Two Johns Hopkins researchers named to National Academy of Inventors

Two Johns Hopkins researchers have been selected for membership in the National Academy of Inventors, the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors.

Image caption: From left, David Gracias and Zhaoli Sun

David Gracias, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and Zhaoli Sun, professor of surgery, pharmacology, and molecular sciences and director of the Transplant Biology Research Center at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, are among 170 distinguished academic inventors to be named NAI fellows this year. The 2024 class of fellows represents 135 research universities, governmental, and nonprofit research institutions worldwide. Collectively, they hold more than 5,000 issued U.S. patents.

"This year's class of NAI Fellows represents a truly impressive caliber of inventors," said Paul Sanberg, president of the NAI, in a news release announcing this year's cohort. "Each of these individuals is tackling real-world issues and creating solutions that propel us into the future. Through their work, they are making significant contributions to science, creating lasting societal impact, and growing the economy. NAI fellows as a whole are a driving force of innovation, generating crucial advancements across scientific disciplines and creating tangible impacts as they move their technologies from lab to marketplace."

David Gracias is an internationally renowned researcher in micro/nanotechnology, self-folding materials, and physical intelligence. He has secondary appointments in the departments of Chemistry and Materials Science and Engineering as well as the Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics and the Institute for NanoBioTechnology. His secondary appointments at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine are in the Department of Oncology, the Center for Microphysiological Systems, and the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center.

His pioneering contributions are described in over 200 technical publications, including Science, PNAS, Nature-X, and Science-X. Gracias Lab's research contributions have been highlighted by government agencies such as the NIH, NSF, and the U.S. Army and in the press, including The New York Times, Popular Mechanics, Discovery Channel, Forbes, and Scientific American.

A prolific inventor, Gracias holds 36 issued patents, with notable inventions on microchip backend integration, self-assembly, self-folding polyhedra, curved, folded, and integrated biosensors, microphysiological systems, thermoresponsive and DNA programmable soft-robots, untethered microgrippers and microinjectors. Several of these patents have been put into commercial practice, and his engineering translational efforts include co-founding a start-up that was later acquired.

Zhaoli Sun is a professor of surgery, pharmacology, and molecular science and the director of the Transplant Biology Research Center at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He also serves as the director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism-funded Clinical Resource for Alcoholic Hepatitis Investigation, scientific director of the DELTA Center for Alcohol Research, and co-founder of the Islet Auto-Transplantation Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Sun's research focuses on transplant immunobiology, liver transplantation and pathogenesis of alcohol-associated liver disease, and tissue repair/regeneration. His work has been consistently funded by multiple NIH grants since 2005. His findings have been featured prominently, including highlights in The American Journal of Transplantation, Nature Reviews Gastroenterology, and Nature Reviews Nephrology.

Sun has significantly contributed to medicine through the discovery of a novel immunoregulatory and regenerative therapy which is currently in phase II clinical trials. He holds over 30 U.S. and international patents, all of which have been licensed to pharmaceutical companies. He is also the scientific founder of MEDREGEN LLC, a company developing three products for over 20 therapeutic indications based on his groundbreaking discoveries at Johns Hopkins.

Since its founding in 2012, the NAI Fellows program has grown to include 2,068 exceptional researchers and innovators, who hold over 68,000 U.S. patents and 20,000 licensed technologies. NAI Fellows are known for the societal and economic impact of their inventions, contributing to major advancements in science and consumer technologies. Their innovations have generated over $3.2 trillion in revenue and generated 1.2 million jobs. The 2024 class of fellows will be honored and inducted at the NAI 14th annual meeting on June 26 in Atlanta, Georgia.