About Jim

My Biography

I received my Ph.D. under the mentorship of the pioneering neuroendocrinologist, Joseph Meites at Michigan State University in 1977. I joined the University of Florida and rose through the academic ranks to a full professorship in 1986. While at the University of Florida, I was the founding director of the Center for the Neurobiology of Aging, served as Chair of two departments and was appointed the Frank Duckworth Professor of Drug Discovery in 1996. In 2000, I became the Chair of the Department of Pharmacology & Neuroscience and Founding Director of the Institute for Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease Research at the University of North Texas Health Science Center. In 2012, I joined the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and serves as the Founding Director of the Center for Basic and Translational Stroke Research at West Virginia University. I received the Harman Award for Life-time Achievement for Aging Research from the American Association of Aging in 2012 and was named the Highland Chair of Stroke/Neurology in 2015. As co-author of 414 full length publications, my research has centered on the discovery of novel compounds for the treatment of age-related brain disorders, with a particular focus on Alzheimer’s disease and stroke. I have 22 US and foreign patents.

Selected Publications

Lucke-Wold BP, Turner RC, Logsdon AF, Simpkins JW, Alkon DL, Smith KE, Chen YW, Tan Z, Huber JD and Rosen CL (2015). Common mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease and Ischemic stroke: the role of protein kinase C in the progression of age-related neurodegeneration. J Alzheimers Dis 43: 711–724.
Hodson CA, Simpkins JW and Meites J (1978). Inhibition of LH release and LHRH action by the ovaries of postpartum lactating rats. Endocrinology 102: 832‑836.
Hu H, Doll DN, Sun J, Lewis SE, Wimsatt JH, Kessler MJ, Simpkins JW, Ren X (2016). Mitochondrial impairment in cerebrovascular endothelial cells is involved in the correlation between body temperature and stroke severity. Aging Dis (2016) 7: 14-27.
Shi J, Bui JD, Yang SH, He Z, Lucas TH, Buckley DL, Blackband SJ, King MA, Day AL and Simpkins JW (2001). Estrogens decrease reperfusion-associated cortical ischemic damage: an MRI analysis in a transient focal ischemia model. Stroke 32: 987-992.
Simpkins JW, Huang HH, Advis JP and Meites J (1979). Changes in hypothalamic NE and DA turnover resulting from steroid-induced LH and prolactin surges in ovariectomized rats. Biol Reprod 20: 625‑632.
Simpkins JW, Singh M, Brock C and Etgen AM (2012). Neuroprotection and estrogen receptors. Neuroendocrinology 96: 119-130.