Ph.D., Pharmacology & Therapeutics, University of Florida College of Medicine
B.S., Toxicology, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy & Science

Dr. David Kroll is Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at North Carolina Central University in their Biomanufacturing Research Institute and Research Enterprise (BRITE) . Dr. Kroll is a cancer pharmacologist specializing in the discovery of novel anticancer drugs from plants, bacteria and fungi.  His laboratory also studies the risks and potential utility of herbal dietary supplements in cancer chemotherapy.

Dr. Kroll is a guest lecturer to undergraduate and graduate journalism students on interpretation of the primary medical literature and the value of science and medical blogging.  Since 2005, he has been a member of the Advisory Board for the UNC Medical Journalism Master’s Program.

From 1992 to 2001, Kroll was Assistant and Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Colorado School of Pharmacy in Denver with teaching duties in oncology, infectious diseases, and neuropharmacology.  His natural products expertise led to creation of a module on herbal and non-botanical dietary supplements in Colorado’s required non-prescription drug course.  In 1997, he co-authored with Steven Bratman, M.D., the reference, Clinical Evaluation of Medicinal Herbs and Other Therapeutic Natural Products, and was co-editor of The Natural Pharmacist 16-book consumer series from Prima Publishing.  Kroll’s collective efforts were recognized in 2000 with his election as a University of Colorado President’s Teaching Scholar.  In 2002, Kroll joined Research Triangle Institute (RTI) as Senior Research Pharmacologist in their Natural Products Laboratory program prior to joining NCCU in 2008. His cancer research program has received support from the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute.

Kroll’s interest and expertise in public education on drugs and herbal supplements was sought frequently by Denver broadcast and print journalists.  With his move to North Carolina in 2001, his interactions with the media have continued where he appears regularly as a guest on NPR’s The People’s Pharmacy with Joe and Terry Graedon and Dr. Timothy Johnson’s Healthy Life program on ABC News Now.  Dr. Kroll also serves on the expert panel in pharmacotherapy and drug safety for the ABC News Medical Unit.

Kroll also writes Terra Sigillata , a natural products and drug information blog for Seed Media Group’s ScienceBlogs.com network.  In 2006, Terra Sigillata was cited by Nature among the top 50 popular science blogs written by scientists.  In Fall 2008, Dr. Kroll also began contributing to Science-Based Medicine , a group blog exploring issues and controversies in the relationship between science and medicine.

Research links:
[http://brite.nccu.edu ]
[http://brite.nccu.edu/Dr_Kroll]

Science/Medical blog links:
[http://scienceblogs.com/terrasig]
[http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org]