Curtis D. Klaassen, MS, PhD, FATS, FAASLD, FASPET
University Distinguished Professor and Chair (retired)
Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutics
The University of Kansas, School of Medicine, Kansas City, KS
Dr. Klaassen received his B.S. from Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa in 1964, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Iowa and was at Kansas Medical Center for 45 years. Dr. Klaassen was certified in toxicology by the American Board of Toxicology (1980-2020) and the Academy of Toxicological Sciences (1991-present).
Dr. Klaassen’s research interests have centered on how we adapt to chemicals in the environment. Studies have included the hepatobiliary disposition of xenobiotics, the toxicity of cadmium, the hepatotoxicity of chemicals, and mechanisms of chemical-induced thyroid tumors. He has published approximately 600 peer-reviewed articles, and more than 90 review articles and chapters for books. He was cited by Eugene Garfield in Current Contents (January 18, 1993) as the scientist that had the fourth highest scientific impact in the United States in the study of xenobiotics (drugs and other chemicals), and in 2002 was named “Highly Cited Researcher” in Pharmacology (top 0.5%) by the Institute for Scientific Information. In 2007, InCites (Clarivate analysis) distinguished Dr. Klaassen as a “Most-Cited Researcher in Pharmacology and Toxicology” over the past 10 years and ranks him as the seventh most-cited researcher in Pharmacology and Toxicology in the world. Last but not least, according to Google Scholar, his publications have been cited more than 96,500 times and he has an h-index of 124.
Dr. Klaassen is most proud of the 120 Ph.D. students and Postdoctoral Fellows that he mentored at the University of Kansas. Five of his students have received the Achievement Award from the Society of Toxicology and three have been elected president of the Society.
Dr. Klaassen has been an associate editor of a number of journals including the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics for 24 years and Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology for 10 years. He was the inaugural Editor-in-Chief of Toxicological Sciences, the journal of the Society of Toxicology. He has served on more than a hundred national and international committees including those with the National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration, National Library of Medicine, Environmental Protection Agency, National Academy of Science, National Toxicology Program, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, International Life Science Institute, United States Air Force, World Health Organization, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, American Dental Association, and International Agency for Research on Cancer, etc.
He was elected President of the Society of Toxicology (1990-1991) as well as President of the International Union of Toxicology (1992-1995).
Dr. Klaassen is the founder (1980) and course director of the Mid-America Toxicology Course.