Thomas U. L. Biber
Thomas U. L. Biber, Professor Emeritus, received his M.D. from the University of Bern, Switzerland, and the National Board of Internal Medicine in 1960 from the University of Zurich. He completed his postdoctoral work at the University of Copenhagen with Dr. H.H. Ussing and at the University of North Carolina with Dr. Gottschalk. After serving on the faculties of Harvard Medical School and Yale University School of Medicine, Dr. Biber joined VCU in 1975. His major research interest is ion transport in biological membranes, and he pioneered the use of multi-barrel microelectrodes in his studies.
F. Norman Briggs
F. Norman Briggs, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, completed his studies in physiology and endocrinology at the University of California, Berkeley (A.B. 1947, M.S. 1948, Ph.D. 1952). His early training in muscle physiology was done in Heidelberg, Germany (1955). Dr. Briggs held academic positions at Harvard Dental School, Harvard Medical School, Tufts Medical School, and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine before coming to VCU in 1971. He chaired the department from 1971 to 1983. His research focus was on the physiology of muscle contraction, especially with regard to cardiac muscle, and he participated in many collaborations with faculty in clinical departments.
Stephen F. Cleary
Stephen F. Cleary, Professor Emeritus, studied chemical engineering at the New York University College of Engineering (B.S. 1958). He received his M.S. in radiation biophysics in 1960 from the University of Rochester and his Ph.D. in biophysics in 1964 from New York University. He joined the department in 1964 and became Emeritus Professor in 2003. His major research interest was in biological effects of microwave radiation.
Karl C. Corley
Karl C. Corley, Jr., Associate Professor Emeritus, completed his B.S. in general science in 1958 at Trinity College and his Ph.D. in brain research and psychology in 1964 at the University of Rochester. He was a research associate at Merck Institute for two years before joining the department. His research interest is in the area in which physiology and psychology overlap.
George D. Ford
George D. Ford received his B.S. in Physics (1961) from West Virginia University, his M.S. in Physics (1964) from Iowa University, and his Ph.D. in Pharmacology (1967) from West Virginia University. Following postdoctoral training in Biophysics at the University of Rochester with Dr. D.A. Goldstein, Dr. Ford joined the department in 1970. He became Emeritus Professor in 2009. He currently holds an affiliate position as Assistant Dean of Medicine for Sponsored Programs Research. His research specialty is cardiovascular physiology.
Donald C. Mikulecky
Donald C. Mikulecky, Professor Emeritus, received his B.S. in biology in 1957 from the Illinois Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. in physiology in 1963 from the University of Chicago. Dr. Mikulecky’s postdoctoral work was conducted in non-equilibrium thermodynamics and membrane biophysics at the Weizmann Institute of Science with Dr. Aaron Katchalsky. He came to VCU in 1973. A theoretical biologist, he specialized in creating and testing mathematical models of biological systems and processes.
James L. Poland
James L. Poland, Associate Professor Emeritus, completed his undergraduate degree in biology in 1962 at Waynesburg College in Pennsylvania. He completed his graduate work in physiology at West Virginia University (M.S. 1964, Ph.D. 1967). Dr. Poland joined the department in 1967. His major research interest is the physiology of exercise, especially as it relates to pulmonary function.
Ellis B. Ridgway
Ellis B. Ridgway, Professor Emeritus, received his S.B. in life science (1963) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. in biology (1968) from the University of Oregon under Graham Hoyle. Following postdoctoral fellowships in London with Andrew Huxley and in Cambridge with Alan Hodgkin, Dr. Ridgway joined the department in 1972. Dr. Ridgway's research revolved around assessing the role of calcium ion in a number of biological phenomena. He pioneered the use of the the luminescent protein, aequorin, to measure calcium transients.
John A. DeSimone
John A. DeSimone received his B.A. in Chemistry (1964) from the State University of New York at Buffalo, and his Ph.D. in Biophysics (1971) from Harvard University. Dr. DeSimone received further training in Chemical Engineering (1971-1973) as a NIH postdoctoral fellow and conducted research at the 3M Company (1973-74) before joining the VCU Department of Physiology in 1974. He was named Professor Emeritus in 2009. Dr. DeSimone continues to collaborate with colleagues on sponsored research programs. He has been a leader in the investigation of receptor mechanisms in chemoreception, especially taste, since about 1975.
