Ivan Rusyn

Dr. Ivan Rusyn, MD, PhD, is a University Professor in the Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology at the School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at Texas A&M University. He earned his Doctor of Medicine from the Ukrainian State Medical University in Kyiv (1994) and a PhD in Toxicology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2000). Following postdoctoral appointments at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Düsseldorf, Dr. Rusyn began his faculty career at UNC-Chapel Hill in 2002, rising to the rank of Full Professor in 2010. In 2014, he was recruited to Texas A&M through the Chancellor’s Research Initiative, recognizing his status as a leading scholar.

At Texas A&M, Dr. Rusyn has made transformative contributions to both research and education. He serves as the founding Director of the Texas A&M Superfund Research Program (established in 2017), and he also leads the NIEHS-funded Institutional Training Grant (T32) and plays a key role in the Environmental Health Core Center (P30). Under his leadership, Texas A&M has become one of only a few universities nationwide to hold these three major NIEHS awards, reflecting his success in securing and directing large, multidisciplinary research efforts. His research program is supported by the National Institutes of Health, Texas A&M, industry partners, and other sponsors. Dr. Rusyn is an international leader in the development and application of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) - innovative testing strategies designed to accelerate drug and chemical safety evaluations while reducing reliance on animal testing. His seminal research demonstrating how human cell-based models can be used to characterize and quantify inter-individual variability in chemical toxicity has been widely recognized and cited as exemplary in multiple National Academies reports. This body of work has significantly advanced the science of risk assessment and continues to shape the field of regulatory toxicology. In addition, Dr. Rusyn’s pioneering leadership in the testing and qualification of tissue-chip models for toxicology has positioned his laboratory - and Texas A&M University more broadly - as a premier international hub for bridging the gap between academic innovation and practical application in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. The policy relevance of his research is reflected in the breadth of its impact: industry leaders, trade associations, and government agencies alike seek his expertise in advancing the transition from traditional, animal-based regulatory science to approaches grounded in human-relevant, physiologically based models.