A Lifelong Passion for Research and Discovery

Dr. Duane Miller was recently named the Top Professor Emeritus of the Decade 2026. Dr. Miller's contributions to drug discovery and development are a vital part of the College of Pharmacy's reputation for research excellence.

"New discoveries in science are more important to me than money." That's how researcher Duane Miller, PhD, describes the passion that has driven his career.

"You can't understand the excitement you have when you find out that one of your drugs works the way you think it should, or you get a surprise, the fact that it works in a different way, but it does a really good job," says Dr. Miller, a distinguished figure in the world of Pharmaceutical Sciences and an admired mentor, researcher, and educator any the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Recently, Dr. Miller was named the Top Professor Emeritus of the Decade 2026 by the International Association of Top Professionals. This prestigious recognition celebrates Dr. Miller's exceptional contributions to pharmaceutical research, education, and mentorship over more than four decades.

As a professor emeritus at the UT Health Science Center College of Pharmacy since 2015 and a professor since 1992, his remarkable career boasts over 100 patents, more than 400 published articles, and the development of at least three drugs that have advanced to clinical trials. For those familiar with the field, Dr. Miller's name is synonymous with innovation and excellence.

Dr. Miller's contributions to drug discovery and development are a vital part of the College of Pharmacy's reputation for research excellence, and contribute to the university's R1 ranking among the nation's top research institutions. Since 2020, it has consistently ranked among the top 15 NIH-funded institutions, reaching as high as sixth place in 2022.

From Pharmacy to Drug Discovery

Dr. Miller's earliest memories of pharmacy date back to his teenage years, when he would pick up Isoproterenol from a local pharmacist to help his father, who suffered from emphysema. Inspired by how Isoproterenol eased his father's emphysema, Dr. Miller attended college to pursue a career as a small-town pharmacist. However, he was encouraged by the professors to pursue a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences instead and develop his research skills. "I thought, maybe I could design drugs to help my dad," he recalls.

Unfortunately, while effective, Isoproterenol had significant effects on the heart. These complications would contribute to his father's death. Motivated by this experience, after completing his PhD at the University of Washington, Dr. Miller joined the faculty of Ohio State University as a researcher, where he spent 23 years. There, he focused on developing medications for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). "I wanted to see if we can make some compounds that target the lungs without impacting the heart," Dr. Miller says. However, the industry moved faster, developing drugs like Albuterol, which today are the most widely used drugs for COPD, emphysema, and other respiratory conditions.

In the 1990s, Dr. Miller received a call from Dick R. Gourley, PharmD, then the dean of the UT Health Science Center College of Pharmacy. Dr. Gourley offered him the Van Fleet Endowment Professorship at the college, encouraging him to relocate and join the faculty to enhance its research capabilities. "Dr. Gourley said, 'We have money, you need help. You can use that money to do research,'" Dr. Miller says. "Hey, he was a good salesman, right?" The Van Fleet Endowment Professorship provided an excellent opportunity for starting new research at UTHSC.

Facing Potential and Challenges

As a professor at UT Health Sciences, Dr. Miller observed the expertise of other professors in the college, recognizing that their skills could significantly benefit his research through collaboration. One of these was Jim Dalton, PhD, who is now the executive vice president and provost at the University of Alabama. Together, they developed the drug GTX-024, a novel compound that activates muscle growth. Notably, the drug is orally administered, the first of its kind compared to traditional muscle growth treatments like testosterone, which require injections.

Patenting and licensing the product to GTX, a company founded at UT Health Science Center, the compound proceeded through clinical trial phases I, II, and III without issue. However, when the last phase came around, the Federal Drug Administration failed to approve the drug for medicinal use in 2013. "It was the most disappointing meeting I've ever had in my life," Dr. Miller says, attributing the failed approval to the test subjects not being able to run up and down stairs faster than the subjects who were not using the drug.

Recently, new interest has been sparked in the compound due to the rise of GLP-1s, the drugs that are revolutionizing weight loss. While GLP-1s are effective at helping manage cravings and promote weight loss, a common side effect is muscle loss during treatment. This is where the muscle-building benefits of Dr. Miller's compound come into play. "I would not be surprised that in the future there will be a combination of these two types of drugs. And, you know, it is just logical," Dr. Miller says.

Innovative Treatment for Prostate Cancer and Beyond

Over the past several years, Dr. Miller has worked with Ramesh Narayanan, PhD, a researcher in the UT Health Science Center College of Medicine, to develop a new investigational dual-action androgen receptor inhibitor called ONTC-534. This medication is meant for treating advanced prostate cancer that no longer responds to hormone therapy and other diseases driven by the androgen receptor. Current treatments for advanced prostate cancer are limited and often ineffective because tumors develop resistance to Enzalutamide or Temozolomide, common drugs used in treatment. A major reason for treatment failure or relapse is mutations in the androgen receptor protein. The team found that their compound can specifically target and break down overly active androgen receptors. This helps make cancer treatments work better and can also reduce the chances of patients developing resistance to the drugs. This offers a crucial option for those who relapse during treatment and holds the potential to extend the lives of prostate cancer patients.

Dr. Miller and Dr. Ramesh Narayanan are collaborating on a new medication meant for treating advanced prostate cancer. "Collaboration, to me, is the key to doing excellent research," Dr. Miller says.

The potential of the compound is further exemplified by the fact that the drug was fast-tracked by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023. It is now in phase I clinical trials. "Everybody's making kinase inhibitors, and suddenly, Dr. Narayanan and I found a kinase stimulant, and it works on ovarian cancer. This compound worked differently than any other drug molecule with which we have worked. Isn't that unbelievable? Now we are working on derivatives. So, we can one day get an effective kinase stimulant drug."

Growth Through Collaboration

Today, Dr. Miller also enjoys collaborating with Lawrence Pfeffer, PhD, from the UT Health Science Center Department of Pathology on brain cancer research. They currently have a grant for making and testing new drugs to treat brain cancer and hope to find an agent to treat this deadly disease.

When considering the growth of drug discovery at the college, Dr. Miller is impressed by the program's progress. "When I first came here, it was a very small group,' Dr. Miller says. "Now we have different research groups around the college that are working on different diseases, and that is good. Collaboration, to me, is the key to doing excellent research. We discover and report drugs so that other scientists can take advantage of the knowledge. It is important to publish because then other people can see it, they can pick up new insight, and move new research ideas forward."