Sadly, our colleague and friend, Torgny H. Svennsson, M.D., Ph.D. died on June 12, 2020 due to complications of COVID-19 infection. Torgny was professor of Pharmacology at the Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm. He was an internationally recognized psychopharmacologist and neurophysiologist who focused on monoamine systems. Torgny’s work shed light on the mechanism of action of antipsychotic and antidepressant medications and it suggested novel mechanisms to enhance treatment efficacy.

Torgny obtained his M.D. at the University of Gothenburg, where he also obtained his Ph.D. with Nobel laureate, Arvid Carlsson. In 1973, Torgny was recruited for a postdoctoral fellowship with George Aghajanian at Yale. GKA recalls, “the Carlsson lab was doing some pioneering research on dopamine neuronal systems…what they lacked…was single cell electrophysiology…the focus of my lab at that time. As our recordings were based on maps generated by the Swedish Histochemistry Group, I thought it was a fair trade to accept Torgny as a postdoc. I wasn’t disappointed. Torgny was one of the most enthusiastic postdocs that I ever had…a delight to have in the lab…Steve Bunney was also a trainee in the lab and (the two of them) became good friends”.

Following his time at Yale, Torgny returned to Gothenburg and soon emerged as a leader in the field. In 1983, after spending a year with Floyd Bloom at the Salk Research Institute, he was appointed professor of Pharmacology at the Karolinska Institutet. He established a productive laboratory and he was a dedicated mentor to young scientists. That summer, AAM also moved to the Karolinska Institutet. The two began an enduring scientific collaboration and friendship between their families celebrated with trips to scientific meetings and vacations in Italy and France.

Torgny’s leadership in our field was reflected in many ways. He served on the Nobel Committee for two decades and as a trustee of the Nobel Foundation. He also served two terms as president of the Scandinavian College of Neuropsychopharmacology and one term as president of the International College of Neuropsychopharmacology (CINP, 2006–2008). He published widely and received several prominent awards for his work. In particular, he received the ECNP Neuropsychopharmacology Award and the CINP Pioneer Award, the latter shortly before his death.

Torgny was an active and devoted ACNP member. Over four decades, he enjoyed connecting with his wide international network of friends and colleagues at our meeting. A preclinical psychopharmacologist, Torgny was fond of hypotheses, theoretical speculations and scientific argumentation. He also believed that psychopharmacological research should aim to improve the lives of patients.

Torgny is survived by his wife Louise, their three children, and 7 grandchildren. Louise attended many ACNP Annual Meetings with Torgny. She, too, will be missed at our Annual Meetings. Sadly, Torgny died shortly before they could celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

The passing of Torgny Svensson is a loss for the ACNP community. His science and his collegiality will be missed by his friends around the world.