Membership

2008 Awardee

The Herbert E. Stokinger Award is given each year to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the broad field of industrial and environmental toxicology. This year's Stokinger Award recipient is Curtis D. Klaassen, Ph.D.

Dr. Klaassen earned his B.S. degree from Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa in 1964, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Pharmacology from the University of Iowa in 1966 and 1968, respectively. He has been on the faculty at the University of Kansas Medical Center since 1968. Dr. Klaassen was certified in toxicology by the American Board of Toxicology in 1980 and the Academy of Toxicological Sciences in 1991.

Dr. Klaassen's research interests have centered on how we adapt to chemicals in the environment. Studies have included the hepatobiliary disposition of xenobiotics, the toxicity of cadmium, the hepatotoxicity of chemicals, and mechanisms of chemical-induced thyroid tumors. He has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles, and more than 75 review articles and chapters for books. He received the Achievement Award from the Society of Toxicology in 1978 for his research accomplishments. He was cited by Eugene Garfield in Current Contents (January 18, 1993) as the scientist that had the fourth highest scientific impact in the United States in the study of xenobiotics (drugs and other chemicals), and in 2002 was named a "Highly Cited Researcher" in Pharmacology (top 0.5%) by the Institute for Scientific Information.

Dr. Klaassen has been an associate editor of a number of journals including the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics for 24 years and Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology for 10 years. He was the first Editor-in Chief of Toxicological Sciences, the new journal of the Society of Toxicology. He has served on numerous national and international committees including those with National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration, National Library of Medicine, Environmental Protection Agency, National Academy of Science, National Toxicology Program, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, International Life Science Institute, United States Air Force, World Health Organization, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, American Dental Association, and International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Dr. Klaassen has been elected by his peers to many national and international offices in toxicology, including President of the Society of Toxicology (USA) (1990-1991), as well as President of the International Union of Toxicology (1992-1995). He was also President of the Seventh International Congress of Toxicology (1995) and the Fourth International Metallothionein Meeting (1997).

Dr. Klaassen is a leader in toxicology education and has trained over 80 Ph.D. and postdoctoral students. He is Founder (1980) and Course Director of the Mid-America Toxicology Course, an annual postgraduate course in toxicology. He has authored the toxicology section of Goodman and Gilman's Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics since 1980 and edited Casarett and Doull's Toxicology: The Basic Science of Poisons since 1980. Dr. Klaassen has presented over 400 lectures on toxicology around the world. He received the "Education Award" from the Society of Toxicology in 1993.

Dr. Klaassen's contributions to the field of industrial and environmental toxicology have earned him the Herbert E. Stokinger Award. The Stokinger Award will be presented to Dr. Klaassen at the Stokinger Lecture on Thursday, June 5, 2008. The lecture will be entitled "Chemical Interactions That Decrease Toxicity" and will be held in Room 101 C of the Minneapolis Convention Center from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.