Dr. Bell received his BS in biology/premedicine from Florida Agriculture and Mechanical University in Tallahassee, Florida in 1981 and his MS and PhD in pharmaceutical sciences with a concentration in pharmacology/toxicology from Florida Agriculture and Mechanical University in 1989 and 1992, respectively. In 1992, Dr. Bell accepted a two-year postdoctoral research position with The Upjohn Company (now Pfizer Inc.) in Kalamazoo, Michigan under the direction of Dr. Gerald J. Kolaja, where he was involved in nephrotoxicity method development and gained a familiarity with nonclinical drug safety assessment. In 1994, following his postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Bell joined Ciba Pharmaceuticals Corporation (now Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation) in Summit, New Jersey as study director and also managed both the general and reproductive toxicology groups.

He became certified in general toxicology in 1996, as a diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology. In 1998, Dr. Bell joined GD Searle/Monsanto in Skokie, Illinois and his primary role was as a Discovery and Development Project Team representative on projects in the arthritis and inflammation therapeutic area. In 2003, Dr. Bell accepted an associate research fellow position with Pfizer Inc. Dr. Bell currently serves as both a regulatory strategy lead and a drug safety team lead at Pfizer Inc., Groton, Connecticut, with the primary responsibility for Pre-FIH–LOE oversight of submissions and regulatory strategies.