Dr. George Georgiou, professor of chemical engineering and biomedical engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, has received the 2005 Food, Pharmaceutical & Bioengineering Division Award in Chemical Engineering from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AICHE).
The award honors his seminal contributions to protein engineering and applied microbial physiology that have led to numerous technologies.
Georgiou has developed several protein-based therapies for diseases, including co-developing the leading approach under consideration for treatment of inhaled anthrax. The approach is undergoing clinical evaluation by Elusys Therapeutics Inc. before it is considered for Food and Drug Administration review to become an approved treatment. Other research currently in progress includes the engineering of antibodies for protection against SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and the discovery of proteins that can treat autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. His group is also developing generic technologies for accelerating the discovery and production of protein drugs.
Holder of the Cockrell Family Regents Chair in Engineering #9, Georgiou's other recent honors include election to the National Academy of Engineering, and receiving the AICHE Outstanding Progress in Chemical Engineering Award and the American Chemical Society's Johnson Award in Biochemical Technology.
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