Two Purdue University faculty members, representing the College of Engineering and the College of Science, have been named fellows of the National Academy of Inventors, the organization recently announced. The 2024 fellow class represents 170 research universities and governmental and nonprofit research institutions worldwide.
Edward Delp, the Charles William Harrison Distinguished Professor in the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and professor of biomedical engineering, and Arun Ghosh, the Ian P. Rothwell Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology, will be inducted during NAI’s 14th annual meeting in June 2025 in Atlanta.
Their selection brings the number of Purdue faculty ever inducted as NAI fellows to 23, including Purdue President Mung Chiang.
The NAI Fellows Program celebrates academic inventors whose work spans multiple disciplines and exemplifies their collaboration, dedication and innovation to transform research into real-world commercial technologies that contribute to the betterment of society.
Election as an NAI fellow is the highest professional distinction awarded to academic inventors.
“I am deeply honored to be named an NAI fellow,” said Delp, who also serves as director of Purdue’s Video and Image Processing Laboratory. “This recognition reflects the collective efforts of my colleagues, collaborators and students over the years. I am grateful for the support of Purdue University, which has provided an environment that fosters innovation and impact.”
Delp is widely recognized for his pioneering work in multimedia security, image and video processing, and medical imaging. His research has led to significant advancements in applications ranging from health care to national security.
Delp is also an IEEE fellow and is noted for his research in deepfakes, manipulated media and the negative effect they can have on society.
He holds numerous patents and has authored more than 600 scholarly publications. His work is part of the Purdue Computes initiative.
One of his seminal achievements was the design and discovery of a potent HIV protease inhibitor named Darunavir, a key medication in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2006, it is now used in 128 countries and is recognized by the World Health Organization as an essential medicine for human health. Ghosh’s discovery helped reduce AIDS-related mortality and revolutionize treatment by overcoming the challenge of drug-resistant strains of HIV.
His extensive knowledge of aspartic acid proteases’ structure-function relationships, bioorganic and synthetic organic chemistry has distinguished him globally.
“This recognition by the NAI underscores the importance of advancing chemistry and drug discovery research to save lives and improve health outcomes,” Ghosh said. “I am humbled by the honor and very grateful for my colleagues and collaborators and the support of Purdue for fostering an environment that encourages innovation and supports transformative research.”
Ghosh holds more than 70 U.S. patents in chemistry and medicinal chemistry and has authored more than 400 research publications in multiple areas of research, including HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease and SARS/COVID-19. His work is part of Purdue’s One Health initiative.
Both researchers have worked with the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization to protect the cutting-edge research and intellectual property they developed and hope to advance to the global marketplace. OTC experts vet the intellectual property, apply for IP protection if needed, and find commercial partners that license it and bring it to market.
In June, Purdue again achieved a top five ranking among leading research institutions in NAI’s Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted U.S. Utility Patents. Based on 2023 data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Purdue ranked fourth, with 201 granted U.S. utility patents last year, surpassing Stanford, Harvard and California Institute of Technology.
