TROY, N.Y. — Ravi Kane, the Merck Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been selected as one of the top 100 young innovators in technology from around the world by Technology Review, Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s magazine of innovation.

Kane’s primary research focus is on investigating and solving problems in medicine and biology by the molecular engineering of materials and surfaces. He works in the areas of biotechnology, advanced materials, nanotechnology, and polymers.

Earlier this year, Kane was awarded $2.1 million in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding to develop an antidote to counteract the potentially deadly anthrax toxin in humans who have been exposed to the bacteria’s spores.

Kane is also working to design new molecules that may one day fend off an HIV infection. Bolstering the body’s molecular defenses is a novel method that may lead to highly effective treatments for HIV, the virus that can lead to AIDS. In 2003 Kane received a two-year, $150,000 grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a division of the National Institutes of Health, to pursue research into this HIV treatment.

Kane was also among a group of Rensselaer researchers who, in the March 23, 2004 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reported the discovery of a simple method for rapidly creating cellular carbon nanotube structures of different shapes. To produce macroscopic objects from nanoscale materials on a commercial scale, manufacturers are looking for such techniques that make it possible to work with materials several billionths of a meter in size.

“Professor Kane’s work can and will contribute to the betterment of lives of tens of thousands of people worldwide,” said Rensselaer Provost G.P. “Bud” Peterson. “We are extremely pleased to have Professor Kane selected for this honor and to have his work recognized in this way.”

The so-called “TR100,” chosen by the editors of Technology Review and an elite panel of judges, consists of 100 individuals under age 35 whose innovative work in technology promises to have a profound impact on the world. This year’s nominees, from 14 countries, are recognized for their contributions in transforming the nature of technology in industries such as biotechnology, computing, and nanotechnology.

“Being chosen for the TR100 has become one of the most prestigious honors for young innovators around the world,” said David Rotman, executive editor of Technology Review. “This year’s winners are pioneering fascinating innovations in the fields of biomedicine, computing, and nanotechnology, and were chosen after a rigorous selection and judging process. The result is an elite group whose visions and inventions will shape the future of technology.”  

The TR100 will be honored Sept. 29 - 30 at Technology Review’s Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT.

Contact: Theresa Bourgeois
Phone: (518) 276-2840
E-mail: bourgt@rpi.edu