EMSL Director receives R&D 100 Award

Summary

Allison Campbell, Director of the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) and her collaborators from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) received a prestigious 2006 R&D 100 Award for development of a novel water-based process that allows calcium-phosphate coatings containing therapeutic agents to be deposited on orthopedic implants. Campbell and her collaborators from PNNL developed the surface-induced mineralization process, which provides patients with twofold benefit: (1) Calcium-phosphate coatings containing an antimicrobial agent were proven in tests to kill infection-causing bacteria or greatly inhibit bacteria growth in the body, helping prevent dangerous and costly post-surgical infections, and (2) the water-based deposition process coupled with the bioactive therapeutic agent provides an advanced method for applying pure calcium-phosphate coatings to artificial joints, allowing enhanced bone bonding. Earlier this year, Campbell received a Federal Laboratory Consortium Award of Excellence in Technology Transfer for this process. This is PNNL’s fifth R&D 100 Award in 2006, bringing the number received by the Laboratory since 1969 to 71.