Two UC Davis faculty members have been recognized among the inaugural recipients of the UC Regents Innovation Awards, honoring researchers and innovators whose work is translating University of California research into technologies, companies and solutions with broad impact. The awardees include Justin Siegel, a professor with appointments in chemistry and biochemistry and molecular medicine. 

Siegel was recognized with the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award. Siegel also serves as associate director of the UC Davis Genome Center and faculty director of the Innovation Institute for Food and Health. His research focuses on the design and discovery of enzymes for applications ranging from therapeutics to fuel and chemical production. He is a co-inventor on more than 100 global patents and has helped found over 10 companies and organizations.

The recognition follows a competitive inaugural awards process that included five UC Davis nominees across several categories.

The nominations and awards highlight the breadth of innovation emerging from UC Davis and recognize the role of university research in creating new technologies and ventures that play an important role in improving people’s lives.

This post was adapted from an article that originally appeared on the UC Davis News website.  

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