Prof. James Cook

Dr. James Cook is a University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he has been since 1973. He received a BS in Chemistry with Honors from West Virginia University in 1967. He worked with Professor Phillip LeQuesne at The University of Michigan from 1968-1971 and received his PhD in Organic Chemistry. During doctoral studies he worked on Alkaloidal N-oxides in Hallucinogenic Drugs and on Alkaloids of Alstonia muelleriana Domin. He joined Professor James P. Kutney’s group at The University of British Columbia as a postdoctoral fellow in 1972. In 1973 he joined The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee as an Assistant Professor and was promoted to The University Distinguished Professor in 2002. He has published over 500 papers as well as 56 patents filed or issued. He has received The UW-System Innovator Award, as well as The UW-Milwaukee Innovator Award and a JSPS fellowship. He currently holds grants from NIMH, NINDS, GM, NIAG, NIHBL and NIAAA for drug design. He has cofounded with Dr. David Baker and Dr. John Mantsch, Promentis Pharmaceuticals, which has a drug in Phase II clinical trials. He earlier licensed his IP to BMS, which had the compound in Phase I Clinical Trials, which has led to three backups, one of which is an anxiolytic/anticonvulsant licensed to Neurocycles for Dravet syndrome.