Regents Professor is the highest faculty award possible at Arizona’s state universities and is conveyed by the Arizona Board of Regents.
Hao Yan is director of the Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics and the Milton D. Glick Distinguished Professor in the School of Molecular Sciences at Arizona State University.
To receive this designation, the new Regents Professors must be recognized by peers nationally and internationally. Groups of tenured faculty members make the nominations, which are evaluated by an advisory committee following an established review process. ASU President Michael Crow then considers the recommendations and forwards them to the Arizona Board of Regents for final approval.
The Arizona Board of Regents approved three new Regents Professors who will be be inducted in a ceremony Feb. 13, 2025. The three are internationally recognized experts at the top of their fields, and on Thursday, they joined an elite rank when their nominations were approved by the Arizona Board of Regents. The new Regents Professors are:
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Hao Yan
Hao Yan, director of the Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics and the Milton D. Glick Distinguished Professor in the School of Molecular Sciences.
- Amber Wutich, director of the Center for Global Health, President’s Professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change, and a 2023 MacArthur Fellow.
- Jim Bell, professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration, director of ASU’s NewSpace Initiative, and chief scientist of MILO Space Science Institute.
“On behalf of the entire academic community at ASU, I congratulate and celebrate our three newest Regents Professors,” said Nancy Gonzales, executive vice president and university provost. “From the microscopic worlds of DNA and nanotechnology, to global water systems, to interplanetary exploration, the genius of these scholars embody the scale and breadth of faculty expertise at ASU. They join an elite community of Regents Professors who continue to advanced ASU’s reputation as a leader in groundbreaking research. We are immensely proud of their achievements.”
Hao Yan
Yan is a leading figure in the fields of DNA nanotechnology, biomimetics and DNA origami engineering. His groundbreaking work has redefined those scientific areas and established ASU as a global leader in molecular design and biomimetics. For more than two decades, he has created novel DNA-based structures and devices that have advanced understanding and application of molecular assembly for diagnosing diseases, enhancing computing and innovating materials science.
Yan’s research has been cited in more than 230 publications, including the journals Science, Nature and Cell, and he has been recognized as a Web of Science Highly Cited Researcher.
Yan, who joined ASU in 2004, has been awarded the Foresight Institute Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology (2020), the Alexander von Humboldt Research Award (2013) and fellowships with the National Academy of Inventors, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. He was elected to the European Academy of Sciences earlier this semester.
One reviewer wrote: “Professor Yan’s influence extends beyond research through his role as a prominent science communicator and mentor. … His leadership has built a community of cross-disciplinary researchers and nurtured young scientists, resulting in a robust network of collaborators who continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in DNA nanotechnology and biomimetics.”
Learn more at https://news.asu.edu/20241122-university-news-asu-names-3-regents-professors-2025