Department of Pharmacology

Bench to Bedside to Population to Society

Pharmacology is the intersection of chemistry, biochemistry, cell biology, physiology and pathology to impact human health by understanding and treating disease through the lens of equity.

A Pharmacology researcher studies a chemical in the Traynor Lab

Basic Discoveries Translated to Cures

The mission of the Department of Pharmacology is to be a global leader in pharmacological training and scientific discovery. 

We seek sustainable excellence as effective and innovative educators; as producers of new basic and translational knowledge that ultimately advances public health; as exemplary role models; as responsible and innovative stewards of philanthropic, institutional, and extramural resources; as leaders who enhance faculty, trainee, and staff engagement and professional satisfaction.

Contact Us

Department of Pharmacology
2301 MSRB III
1150 W. Medical Center Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5632
Phone: 734-764-8165

ABOUT US

Over 130 years of leadership as the first Department of Pharmacology in the nation

PEOPLE

Our people are our greatest resource.

EDUCATION

Transforming learners from being consumers of knowledge to producers of knowledge

Events

View our full event calendar and seminar listings.

RESEARCH

Fundamental discoveries of disease mechanisms translated to novel therapeutics

GIVING

Help support our missions of research, education and service.

Department News

See all news
Krista Goerger and Mike Holinstat, Ph.D.
Department News

Krista Goerger awarded the 2026 top graduate student award in cardiovascular research!

Krista Goerger awarded the 2026 top graduate student award in cardiovascular research!
headshot of Adam Courtney
Department News

Congratulations to Dr. Adam Courtney on his appointment as the Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Research Professor in Molecular Pharmacology!

Congratulations to Dr. Adam Courtney on his appointment as the Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Research Professor in Molecular Pharmacology!
R. Akter
Department News

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Rehana Akter!

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Rehana Akter!
Doctors performing research

Give back to Michigan Pharmacology

Explore the many ways that you can support our research, education and training missions.

Support Pharmacology
Pharmacology Department Newsletter Cover - Fall 2026

Stay up to date on our progress

Read the department’s fall newsletter for research lab highlights, a letter from our chair, awards, news and more.

Read our recent newsletter
Researcher in Isom lab holds beaker full of liquids

TRANSLATIONAL BEFORE IT WAS COOL

1891
First Department of Pharmacology in the nation
39
Primary tenure track and research track faculty
Top 10
NIH funded Department of Pharmacology

Connect with Us

Pharmacology faculty lead world-class research programs in G-protein signaling, cancer, neuroscience, addiction, cardiovascular disease, mental health disorders, epilepsy, protein folding disorders, RNA therapeutics, and diabetes. Joint faculty, including physician-scientists from Clinical Departments, Michigan Drug Discovery, and the School of Public Health, provide invaluable research collaborations and training opportunities. The breadth and depth of our research mission is extraordinary.

Maurice H. Seevers Professor and Chair of Pharmacology Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology Professor of Neurology
Lori L. Isom

Upcoming Events

View all events
10 28 2026 12:00 pm 10 28 2026 - 1:00 pm

Pharmacology Seminar - Emily Dykhuizen, Ph.D.

"Targeting Chromatin Regulation in Cancer"
Emily D.
11 3 2026 11:00 am 11 3 2026 - 1:00 pm

ASPET Government Affairs Roadshow

ASPET Government Affairs Roadshow
11 11 2026 12:00 pm 11 11 2026 - 1:00 pm

Pharmacology Seminar - Colin Nichols, Ph.D.

Pharmacology Seminar - Colin Nichols, Ph.D.
Colin Nichols
11 18 2026 12:00 pm 11 18 2026 - 1:00 pm

Pharmacology Seminar - Ansel Hillmer, Ph.D.

"Positron Emission Tomography Imaging Brain Immune Function: Applications and Radiotracer Development"
Ansel Hillmer, PhD
11 19 2026 5:00 pm 11 19 2026 - 7:00 pm

Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Professorship Ceremony Installation- Dr. Adam Courtney

Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Professorship Ceremony Installation- Dr. Adam Courtney
headshot of Adam Courtney
11 24 2026 1:00 pm 11 24 2026 - 3:00 pm

Friendsgiving

Friendsgiving
12 9 2026 12:00 pm 12 9 2026 - 1:00 pm

Pharmacology Seminar - Kiran Solingapuram Sai, Ph.D.

Pharmacology Seminar - Kiran Solingapuram Sai, Ph.D.
Kiran Solingapuram Sai, Ph.D.
12 17 2026 5:00 pm 12 17 2026 - 8:00 pm

Pharmacology Holiday Party

Pharmacology Holiday Party
1 20 2027 12:00 pm 1 20 2027 - 1:00 pm

Pharmacology Seminar - Bjorn Knollman, M.D., Ph.D.

Pharmacology Seminar - Bjorn Knollman, M.D., Ph.D.
Bjorn Knollman

FEATURED NEWS & STORIES

See all news
Krista Goerger and Mike Holinstat, Ph.D.
Department News

Krista Goerger awarded the 2026 top graduate student award in cardiovascular research!

Krista Goerger awarded the 2026 top graduate student award in cardiovascular research!
cancer cell blue yellow
Health Lab

‘Molecular glue’ stabilizes protein that inhibits development of non-small cell lung cancer and uterine cancer

University of Michigan researchers found a new protein target PP2A and developed a drug to treat non-small cell lung cancers that have KRAS mutations.
Michelle Hastings, Ph.D. and lab member look at molecule on computer screen.
News Release

$3.9 million NIH grant to fuel U-M effort to develop first targeted therapy for fatal childhood brain disorder

A team led by Dr. Michelle Hastings will advance a new RNA-based medicine for the most common form of CLN3 Batten disease toward clinical trials
headshot of Adam Courtney
Department News

Congratulations to Dr. Adam Courtney on his appointment as the Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Research Professor in Molecular Pharmacology!

Congratulations to Dr. Adam Courtney on his appointment as the Pfizer Upjohn Early Career Research Professor in Molecular Pharmacology!
R. Akter
Department News

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Rehana Akter!

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Rehana Akter!
Nicole Desmet
Department News

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Nicole Desmet!

Please welcome new postdoc, Dr. Nicole Desmet!

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The University of Michigan is located on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe people. In 1817, the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodewadmi Nations made the largest single land transfer to the University of Michigan, offered ceremonially through the Treaty at the Foot of the Rapids, with the intent that their children might be educated. We acknowledge their contemporary and ancestral ties to the land and this integral contribution to the University.