Leslie Iversen Explained

Leslie Lars Iversen (31 October 1937  - 30 July 2020), was a British pharmacologist, known for his work on the neurochemistry of neurotransmission.

Early life

Of Norwegian descent, he attended Hele's School, Exeter.^{[1] [2]} See https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbm.2023.0008

Career and research

From 1971 to 1982, Iversen was Director of the MRC Neurochemical Pharmacology Unit in Cambridge. Between 1982 and 1995 he worked as Director of the Merck, Sharp & Dohme Neuroscience Research Centre. In 1995 he became Visiting Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Oxford.

In 2000, Iversen published the book The Science of Marijuana by Oxford University Press, Inc.^[3] In 2010 he was accused of plagiarism. Consequently one of his books now credits the original author of the plagiarized work.^[4]

Awards and honours

He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1980^{[5] [6]} and gave the Society's Ferrier Lecture in 1983.^[7] He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours, "for services to pharmacology".

He died on 30 July 2020, survived by his wife of over 60 years, Susan Iversen.^[8]

Notes and References

1. Express & Echo Tuesday 12 June 1956, page 6
2. Express & Echo Monday 20 August 1956, page 3
3. Web site: The science of marijuana . LL Iversen . Google Scholar . 2023-07-26 . scholar.google.com.
4. Web site: Plagiarism by British Drug Tsar . 24 July 2021 . 11 November 2010.
5. Robbins . Trevor W. . 2023 . Leslie Lars Iversen. 31 October 1937—30 July 2020 . Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society . 75. 263–278 . 10.1098/rsbm.2023.0008 . 258312871 . free .
6. Web site: Leslie Iversen. Royal Society. en-gb.
7. Web site: Ferrier Medal and Lecture . 30 November 2023 . .
8. Web site: In Memory of Leslie Iversen . 25 November 2020 . 7 August 2020 . .