Two College faculty named National Academy of Inventors fellows
Zhou (left) and Schoenfisch each hold several U.S. patents born from research conducted at Carolina.
December 12, 2025 | By UNC College of Arts and Sciences Communication
The 2025 cohort of fellows of the National Academy of Inventors included Carolina faculty members Mark Schoenfisch, the Peter A. Ornstein Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, and Otto Zhou, the David Godschalk Distinguished Professor of Physics and Astronomy, both in the College of Arts and Sciences.
The NAI partners with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to honor, support and encourage inventors from academic, government and nonprofit institutions. They strive to improve the visibility of academic technology and innovation and increase public understanding of how these advances benefit society. Schoenfisch and Zhou are both members of the UNC-Chapel Hill chapter of NAI, launched in 2024 by Innovate Carolina.
The NAI Fellows Recognition Program is recognized as the highest professional distinction awarded to inventors. The existing 2,253 fellows hold more than 86,000 U.S. patents and 20,000 licensed technologies. Their innovations have generated an estimated $3.8 trillion in revenue and 1.4 million jobs.
“NAI fellows are a driving force within the innovation ecosystem, and their contributions across scientific disciplines are shaping the future of our world,” said Paul R. Sanberg, president of the NAI. “We are thrilled to welcome this year’s class of fellows to the Academy. They are truly an impressive cohort.”
Schoenfisch, who holds joint appointments at the UNC School of Medicine and Eshelman School of Pharmacy, studies targeted delivery of nitric oxide to different organ sites for the treatment of various diseases. Because nitric oxide can promote wound healing, inflammation and immune system activation, it can help the body fight certain infections.
Schoenfisch and his colleagues design special molecular scaffolds for the storage and release of nitric oxide. They have developed or are working to develop drugs to treat acne, HPV-driven genital warts, respiratory infections, a viral skin condition called molluscum contagiosum and a fungal infection called onychomycosis. Schoenfisch is also working on sensors to monitor nitric oxide release in body fluids, improved continuous glucose monitors for managing diabetes and extremely water-repellant antimicrobial coatings.
On his appointment as an NAI fellow, Schoenfisch said, “I’m deeply honored, as it acknowledges my lab’s innovative spirit. I share this distinction with the creative student colleagues and trainees that I’ve had the opportunity to work with, who approach research as an adventure and challenges as opportunities.”
Zhou, an adjunct professor of applied physical sciences and a member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, studies how to make X-ray machines more compact and efficient while maintaining or improving their image resolution. He and his colleagues use carbon nanotube technology, which requires less energy and can power smaller devices than traditional systems.
For example, one of Zhou’s research areas involves the development of CT machines that use stationary X-ray sources instead of rotating ones, which would make them easier to bring to medically underserved areas. He has also developed a mammography scanner that uses less radiation to achieve increased speed and resolution, a 3D oral X-ray machine for use in dental practices and an experimental microbeam radiation therapy technique for treating brain cancer.
“I am delighted to be selected as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors,” Zhou said. “It is an honor for me and for our entire research team at UNC.”
Learn more about Schoenfisch’s research.
Learn more about Zhou’s research.