Mick Hitchcock, a bio-pharmaceutical researcher specializing in the development of life-changing antiviral treatments such as for HIV/AIDS, is the final speaker in the College of Science's 2017-2018 Discover Science Lecture Series. The lecture is free and open to the public. It will be held at 7 p.m., Thursday, April 5, in the Redfield Auditorium inside the Davidson Mathematics and Science Center at the University of Nevada, Reno.

The lecture series is designed to bring top scientists from around the country to the northern Nevada community to talk about science. Hitchcock is the senior advisor to Gilead Sciences, a bio-pharmaceutical company developing life-changing HIV/AIDS treatments.

Mick Hitchcock

Prior to working at Gilead, Hitchcock spent 12 years at Bristol-Myers Squibb, and would later develop Viread with his former Bristol colleague, John Martin. Viread is a once-daily pill to treat HIV and was approved by the FDA in 2001. Before Viread, AIDS patients would take as many as a dozen pills throughout the day, suffering side effects including gauntness, anemia and liver damage. The development and research of this drug revolutionized antiviral treatment, allowing AIDS patients to treat symptoms with ease.

In 2014, Hitchcock made a gift to the University to establish the Mick Hitchcock, Ph.D. Endowed Chair in Medical Biochemistry to further participate in the research of biochemistry. He continues to support the University through generous contributions, and received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters last spring.

He completed undergraduate and master's degrees in biochemistry at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, and pursued a doctorate in microbiology at the University of Melbourne.

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Discover Science lectures are always free to the public. They are held at 7 p.m. in the Redfield Auditorium inside the Davidson Mathematics and Science Center at the University of Nevada, Reno. Free parking for the event is available on the top level of the Brian J. Whalen Parking Complex on North Virginia Street, next to the E. L. Wiegand Fitness Center. For more information, call 775-784-4591 or visit the Discover Science Lecture Series website.