Richard C. Willson is a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Houston noted for his work on the development of purification, detection, and measurement technologies for applications in pharmaceutical manufacturing, process control, and medical diagnostics.[1]
Richard Coale Willson | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | California Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Houston |
| Thesis | Fermentation product recovery by supercritical fluid extraction : microbiological and phase equilibrium aspects (1988) |
| Doctoral advisor | Charles L. Cooney Richard C. Reid |
| Website | Willson Lab |
Education
editWillson received B.S. and M.S. degrees in chemical engineering from Caltech in 1981 and 1982, respectively. He moved to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for his doctoral work, where he worked under Charles L. Cooley and Richard C. Reid and received his PhD in 1998.
Career
editWillson joined the Department of Chemical Engineering (now the William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering) at the University of Houston in 1988, where he is currently the Huffington-Woestemeyer Professor.
He has developed methods to detect viruses and other biothreats based on the materials underpinning reflective vests,[2] glow-in-the-dark stars,[3] and glow sticks.[4] In 2024, he led a project on antibody measurement as part of a grant from the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals.[5]
His most-cited research article established the technique of combinatorial screening for catalysts.[6] Other highly-cited research articles report DNA aptamer binding to vascular endothelial growth factor[7] and develop luminescent nanoparticles as reporters in a sensitive lateral flow assay.[8]
He is a member of the editorial boards of Biotechnology Progress and PLOS One. He contributed episodes on chromatography[9] and avocado seeds[10] to Engines of Our Ingenuity.
Awards and recognition
edit- 1990 — NSF Presidential Young Investigator
- 1999 — Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
- 2001 — James M. van Lanen Distinguished Service Award[11] from the ACS Biotechnology Division
- 2011 — Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science[12]
- 2014 — Fellow of the American Chemical Society[13]
- 2014 — Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors[14]
- 2015 — Pierce Award in Affinity Technology from the International Society for Molecular Recognition[15]
References
edit- ^ Cole, Chloe. "Richard Willson: Engineering Approaches to Problems with a Biological Flavor". uastories.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 Dec 2024.
- ^ Weber, Toby. "UH Researchers Working On Cruise Ship Virus Diagnostic Tool". Retrieved 14 December 2024.
- ^ Fickman, Laurie. "Enhancing At-Home COVID Tests With Glow-In-The Dark Materials". Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Fickman, Laurie. "Cullen Researcher Using Glow Sticks To Detect Biothreats For U.S. Navy". Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Fickman, Laurie. "UH Project Selected To Join $10M Effort To Innovate Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing". egr.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Moates, F. C.; Somani, M.; Annamalai, J.; Richardson, J. T.; Luss, D.; Willson, R. C. (4 Dec 1996). "Infrared Thermographic Screening of Combinatorial Libraries of Heterogeneous Catalysts". Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. 35 (12): 4801–4803. doi:10.1021/ie960476k. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Potty, Ajish S. R.; Kourentzi, Katerina; Fang, Han; Jackson, George W.; Zhang, Xing; Legge, Glen B.; Willson, Richard C. (29 Dec 2008). "Biophysical characterization of DNA aptamer interactions with vascular endothelial growth factor". Biopolymers. 91 (2): 145–156. doi:10.1002/bip.21097. PMID 19025993. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Paterson, Andrew S.; Raja, Balakrishnan; Garvey, Gavin; Kolhatkar, Arati; Hagström, Anna E. V.; Kourentzi, Katerina; Lee, T. Randall; Willson, Richard C. (7 Oct 2014). "Persistent luminescence strontium aluminate nanoparticles as reporters in lateral flow assays". Analytical Chemistry. 86 (19): 9481–9488. doi:10.1021/ac5012624. PMC 4188266. PMID 25247754. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ "No. 2991: Writing in Colors". engines.egr.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ "No. 3215: Avocado Seeds". engines.egr.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ "The James M. Van Lanen Distinguished Service Award". acsbiot.org. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Tolley, Laura. "UH Professor Richard Willson Named 2010 AAAS Fellow". uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Grayson, Audrey. "Richard Willson Elected As Fellow Of The American Chemical Society (ACS)". egr.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Kever, Jeannie. "Two UH Scientists Named to National Academy of Inventors". Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Watts, Elena. "Professor Honored With ISMR Pierce Award In Affinity Technology". egr.uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ "Alan S. Michaels Award in the Recovery of Biological Products". acsbiot.org. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
- ^ Greenwell, Stephen. "Willson Earns Alan S. Michaels Award in the Recovery of Biological Products". uh.edu. Retrieved 13 December 2024.