 1983. Over a long and distinguished career, he has left an indelible mark on psychopharmacology research and teaching, most notably in the areas of depression and brain-immune interactions and in training generations across the globe. Among the many leadership positions he held included being President of the British Association for Psychopharmacology (BAP) from 1986–1988. He was President of the Society for the Investigation of Stress from 1998–2000 and Deputy Chairman of the Lundbeck Institute for Neuropsychiatric Research from 2004–2011. He was President of the Collegium Internationale Neuropsychopharmacologicum (CINP) from 2004–2006 and was Chair of the Local Organising Committee for a very successful CINP meeting in Glasgow in 1998. He received the BAP’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008, the Arvid Carlsson medal for education from CINP in 2012; and the Kraepelin-Alzheimer medal for research and education from Munich University, 2012. He served on the Editorial Board of 6 international psychopharmacology journals and was Editor-in-Chief of the Journal Human Psychopharmacology from 1995–2000.

Roland R. Griffiths, 1946-2023 (PDF)

Roland Griffiths was born in Glen Cove, New York, and grew up in the Bay Area in California. After earning a degree in psychology at Occidental College, Griffiths moved to the University of Minnesota, where he received a PhD in 1972. He then moved on to Johns Hopkins as faculty, where he remained throughout his scientific career. At Hopkins, he would go on to make groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of the reinforcing properties of psychoactive drugs and to the clinical field of psychedelic research. At Hopkins, Griffiths and his team conducted rigorous studies that deepened our understanding of addiction by characterizing and comparing subjective, behavioral, and physiological effects of licit and illicit abused drugs. Ultimately, Griffiths was a scientist whose work made a difference far beyond the laboratory. By bringing a scientific ethos to the cultural problem of psychedelic research, Griffiths and his colleagues nurtured a renaissance.

John A. Sweeney, 1952-2023 (PDF)

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, John Sweeney completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Cincinnati and Tel Aviv University and received his doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Syracuse University. He completed postgraduate training at the Payne Whitney Clinic at New York Hospital and Cornell University Medical College in New York. He was elected as a member of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology in 2008 and went on to earn the distinction of becoming a Fellow and, eventually, a Fellow Emeritus in 2015. His advisory roles on several National Institutes of Mental Health scientific boards, editorial board memberships, and consultancy engagements with industry highlights his multifaceted expertise and influence within the field. John’s scholarly legacy is nearly impossible to describe, with more than 1000 articles, reviews, and book chapters, including over 500 peer-reviewed articles. His research intentionally crossed the boundaries of psychiatric disorders, including autism, Fragile X, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and anxiety, while also focusing on understanding neurodevelopment across the entire spectrum of life.

Eugene S. Paykel, 1934-2023 (PDF)

Eugene Stern Paykel was born on 9 September 1934 in Auckland, New Zealand. His research work focused on affective disorders in which he made significant and far-reaching contributions to the study of both causes and treatments of depression, spanning the fields of epidemiology, community psychiatry, psychological therapy, and psychopharmacology. As a reflection of his research interest in psychopharmacology, he served as President of The British Association for Psychopharmacology (BAP) and The Collegium Internationale Neuropsychopharmacologicum (CINP), as well as being accepted into ACNP membership in 1981, eventually becoming Fellow Emeritus. He served on the Medical Research Council Neuroscience and Mental Health Board in the 1990s, was Vice-President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1987-1998, and received their highest honour by being elected as an Honorary Fellow in 2001. He also edited the prestigious journal Psychological Medicine from 1994 to 2006.

George K. Aghajanian, 1932-2023 (PDF)

George K. Aghajanian, ACNP Fellow Emeritus, died July 4, 2023 at the age of 91. He was elected to membership in 1970. He was one of psychiatry’s founding pioneers in neuroscience who contributed many firsts to the field by combining research carried out in multiple domains, including cell biology, biochemistry, electrophysiology, and pharmacology. George’s research is also responsible for the very first psychiatric drug treatment developed from an understanding of its mechanism of action and translated from that basic neuroscience research to human care, i.e. he demonstrated that the hyperactivity exhibited by noradrenergic neurons in the locus coeruleus of rats, that were withdrawing from chronic morphine administration, was eliminated by clonidine. In 1975, for outstanding research in the field of Neuropsychopharmacology, he was the second recipient of the Daniel Efron Award. In 2006 he received the ACNP Julius Axelrod Award for his mentorship. Among his many other honors, nine in total, were the Lieber Prize for research on Schizophrenia from NARSAD and election to the National Academy of Medicine.

S. J. Enna, 1944-2023 (PDF)

He was a Fellow Emeritus, admitted to ACNP in 1983. He earned a Masters degree and a PhD in Pharmacology at the University of Missouri, Kansas City. His focus on neuropsychopharmacology began with a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Texas, Dallas with PA Shore on biogenic amines. Over the years, he served on the editorial advisory boards of over a dozen journals in pharmacology and neuroscience including the Journal of Neuroscience, Neuropharmacology and Brain Research. He was the Editor in Chief of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (1998–2002), of Biochemical Pharmacology (2003–present) and series editor of Advances in Pharmacology (2009–present). He was elected to be Secretary General of the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacologists, which led to world travel for him and his wife, Colleen, and the development of numerous foreign friends. Dr. Enna received several distinguished awards including the John Jacob Abel Award for most promising pharmacologic scientist under 40 (ASPET), the Daniel Efron Award for basic research (ACNP) and the Otto Krayer Award for lifetime achievements in Pharmacology (ASPET).

Robert M. A. Hirschfeld, 1943-2023 (PDF)

He was elected to the ACNP in 1989; serving as co-chair and chair of the Advocacy Committee for 11 years; Chair of the Pharmacoeconomic committee; a member of the Public Concern committee; and the Ethical Legal committee. Bob was known internationally for research on the diagnosis and treatment of depression and bipolar disorder. He developed the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), one of the most widely used screening assessments for bipolar disorder in the world, and translated into 19 languages. Bob completed his psychiatry residency at Stanford; and subsequently spent 18 years at the NIMH, as Chief of the Mood, Anxiety and Personality Disorders Research Branch; and was the Clinical Director of NIMH’s Depression/Awareness, Recognition, and Treatment Program. From 1989 to 2013, Dr Hirschfeld was the Harry Davis Professor, and Titus Harris Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. He moved to NYC in 2015, and became a Professor at Cornell Weill, treating patients; teaching and supervising residents; and consulting with faculty and residents on difficult patients.

Barbara H. Stanley, 1949-2023 (PDF)

Barbara H. Stanley was an ACNP Fellow and accepted into membership in 2014. At the time of her passing, Dr. Stanley, was Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Columbia University and Director of Suicide Prevention Training for the New York State Office of Mental Health and a Research Scientist at New York State Psychiatric Institute. Barbara’s packet of rating scales went on to be adapted into a comprehensive psychological autopsy that is still used by our Columbia/NYSPI group to clinically phenotype all cases and controls in our brain collection. Barbara transitioned from a major interest in ethics of research in psychiatric patients to the field of suicide research. She pioneered the use of ecological momentary assessment to study suicidal ideation and its relationships to mechanisms employed by patients to cope with stress and suicidal ideation. Barbara was as great a clinician as she was a researcher. She teamed up with Greg Brown, Director of the Penn Center for the Prevention of Suicide at the University of Pennsylvania, to create the Stanley-Brown Safety Planning Intervention. Dr. Stanley wrote more than 200 papers. She was a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the ACNP. At the time of her death, she was president of the International Academy for Suicide Research. She had been the Editor in Chief of the Archives of Suicide Research for many years, and served on boards and committees of many professional organizations.