The AAAS fellowship is one of the most distinct honors in the scientific community and acknowledges their contributions to the fields of chemical engineering, materials science, biomedical engineering, and macromolecular science and engineering.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has recognized Lola Eniola-Adefeso, Vennema Professor of Chemical Engineering, and Nicholas Kotov, Joseph B. and Florence V. Cejka Professor of Chemical Engineering as 2024 fellows. The AAAS fellowship is one of the most distinct honors in the scientific community and acknowledges their contributions to the fields of chemical engineering, materials science, biomedical engineering, and macromolecular science and engineering.
“Professors Eniola-Adefeso and Kotov are extraordinary scientists, and I’m thrilled to see their outstanding contributions honored by their election to fellowship in AAAS,” said Sharon Glotzer, Anthony C. Lembke Department Chair of Chemical Engineering. “This is a high honor of which they are both wholly deserving.”
The 2024 class of fellows includes 502 scientists, engineers and innovators spanning over 20 scientific disciplines who are being recognized for their scientifically and socially distinguished achievements, including 10 other fellows from the University of Michigan.
Eniola-Adefeso is also a University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor of Chemical Engineering and holds the position of Associate Dean for Graduate and Professional Education in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan.
She is being recognized for her pioneering work in designing vascular-targeted particle therapies, highlighting critical differences between human and mouse blood, and leadership in biomedical engineering and diversity in academia.
“I am thrilled and humbled to be included among the extraordinary group of outstanding scientists on both a national and international scale,” Eniola-Adefeso said. “It’s a true honor that highlights the incredible brilliance of the diverse graduate students and postdocs that I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with throughout my career.”
Her research focuses on harnessing hemodynamics to design innovative vascular-targeted particle therapies. Eniola-Adefeso’s work has redefined conventional understanding in the field, marked by a series of pioneering publications that have challenged existing paradigms.
Among her significant contributions, Eniola-Adefeso’s laboratory was the first to demonstrate the critical impact of factors such as size, shape and density of nanoparticles on their ability to reach and bind to the blood vessel wall. This work has been instrumental in reshaping the landscape of controlled delivery solutions for vascular diseases.
Eniola-Adefeso is currently the President of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering and was recently named a National Academy of Inventors Senior Member. She has also been honored as a fellow of the American Heart Association by the Council on Peripheral Vascular Disease for her outstanding contributions in the fields of scholarship, practice, education and volunteer service within the American Heart Association, highlighting her excellence and innovation.
Kotov is a pioneer in the synthesis of complex particle systems and nanomaterials combining order and disorder. His election to AAAS fellow recognizes his seminal contributions to the field of self-organizing materials, particularly related to biomimetic nanocomposites, complex self-assembling nanostructures and chiral nanostructures.
“I am most grateful to AAAS for this honor. I am eager to uphold the values of academic excellence, tolerance and diversity that AAAS represents, and I look forward to collaborating with fellow members to further these shared goals,” Kotov said. “I am also filled with gratitude to my mentors and mentees whose intellectual brilliance and diligent efforts is embedded in this distinction.”
Kotov also is the director of the Center for Complex Particle Systems (COMPASS). COMPASS is a National Science Foundation funded center that develops and practices a systems-level approach to particle-based matter for energy-efficient manufacturing. Kotov’s research utilizes the tools of complex systems and graph theory to engineer complex systems from particles of different shapes, sizes and compositions. Recent publications include a study of complex chiral particles designed to inactivate multiple strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that could one day complement existing treatments for COVID-19 and a new 3D printing process for helical metal nanoparticles to provide a simpler, cheaper way to rapidly produce a material essential for biomedical and optical devices.
Kotov has been nationally and globally recognized with honors including the Chirality Medal, Nanoscale Science and Engineering Forum Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the David Turnbull Lectureship from Materials Research Society. In 2022, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and in 2020 he was inducted into the National Academy of Inventors for practical implementations of biomimetic nanocomposites. He has founded several startups that commercialize self-assembled nanostructures for energy, healthcare and automotive industries and is a committed advocate of scientists with disabilities.
Established in 1848, the AAAS remains committed to advancing science, engineering, and innovation for the betterment of humanity. With a diverse membership spanning over 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, AAAS serves as a catalyst for global collaboration, empowering individuals and institutions to tackle the most pressing challenges facing our world today.