Mark Prausnitz, a Regents’ Professor in the School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, has been elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). He joins an elite group of just 414 NAI Fellows worldwide.

The designation honors those who “have demonstrated a highly prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.”

Prausnitz was chosen for the honor based on his revolutionary work in drug delivery technologies, especially microneedles, which are tiny needles (about 400 to 700 microns long) that can be designed as skin patches that provide a simple, painless and inexpensive way to administer influenza, polio, measles and other vaccines. Microneedles also can be prepared for microinjection into the eye for highly targeted therapies designed to increase drug effectiveness and safety.

“Our laboratory not only strives to advance scientific understanding and provide research training to students but also seeks to make inventions that can benefit society,” Prausnitz said.

Prausnitz will be honored at the NAI Fellows Luncheon and Induction Ceremony at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena on March 20. The event is part of the organization’s annual conference.

Prausnitz also was named to the list of the World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds this year.