Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Special Issue Edition Dedicated to Professor William Jusko

Journal guest editors, David D’Argenio, PhD, professor of engineering, Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California; and Ioannis Androulakis, PhD, professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rutgers University, had much praise for Jusko’s accomplishments. Androulakis stated, “This special issue is a tribute to Jusko, celebrating his groundbreaking contributions and pioneering advancements in the field of mathematical modeling in pharmaceutical sciences. At a personal level, it offers me the extraordinary opportunity to articulate my deep and sincere appreciation and gratitude for the mentorship, inspiration, and unwavering support I have received from Bill throughout my professional journey. His guidance has been a beacon of enlightenment, profoundly influencing my career and personal growth.”

D’Argenio continued, “Reading a great literary work changes you. The person you were before reading the novel and after is not the same. So too, each of Bill’s seminal works highlighted in this special dedication issue has fundamentally and profoundly changed the way we conceive of and model pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic systems. I can think of no greater career accomplishment.”

A UB faculty member since 1972, Jusko studies the disposition and pharmacological effects of drugs and the optimization of dosing for immunosuppressive, anti-diabetic and cancer treatments. His work has led to significant advances in mathematical and computer modeling of the time-course of responses following drug dosing. His research in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics has received continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of General Medical Sciences since 1977.

“Dr. Jusko has made extraordinary contributions to advancing the understanding and application of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics,” said Gary Pollack, PhD, dean and professor, University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. “His work has laid the foundation for the continued advancement of the pharmaceutical sciences and will inform future scientific discoveries for years to come. While the impact of his work has been global, our school, our students and the many alumni he has mentored have been the direct beneficiaries of his career-long efforts. He is truly a ‘giant’ among pharmaceutical scientists, and I am immensely fortunate to look to him as a teacher, mentor, colleague and friend.”

Jusko’s catalogue of awards is unparalleled and includes the Distinguished Pharmaceutical Scientists Award from the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS); the Volwiler Research Achievement Award from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP); the Oscar B. Hunter Career Award in Therapeutics from the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics; a coveted MERIT (Method to Extend Research in Time) award from the NIH; the Distinguished Service Award from the American College of Clinical Pharmacology; the Lewis B. Sheiner Lecturer Award from the International Society of Pharmacometrics (ISoP); honorary doctorates from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and the University of Paris Descartes; and a Fulbright Scholarship.

Other colleagues offered congratulatory comments. They included UB SPPS Dean Emeritus Wayne Anderson, PhD; and Ah-Ng Tony Kong, PhD, Distinguished Professor and Glaxo Endowed Chair of Pharmaceutics at Rutgers University, who directs Rutgers’ Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Science. “A brilliant pharmaceutical scientist who has made unique and profound contributions to the field of pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics and PK-PD modeling,” Kong said of Jusko.

“The new year marks the recognition of Bill Jusko as one of the giants of pharmaceutical sciences,” said Anderson. “The issue is dedicated to his leadership in theoretical and applied pharmacometrics reflecting on his numerous achievements, awards and global impact of his scholarship. During my tenure as dean, Bill had a high impact in many areas: department chair, pre-eminent scholarship, student recruitment and mentorship of junior faculty. He was also a friend and a colleague, and I congratulate him on this well-deserved recognition.”

Jusko has published more than 600 research articles and serves on the editorial boards of numerous academic journals, and is former editor-in-chief of the Journal of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics. His top cited articles involve indirect pharmacodynamic models, computational methods for pharmacokinetic analysis, models for target-mediated dispositional effects, and effects of protein tissue binding upon pharmacokinetics.

From 2001 to 2016, Jusko served as chair of the University at Buffalo Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. More than 100 students and fellows have completed training under his supervision. Jusko is a fellow of the ACCP, AAPS, ISoP and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).