Nicholas Peppas, professor of biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, surgery and pharmacy at the University of Texas at Austin and a pioneer in biomaterials and drug delivery systems, will deliver the John R. and Donna S. Hall Engineering Lecture Tuesday, March 21, at 4 p.m. in the Vanderbilt School of Engineering’s “Jacobs Believed in Me Auditorium,” Featheringill Hall 134. His lecture, “Intelligent Biomaterials in Nanotechnology and Precision Medicine,” is open to the Vanderbilt University community.
The multidisciplinary approach of Peppas’ research in biomolecular engineering blends modern molecular and cellular biology with engineering to design next-generation medicines and devices. His laboratory is well-known in the fields of drug delivery and controlled release. Current clinical targets include early detection of Sjörgen’s syndrome, treatment of gastrointestinal diseases, oral delivery for multiple sclerosis and diabetes treatments, healing non-union bone fractures, and innovative approaches for treating bone marrow-associated cancers, glioblastoma multiforme, and colorectal cancer.
Peppas is a highly accomplished professor, innovator and entrepreneur. He holds the Cockrell Family Regents Chair in Engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering. He is the recipient of 13 honorary doctorates and professorships, numerous U.S. patents pending or issued, three startup companies, and more than 1,700 papers published. Pappas joined the UT Austin faculty in 2002 and served as chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering from 2009 to 2015 and holds a Dipl. Eng. From National Technical University of Athens and a Sc.D. from MIT.
Among his accolades, Peppas has received the Founders Award from the National Academy of Engineering, the Acta Biomaterialia Gold Medal, the Founders Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Benjamin Garver Lamme Excellence in Engineering Education Award from the American Society for Engineering Education.
Peppas is president of Sigma Xi, the scientific research honor society for scientists and engineers, and is editor-in-chief of “Regenerative Biomaterials” (Oxford University Press). He is the recipient of the Robert A. Pritzker Distinguished Lecture Award and was recognized by the American Institute for Chemical Engineers with a symposium honoring his “40 Years of Impact at the Frontiers of Science and Engineering.” In addition, he is a member of is a member of 18 Academies, including the National Academy of Medicine, the National Academy of Engineering, the Royal Academy of Chemistry, the National Royal Academy of Spain, the National Academy of France and the National Academy of Athens.
Established in 2002, the John R. and Donna S. Hall Engineering Lecture Series allows Vanderbilt engineering students to hear renowned engineers from universities and agencies address engineering topics of particular interest.
Contact: Brenda Ellis, 615 343-6314
brenda.ellis@vanderbilt.edu