Busija named Fellow of the American Physiological Society

David Busija, PhD, Regents Endowed Professor and Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at Tulane University School of Medicine, has been named a Fellow of the American Physiological Society (APS). This honor is awarded to distinguished leaders who have demonstrated excellence in science and have made significant contributions to physiological sciences and related disciplines. Out of more than 10,000 members of the APS, only about 250 have been recognized as prestigious Fellows.

Busija has been Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at Tulane for 11 years and a researcher for more than four decades. He has published over 300 papers on various topics related to physiological control of the cerebral vasculature - and recently also pioneered studies of mitochondrial dynamics in the brain and brain circulation. Busija has had continuous independent funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 1983, published extensively in APS and other journals and served as a permanent member of two NIH study sections.

One of Busija’s proudest accomplishments is seeing the many students and the trainees he’s taught go on to flourish in their careers.

“I’ve trained graduate students and post-doctoral fellows who have been successful and went on to productive careers in academics, medicine and industry,” said Busija. “One became a medical school dean, two are department chairs and several hold various faculty ranks including professor. None of my trainees have had ethical problems and many are APS members.”

In addition to the Fellowship, Busija was both recently appointed as a member of the APS Finance Committee and reappointed to another term as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of American Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology. He was also awarded an honorary degree from the University of Szeged, which acknowledged his major contributions to the research efforts of that institution.