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Faculty Detail    
Name RICHARD J WHITLEY
  
Campus Address CHB 303 Zip 0011
Phone  (205) 658-2543
E-mail  rwhitley@peds.uab.edu
Other websites
     


Faculty Appointment(s)
Appointment Type Department Division Rank
Primary  Ped - Infectious Disease  Ped - Infectious Disease Professor Distinguished
Secondary  Med - Div of Human Gene Therapy  Med - Div of Human Gene Therapy Associate Professor
Secondary  Med - Infectious Diseases  Med - Infectious Diseases Professor
Secondary  Microbiology  Microbiology Professor
Secondary  Surgery - Neurosurgery (Org Ret)  Surgery - Neurosurgery (Org Ret) Professor
Center  Center for AIDS Research  Center for AIDS Research Professor Distinguished
Center  Center for Biophysical Sciences/Engineering  Center for Biophysical Sciences/Engineering Professor Distinguished
Center  Civitan International Research Center  Civitan International Research Center Professor Distinguished
Center  Comprehensive Cancer Center  Comprehensive Cancer Center Professor Distinguished
Center  Ctr for Clinical & Translational Sci  Ctr for Clinical & Translational Sci Professor Distinguished
Center  Med - Div of Human Gene Therapy  Gene Therapy Center Professor Distinguished

Graduate Biomedical Sciences Affiliations
Cell, Molecular, & Developmental Biology 
Cellular and Molecular Biology Program 
Hughes Med-Grad Fellowship Program 
Medical Scientist Training Program 
Microbiology 

Biographical Sketch 
Dr. Richard Whitley is a Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics, Vice Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics and Co-Division Director of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine. He also holds the titles of Loeb Eminent Scholar Chair in Pediatrics; Professor of Microbiology, Medicine, & Neurosurgery; Senior Scientist, Department of Gene Therapy; and Co-Founder and Co-Director, Alabama Drug Discovery Alliance. An expert on how antiviral therapies fight infections in children and adults, Dr. Whitley’s research spans four decades, during which he has published more than 373 scholarly articles on pediatric infectious disease. In 2009, Dr. Whitley was appointed as one of 14 members of a panel advising President Barack Obama about the H1N1 virus. He and his peers from across the country spent three weeks in July writing an 86-page report to President Obama on the country's preparations for the pandemic flu. After attaining his medical degree from George Washington University School of Medicine in 1971, Dr. Whitley completed his pediatric internship/residency and fellowship in infectious disease and virology at UAB from 1971 to 1976. Dr. Whitley’s honors are numerous and his professional organization involvement extensive, including NIAID AIDS Task Force membership; NIAID DSMB Clinical Trials Committee (Chairman); Associate Editor, Journal of Infectious Diseases (2005-Present); President, International Society for Antiviral Research (1988- 1990); AAP Award for Excellence in Pediatric Research (1991); Elion Award, International Society for Antiviral Research (2004); Chair, BSC, CCID, CDC (2005-2010), UAB President’s Medal (2007), NIH National Adv Allergy and Infectious Disease Council (2008-2012), and President, Infectious Diseases Society of America (2009). In 2013, he was named as the inaugural recipient of the Distinguished Clinical Research Scholar and Educator in Residence at the NIH Clinical Center. He has received numerous other awards and lectureships, including the 2016 UAB SOM Dean’s Excellence Award in Research for Senior Faculty, the Department of Pediatrics Lifetime Achievement Award in Pediatric Healthcare in 2017, and has been elected to Honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, Frederick House, Dublin, Ireland in 2017.

Society Memberships
Organization Name Position Held Org Link
American Society of Clinical Investigation     
American Society of Microbiology     
Association of American Physicians     
Infectious Diseases Society of America  Past President    
Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society     
 



Research/Clinical Interest
Title
Description
I have spent 35 years developing antiviral drugs from lead molecules through all phases of clinical development (Phase I to III). This work has led to several NDAs for multiple drugs and a variety of diseases. I am responsible for the NIH-Funded Antiviral Drug Discovery and Development Center. The purpose of the center is to discover potential new drugs which could be used to treat infections such as West Nile virus and influenza that routinely infect US citizens, and for which we have limited or no treatments. We will also strive to develop therapies for emerging infections such as coronaviruses, dengue and chikungunya which pose risks for traveling US citizens or could be imported into the country by others. I have worked with and mentored pre- and post-doctoral fellows and assisted them through all phases of their professional development.

Selected Publications 
Publication PUBMEDID
Abzug M, Michaels M, Wald E, Jacobs R, Romero J, Sanchez P, Wilson G, Krogstad P, Storch G, Lawrence R, Shelton M, Palmer A, Robinson J, Dennehy P, Sood S, Cloud G, Jester P, Acosta E, Whitley R, Kimberlin D and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Collaborative Antiviral Study Group. A Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of pleconaril for the treatment of neonates with enterovirus sepsis. J Ped Infect Diseases Society, 2015; doi: 10.1093.jpids/piv015. PMID 26407253  26407253 
Kimberlin DW, Whitley RJ, Wan W, Powell DA, Storch G, Ahmed A, Palmer A, Sanchez PJ, Jacobs RF, Bradley JS, Robinson JL, Shelton M, Dennehy PH, Leach C, Rathore M, Abughali N, Wright P, Frenkel LM, Brady RC, Van Dyke R, Weinier LB, Guzman-Cottrill J, McCarthy CA, Griffin J, Jester P, Parker M, Lakeman FD, Kuo H, Lee C, Cloud GA for the National Institiute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Collaborative Antiviral Study Group: Oral acyclovir suppression and neurodevelopment after neonatal herpes. NEJM 365(14): 1284-1292, October, 2011. PMID21991950, PMC3250992, NIHMS338805.  21991950 
Acosta EP,Jester P, Gal P, Wimmer J, Wade J, Whitley RJ, Kimberlin DW. Oseltamivir dosing for influenza infection in premature neonates. JID, 202(4):563-566, March 2010. PMID20594104, PMC2904429.  20594104 
Kimberlin DW, Acosta EP, Prichard MN, Sanchez PJ, Ampofo K, Lang D, Ashouri N, Vanchiere JA, Abzug MJ, Abughali N, Caserta MT, Englund JA, Sood SK, Spigarelli MG, Bradley JS, Lew J, Michaels MG, Wan W, Cloud G, Jester P, Lakeman F, Whitley RJ. Oseltamivir pharmacokinetics, dosing, and resistance in children from birth to two years of age with influenza. J Infect Dis. Advanced Access (2012) [doi: 10.1093/infdis/jis765] First published online: December 10, 2012. Jan 2013.   23230059 
Kimberlin DW, Shalabi M, Abzug MJ, Lang D, Jacobs RF, Storch G, Bradley JS, Wade K, Ramilo O, Romero JR, Shelton M, Leach C, Guzman-Cottrill J, Robinson J, Abughali N, Englund J, Griffin J, Jester P, Cloud GA, Whitley RJ, for the NIAID Collaborative Antiviral Study Group. Safety of oseltamivir compared with adamantanes in children less than 12 months of age. Ped Inf Dis, 29:195-198, 2010. PMID19949363  19949363 
Hart J, Tillman G, Kraut MA, Chiang H, Strain JF, Li Y, Agrawal AG, Jester P, Gnann JW, Whitley RJ. West Nile Virus neuroinvasive disease: neurological manifestations and prospective longitudinal outcomes. BMC Infectious Diseases, 14:248, 2014. PMCID PMC4020876.
 		 24884681 
Markert JM, Razdan SN, Kuo H, Cantor A, Knoll A, Karrusch M, Nabors LB, Markiewicz M, Coleman JM, Lakeman AD, Palmer CA, Parker JN, Whitley RJ, Weichselbaum RR, Fiveash JB, Gillespie GY. A phase I trial of oncolytic HSV-1, G207, given in combination with radiation for recurrent GMB demonstrates safety and radiographic responses. Molecular Therapy, February, 2014. PMCID PMC4015243.


 		 24572293 
Kimberlin DW, Jester PM, Sánchez PJ, Ahmed A, Arav-Boger R, Michaels M, Ashouri N, Englund JA, Estrada B, Jacobs RF, Romero JR, Sood SK, Whitworth MS, Abzug MJ, Caserta MT, Fowler S, Lujan-Zilbermann J, Storch GA, DeBiasi RL, Han J-Y, Palmer A, Weiner LB, Bocchini JA, Dennehy PH, Finn A, Griffiths P, Gutierrez K, Halasa N, Homans J, Shane A, Sharland M, Simonsen K, Vanchiere JA, Woods CR, Sabo DL, Aban I, Kuo H, James SH, Prichard MN, Griffin J, Giles G, Acosta EP, Whitley RJ, for the NIAID Collaborative Antiviral Study Group (CASG). Valganciclovir for Symptomatic Congenital Cytomegalovirus Disease. N. Engl. J. Med. 2015;372(10):933-943. PMID 25738669, PMC4401811
 		 25738669 
Gnann JW, Skoldenberg B, Hart J, Aurelius E, Schliamser S, Studahl M, Eriksson B, Hanley D, Aoki F, Jackson AC, Griffiths P, Miedzinski L, Hanfelt-Goade D, Hinthorn D, Ahlm C, Aksamit A, Cruz-Flores S, Dale I, Cloud G, Jester P, Whitley RJ for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Collaborative Antiviral Study Group. Herpes simplex encephalitis: lack of clinical benefit of long-term valacyclovir therapy. Clin Infect Dis Advance Access, June 6, 2015. doi: 10.1093/cid/civ369. PMID 25956891
 		 25956891 
Everts M, Suto MJ, Painter GR, Whitley RJ. Consortia’s critical role in developing medical countermeasures for re-emerging viral infections – a USA perspective. Future Virology 11(3):187-195, February 2016. DOI: 10.2217/fvl-2015-0011, PMID 27325914, PMCID PMC4912138  27325914 
Kimberlin DW, Acosta EP, Prichard MN, Sanchez PJ, Ampofo K, Lang D, Ashouri N, Vanchiere JA, Abzug MJ, Abughali N, Caserta MT, Englund JA, Sood SK, Spigarelli MG, Bradley JS, Lew J, Michaels MG, Wan W, Cloud G, Jester P, Lakeman F, Whitley RJ. Oseltamivir pharmacokinetics, dosing, and resistance in children from birth to two years of age with influenza. J Infect Dis Advanced Access (2012) doi: 10.1093/infdis/jis765 First published online: December 10, 2012  23230059 
 

Keywords
Herpes simplex virus; varicella zoster virus; drug discovery; cytomegalovirus