Clifton Barry III, Ph.D.

Chief, Tuberculosis Research Section

Contact: For contact information, search the NIH Enterprise Directory.

Education:

Ph.D., 1989, Cornell University

Clif Barry headshot

Biography

Dr. Clifton E. Barry III received his Ph.D. in organic and bioorganic chemistry in 1989 from Cornell University, studying the biosynthesis of complex natural products. Following postdoctoral research in the chemistry department at Johns Hopkins University (1989 to 1992), Dr. Barry joined the NIH Intramural Research Program at the NIAID Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana. In 1998, he was tenured as chief of the Tuberculosis Research Section (TBRS) in the Laboratory of Clinical Infectious Diseases.

TBRS is a multidisciplinary group of research scientists composed of biologists, chemists, and clinicians who share a common focus on tuberculosis (TB). TBRS projects focus on understanding the scientific issues that facilitate the development of drugs that will make a genuine difference in the outcome for TB patients globally. TBRS scientists are highly interactive worldwide in this endeavor. As a result of our outstanding collaborations, TBRS is the most highly cited TB research group in the world, according to Thomson Reuters. Dr Barry has authored over 300 publications in scientific literature. Working with scientists at PathoGenesis in Seattle, TBRS played a key role in the preclinical development program that led to PA-824 (Pretomanid, recently approved for treating drug-resistant TB). TBRS scientists conceived and conducted the Phase 2 clinical trial showing the utility of using linezolid for the treatment of patients suffering from extensively drug-resistant TB, now recommended by the World Health Organization. Working with scientists at Merck, TBRS has developed a safer oxazolidinone for TB that is currently in Phase 1 safety studies.

In addition to TBRS laboratories in Bethesda, TBRS works closely with colleagues at Stellenbosch University (SUN) and the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa. Dr. Barry holds honorary appointments at SUN and UCT and has a laboratory in the Institute for Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine at UCT.