Victor Darley-Usmar, PhD, has been appointed chair of the Conflict of Interest Review Board (CIRB), replacing Edward W. Hook III, MD, who served on the board for 8 years, 4 of them as chair. Dr. Darley-Usmar is UAB professor of pathology and associate medical dean for postdoctoral education. His major research focus is elucidating how free radicals control cell function and contribute to cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Darley-Usmar received his PhD degree from the University of Essex in the United Kingdom (UK) and completed postdoctoral studies at the University of Oregon. After a brief teaching and research period at the University of Tsukuba in Japan, he returned to the UK to join the Wellcome Research Foundation in Beckenham, Kent. As a research scientist, he initiated projects in the emerging field of free-radical biology and contributed to the discovery that nitric oxide controls mitochondrial function. Upon merger of the company with GlaxoSmithKline in 1995, he joined the UAB Free Radical Group and now leads research investigating the role of mitochondria and redox cell signaling, with a particular emphasis on nitric oxide.

CIRB's mission is to maintain public trust in the university's research and sponsored programs by ensuring that they are objective and not influenced by financial conflicts of interest.