Prof. Paavo Honkakoski received his Ph.D. degree in 1992 on characterization and regulation of phenobarbital-inducible CYP enzymes (University of Kuopio, Finland). He was a post-doctoral fellow in 1992-97 (Laboratory of Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology, NIEHS/NIH, Research Triangle Park, NC) where his seminal work on the discovery of nuclear receptor CAR, concurrently with cloning of the PXR receptor, provided the molecular foundation for induction of drug metabolism and disposition. Recently, he was a visiting professor in 2014-15 at the Eshelman School of Pharmacy, UNC-Chapel Hill, NC.

His current research revolves around regulation of drug metabolizing enzymes and drug transporters, properties of nuclear receptors and their applications to assess drug ADMET properties. He has >100 peer-reviewed papers garnering >4700 citations. He is active in both graduate and PhD education, having supervised >50 MSc and 11 PhD theses. He is a director of Graduate Schools/Doctoral Programs in drug research since 2008. He also serves as a Vice Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, with responsibilities in research infrastructures and doctoral programs.