The National Academy of Inventors has named Phil Felgner a fellow for 2022. Phil Felgner, Professor in Residence, Physiology and Biophysics, is being honored for a series of discoveries based on biophysics principles and the structure and hydrodynamic properties of bilayer membranes. He has developed approaches that enable the transfer of nucleic acids into cells, a pioneering technology used in developing messenger RNA COVID-19 vaccines. This messenger RNA technology also will be used to create vaccines to fight HIV and other infectious diseases. It offers possibilities for treating cancer and Alzheimer’s disease and correcting genetic disorders such as sickle cell disease and impaired vision. Professor Felgner has published 280 papers that have been cited 44,000 times and has 53 U.S. patents and 56 foreign patents, including 14 licensed patents. He received Spain’s Princess of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research and won the 2022 Robert Koch Prize.

The National Academy of Inventors Fellows Program is the organization’s highest professional distinction awarded solely to academic inventors to recognize innovation that has made a tangible impact on the quality of life, economic development and welfare of society.