Rate My Professor Graeme Milligan

Professor Graeme Milligan is the Gardiner Professor of Biochemistry in the School of Molecular Biosciences within the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow. He obtained a B.Sc. (Hons. 1st class) in Biochemistry from the University of Birmingham (1976-1979) and a Ph.D. from the University of Nottingham (1979-1982), followed by a Fogarty International Visiting Fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA (1982-1985). Appointed Professor of Molecular Pharmacology at the University of Glasgow in 1994, he assumed the Gardiner Chair of Biochemistry in 2012. He currently serves as Deputy Head of the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences and previously held the position of Dean of Research. Milligan is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (elected 1998) and the Academy of Medical Sciences (2016).

With over 30 years of experience, Milligan's research centers on the structure, function, and regulation of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and their interacting proteins, translating fundamental insights into small molecule drug discovery for conditions such as diabetes, obesity, neuropsychiatric disorders, inflammation, and metabolic diseases. His work emphasizes receptors regulated by metabolic products, including free fatty acid receptors (FFA2, FFA3, FFA4) and orphan receptors (GPR35, GPR84). He has authored or co-authored more than 550 peer-reviewed publications, garnering over 35,000 citations, with seminal contributions including 'G protein-coupled receptor dimerization: function and ligand pharmacology' (2004), 'Heterotrimeric G-proteins: a short history' (2006), and recent works on GPR84 antagonists and FFA2 allosteric modulation. Milligan has edited key volumes such as 'G-Protein-Coupled Receptor Dimers' (2017) and 'Free Fatty Acid Receptors' (2017). His impact is recognized through awards including the Royal Society Mullard Award (2022) for pharmacological leadership and translational success, the British Pharmacological Society JR Vane Medal (2016) for molecular and signalling pharmacology, the Norwegian Poulsson Medal (1998), and the Dutch Ariens Medal (2006). He co-founded Caldan Therapeutics (2015) targeting metabolic diseases and Keltic Pharma Therapeutics (2020) for malaria treatments.