John Higgins

John Higgins is currently an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Executive Director of the Discovery Pharmaceutical Sciences department at Merck’s Discovery Center. His career spans over 30 years in pharmaceutical research, focusing on drug delivery, solid state chemistry, and biomaterials.

• Education:
  • B.S. in Biochemistry from Albright College
  • Ph.D. in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from Brown University
  • Postdoctoral Fellowship at Sloan-Kettering Cancer Institute (departments of Positron Emission Tomography and Neurology)

His research specializes in enhancing therapeutic agent bioperformance through prodrug design, miniaturized polymeric amorphous dispersions, and nanoparticle technologies. He has contributed to early research on Pt-antitumor drugs and peptide-based diagnostic agents.

John is co-inventor on 13 US Patents and author of numerous publications and book chapters in organic, solid state, and medicinal chemistry. At UPenn, he teaches drug discovery and development courses, bridging academic knowledge with industry practices.