Professor Mark Grinstaff, who has a joint appointment between the Boston University departments of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering, was named a National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Charter Fellow in December 2012. He is one of only 98 academic inventors and innovators elected to this honor. Combined, Charter Fellows hold more than 3,200 U.S. Patents and include eight Nobel Laureates, two Fellows of the Royal Society, 12 presidents of research universities and non-profit research institutes, 50 members of the National Academies (National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine), 11 inductees of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, three recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, four recipients of the National Medal of Science, and 29 AAAS Fellows, among other major awards and distinctions.

Professor Grinstaff received his PhD in Chemistry in 1992 with Professor Kenneth Suslick and went on to be an NIH postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology with Professor Harry Gray. He joined Boston University in 2003 where he has established a laboratory that pursues highly interdisciplinary research in the areas of macromolecular chemistry and biomedical engineering. The Grinstaff group elucidates fundamental chemistry principles and combines their findings with engineering projects with translational applications affecting human health and society. Projects range from development of multifunctional drug delivery devices to the creation of a high temperature Li-ion battery. Prof. Grinstaff has 36 patents or patent applications leading to four startup companies, which in turn have led to four medical device products being sold and used in the clinic.

Reprinted from Boston University Department of Chemistry Front Page News.