Staff at the School of Pharmacy, Royal Technical College, in 1929. They are, from top left, Edward Arthur; J M Leitch; Robert Nairn; P L Murphy; E J Schorn; James P Todd; Professor David Ellis; Blodwen Lloyd.
At the instigation of the Glasgow and West of Scotland Chemists' Association, the School of Pharmacy was established in 1920 to enable students to study for qualifications awarded by the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain. David Ellis, a lecturer in bacteriology and botany, was appointed Superintendent. By arrangement with the University of Glasgow, students were also able to study for a degree of BSc in Pharmacy.
During the Second World War, the Deparment of Pharmacy became the Central Depot for the National Blood Transfusion Service. Improved facilities in the Royal College Building were added in the 1950s, and by the time the College became the University of Strathclyde in 1964 industrial companies were sponsoring significant research. The development of the drug atracurium in the 1980s earned considerable revenue in royalties.
In 2004 the University's School of Pharmacy is comprised of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Department of Physiology & Pharmacology.
Reference: P4/138
Reproduced with the permission of Strathclyde University Archives
Keywords:
atracurium, chemistry, drugs, Glasgow and West of Scotland Chemists' Association, National Blood Transfusion Service, pharmaceutical sciences, Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, pharmacology, pharmacy, physiology, Royal Technical College, University of Strathclyde, women