About the Award
The NAS Award in Chemical Sciences is presented annually to honor innovative research in the chemical sciences that contributes to a better understanding of the natural sciences and to the benefit of humanity. The award is presented with a medal and a $15,000 prize.
Benjamin F. Cravatt, Scripps Research Institute, will receive the 2026 NAS Award in Chemical Sciences.
Cravatt’s trailblazing contributions have provided foundational insights into protein function and dysregulation in disease, ushering in a new era of drug discovery.
His landmark development of activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) transformed chemical biology. Through the ABPP platform, Cravatt produced the first functional maps of enzyme activity in native proteomes, uncovering how enzyme activities are dynamically regulated across development, metabolism, immune responses, and cancer progression.
Cravatt’s research has led to the discovery of novel and uniquely functional chemical probes for diverse classes of proteins, the development of new therapeutic modalities for manipulating and rewiring protein function, and the advancement of multiple therapeutics into clinical development.
Cravatt is a transformative leader whose pioneering science, mentorship, and entrepreneurial vision have reshaped chemical biology and drug discovery. His commitment to training the next generation of researchers and work on numerous biotechnology ventures has extended his impact beyond the laboratory.
Watch him receive the award online during the 163rd NAS Annual Meeting on April 26th.
Award History
The NAS Award in Chemical Sciences was established in 1978 and supported by Occidental Petroleum Corporation from 1978 to 1996. The Merck Company Foundation assumed sponsorship in 1999. The NAS Award in Chemical Sciences was first awarded in 1979 to Linus Pauling for his studies, which elucidated in structural terms the properties of stable molecules of progressively higher significance to the chemical, geological, and biological sciences.
Previous recipients of the NAS Award in Chemical Sciences continue to achieve outstanding advancements in their fields. Twenty-six recipients have been honored with a National Medal of Science, and 12 recipients have received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry (Pauling 1954; Taube 1983; Hoffmann 1981; Brown 1979; Cram 1987; Zewail 1999; Sharpless 2001 and 2022; Corey 1990; Bertozzi 2022; Doudna 2020; Brus 2023), and Peace Prize (Pauling 1962).
Most Recent Recipient
