Gerhard Levy

Dr. Levy was honored with a multitude of awards during his career:

• Høst Madsen Medal from the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) in 1978
• Oscar Hunter Award in Experimental Therapeutics in 1982 from the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
• Volwiler Award in 1982 from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy
• Takeru Higuchi Research Prize in 1983 from the American Pharmaceutical Association
• Lifetime Achievement Award in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1994 from the FIP, plus 20 honorary lectureships at various universities and venues and 6 Doctor Honoris Causae Awards

His contributions to science carried high impact. He is most-highly noted for leading the developing quantitative relationships between drug concentrations and response or PK/PD with a strong focus on discerning pharmacologic (PK of PD) mechanisms. He also explored the use of in vitro dissolution testing as a surrogate for the assessing the rate and extent of drug absorption. This concept evolved into the highly used Dissolution Method 2 of the United States Pharmacopeia and critical use for the approval of generic drugs. Another primary focus of his research was in vivo performance of aspirin products, impact on GI bleeding and absorption, pharmacokinetics and metabolism of aspirin and salicylates.

Dr. Levy's contributions to education were ahead of his time. He instituted UB's first undergraduate pharmacy course on biopharmaceutics in 1963. He used a "flipped classroom" model for his very popular clinical pharmacokinetics course (PHC 505) during the 1970’s. He also funded and instituted the Buffalo Pharmaceutics Scholar Award, which has recognized 32 outstanding students in our PhD program.

Gerhard Levy was a mentor who truly led by example. For over 40 years, he has been a role model and dynamic leader for scientists all over the world. He has encouraged many investigators, particularly those with a PharmD degree, to pursue research in their careers. His professional approach to science and teaching has left a lasting impact and aspiration for excellence in the UB Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.