Donald Kirsch

Donald R. Kirsch *78 BIOL

Scientist, Author, Faculty

Adjunct Lecturer, Columbia University


Donald R. Kirsch, coauthor of “The Drug Hunters,” was a drug hunter for more than 35 years. He holds more than two dozen drug-related patents, has written more than 50 scientific research papers, has been a reviewer for scientific journals and has served on multiple National Institutes of Health study sections. He was a director of neuroscience research at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, the director of molecular genetic screen design at Cyanamid, the leader of a research group in microbiology and cell biology at Squibb Institute for Medical Research and the chief scientific officer at Cambria Pharmaceuticals. He has taught in the biotechnology department at Harvard Extension School and currently teaches at Columbia University. He lives in Westchester County, New York.