Julius Lukeš elected a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Prof. Julius Lukeš from the Institute of Parasitology of the Biological Centre of the CAS, a member of the Learned Society of the Czech Republic, was elected on 30 April 2024 (as the third Czech citizen) as an international member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (NSA).

The NSA, known for its rigorous selection process, elects its members based on their 'distinguished and continuing achievements in original research'. With a current membership of 2,617 active members and 537 international members, the NSA stands as a beacon of scientific excellence.

Photo by Pavlína Jáchimová, CAS

The first Czech scientist elected to the NSA was the neurophysiologist Jan Bureš (1926-2012) in 1995; the second was in 2015 virologist Jan Svoboda (1934-2017), a member of the Learned Society. As an American citizen, Czech chemist Josef Michl has been a full member since 1986.

Molecular biologist David M. Sabatini, who has been leading a research group at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS since last year, was elected as a full member in 2016.