Dr. Ronald T. Borchardt is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at The University of Kansas-Lawrence. Professor Borchardt’s contributions to the development and validation of cell cultures for studying drug transport across the intestinal mucosa and the blood-brain barrier have been particularly significant. His pioneering work led to the introduction of a cell culture model now widely used by scientists in pharmaceutical/biotechnology companies and in academic and government laboratories worldwide. As a medicinal chemist, who transitioned to biochemistry and pharmaceutical chemistry midway through his career in academia, Professor Borchardt also played a key role as a scientist, educator and consultant in the integration of drug discovery and development in pharmaceutical companies in the United States, Europe and Asia.

After earning a B.S. in Pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1967 and a Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry from The University of Kansas-Lawrence in 1970, Professor Borchardt spent two years as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health. In 1971, he returned to his alma mater, The University of Kansas, as an Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Medicinal Chemistry. Professor Borchardt was promoted through the ranks to the position of Solon E. Summerfield Distinguished Professor in 1981, a position that he held for 34 years until his retirement in 2015. From 1983 to 1998, he also served as chairman of the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry in the School of Pharmacy at The University of Kansas.

Throughout his academic career, Professor Borchardt has received numerous national and international awards and honors for his teaching and research accomplishments, including three honorary doctorate degrees from European universities.