William S. Caldwell, Ph.D. Senior Vice President, Drug Discovery and Development

Dr. Caldwell co-founded Targacept in 1997 and serves as Senior Vice President, Drug Discovery and Development.   He has over 30 years of experience in organic chemistry, focusing on applications of physical and synthetic organic chemistry to mechanisms of pharmacological and toxicological effects of drugs and other xenobiotics. Prior to founding Targacept, Dr. Caldwell held positions of increasing responsibility at R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJRT), including head of the Biological Chemistry Division.  He holds adjunct appointments in the chemistry department of Wake Forest University and in the physiology/pharmacology department at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.  Dr. Caldwell received a B.S. in chemistry from the University of the South and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Wisconsin.