Joseph R. Robinson (February 16, 1939 – September 4, 2006) was a

pharmacy research Pharmacy practice research, also known as pharmacy research, is a specialty field within the wider area of health services research, which focuses on examining how and why people access pharmacy services, how much care costs, and what happens to pat ...

er and the Edward Kremers Emeritus Professor of Pharmacy in the School of Pharmacy at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

.2006 UW Honorary Citation Recipients

(accessed 2 October 2022)Jorge Heller, Kinam Park (2007). Joseph R. Robinson. ''

Journal of Controlled Release The ''Journal of Controlled Release'' is a biweekly peer-reviewed medical journal and the official journal of the Controlled Release Society. The journal covers research on the controlled release and delivery of drugs and other biologically active ...

'' 117: 147 He was particularly known for his work on ophthalmological drug delivery and on bioadhesion.

Education

Robinson attended the College of Pharmacy of

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, gaining B.S. (1961) and M.S. (1963) degrees in pharmacy. His Ph.D. (1966) was at the School of Pharmacy at Madison, where his major professor was Takeru Higuchi, sometimes described as 'the father of physical pharmacy'.

Research

After joining the UW School of Pharmacy faculty as an assistant professor in 1966, Robinson’s early research was in

physical organic chemistry Physical organic chemistry, a term coined by Louis Hammett in 1940, refers to a discipline of organic chemistry that focuses on the relationship between chemical structures and chemical reaction, reactivity, in particular, applying experimental to ...

, but he soon shifted his attention to issues of

biopharmaceutics A biopharmaceutical, also known as a biological medical product, or biologic, is any pharmaceutical drug product manufactured in, extracted from, or semisynthesized from biological sources. Different from totally synthesized pharmaceuticals, th ...

pharmacokinetics Pharmacokinetics (from Ancient Greek ''pharmakon'' "drug" and ''kinetikos'' "moving, putting in motion"; see chemical kinetics), sometimes abbreviated as PK, is a branch of pharmacology dedicated to describing how the body affects a specific su ...

, and the general field of

drug delivery Drug delivery involves various methods and technologies designed to transport pharmaceutical compounds to their target sites helping therapeutic effect. It involves principles related to drug preparation, route of administration, site-specif ...

. He was promoted to full professor in 1973. He held the concomitant position of Professor, in the Department of Ophthalmology, Medical School, UW–Madison (from 1990) and was the Edwards Kremers Professor of Pharmacy (from 2001). His early research in the drug delivery concerned the

eye An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system. In higher organisms, the ey ...

, and his interest in ocular drug delivery continued throughout his career. Later research work included contributions on

oral The word oral may refer to: Relating to the mouth * Relating to the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that primarily receives food and liquid **Oral administration of medicines ** Oral examination (also known as an oral exam or ora ...

parenteral In pharmacology and toxicology, a route of administration is the way by which a drug, fluid, poison, or other substance is taken into the body. Routes of administration are generally classified by the location at which the substance is applied. ...

, buccal, and

vaginal In mammals and other animals, the vagina (: vaginas or vaginae) is the elastic, muscular reproductive organ of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vulval vestibule to the cervix (neck of the uterus). The vaginal introit ...

drug delivery systems and mechanisms, with a strong emphasis on bioadhesion as a control phenomenon.

Academics

He was the editor of two journals including ''STP Pharma Sciences'', and he edited a half dozen books on drug delivery, most influentially perhaps his 1978 volume ''Sustained and Controlled Release Drug Delivery Systems''. He held over two dozen patents on delivery systems, and founded two companies in order to transform his ideas into practice. He also served on the boards of directors of multiple pharmaceutical companies.

Awards and honors

Robinson received many professional honors throughout his career, including the Ebert Prize of the American Pharmaceutical Association (APhA) in 1989, the Takeru Higuchi Research Prize (APhA, 1997), the Dale E. Wurster Award from the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists in 1996, the Honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of the Sciences (Philadelphia), 2003, Doctor Honoris Causa, Royal Danish School of Pharmacy, 1992, and the Nagai Award of the Japanese Pharmaceutical Association in 1990. He was president of the Controlled Release Society (1991–92) and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (1992–93).

Education

Research

Academics

Awards and honors

References

Further reading