Dr. May Khanna Elected Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors

University of Arizona Health Sciences faculty member May Khanna, PhD, assistant professor of pharmacology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, as well as a member of the BIO5 Institute and the Center for Innovation in Brain Science, has been named a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). NAI Senior Members are active faculty, scientists and administrators from NAI Member Institutions who have demonstrated remarkable innovation producing technologies that have brought, or aspire to bring, real impact on the welfare of society. They also have growing success in patents, licensing and commercialization.

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“This is truly humbling,” Dr. Khanna said. “I constantly push innovation and creative thinking in my laboratory. I am excited about my research, teaching and entrepreneurial pursuits and innovating in all aspects. In a way, all three are intertwined and allow me to push boundaries. This is one of the reasons I love being at the University of Arizona.”

Dr. Khanna joined the Health Sciences faculty in 2014. Her background includes training in chemistry, structural biology, biophysics and, more recently, drug discovery in neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Her research is aimed at shortening the time between drug discovery and pre-clinical testing by targeting key protein-protein and protein-RNA interactions in neurodegenerative diseases. With more than 20 years’ research experience in RNA, protein chemistry, molecular and structural biology, and drug discovery, she is focused on accelerating the development of novel therapeutics.

Dr. Khanna is the founder of Regenerix, LLC, where she is moving forward compounds for therapeutics to treat neurodegenerative diseases. She is also the co-founder of Cliacept, Inc., a predominantly minority women-owned company, founded by the first cohort of students from her innovative course, Designing Drugs: From Chemistry to Cure.

“I am working with Tech Launch Arizona to move all our compounds for neurodegenerative therapies and hope to license many of the technologies with TLA. These therapies target several diseases, including ALS, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease,” Dr. Khanna said. “I have also worked closely with TLA as we advance Cliacept, Inc., which is developing an antibody therapeutic for Alzheimer’s disease.”

The National Academy of Inventors has named 61 academic inventors to the 2021 class of NAI Senior Members, including another College of Medicine – Tucson faculty member, Meredith Hay, PhD, professor of physiology and member of the BIO5 Institute, Sarver Heart Center and Evelyn F. McKnight Brain Institute. This latest class of NAI Senior Members represents 36 research universities, government and nonprofit research institutes. They are named inventors on more than 600 issued U.S. patents.

“As a driver of innovation at the center of an increasingly entrepreneurial and creative region of our nation, the University of Arizona is proud to have women like Drs. Khanna and Hay as members of our faculty,” said Doug Hockstad, assistant vice president of TLA, the office of the university that works with researchers to commercialize inventions stemming from UArizona innovation. “They have not only excelled in their fields but have also made the commitment to be a part of the growing culture of innovators working to move their inventions into the public sphere to make a better world for all of us.”

The ability to nominate an individual for NAI Senior Member recognition is an exclusive opportunity afforded solely to NAI Member Institutions such as UArizona to recognize its outstanding innovators. These organizations themselves are widely regarded as innovation powerhouses that continuously promote and foster the spirit of innovation.