Dr. George A. Kraus
IPRT Director
Dr. George Kraus was born in Buffalo, New York in 1950. He received a B.S. degree in chemistry
from the University of Rochester in 1972 and a Ph.D. degree in chemistry from Columbia University in
1976. He went directly to Iowa State University where he is now a University Professor of Chemistry.
Dr. Kraus has been the Director of the Institute for Physical Research and Technology since July 2007.
Research Interests
Dr. Kraus' research interests include the development of new synthetic methods and their application to
the synthesis of biologically active natural products. Key research areas include the chemistry of
natural products, and the chemistry of biobased products. Dr. Kraus has over 260 publications in
refereed journals. Dr. Kraus is a member of the American Chemical Society, ACS Division of Organic
Chemistry, ACS Division of Medicinal Chemistry, and the International Society for Antiviral Research.
Awards & Recognitions
Dr. Kraus was a Sloan Fellow, a Goho Life Science Foundation lecturer in Japan in 1997, Guest Editor of a
Tetrahedron Symposium in Print in 2000, and a featured speaker at Green Chemistry Workshop in 2001. He
received the American Soybean Association Production Research Award in 1998, the College of Liberal Arts
and Sciences Award for Excellence in Research/Artistic Creativity in 2001, the Iowa State University
Extension Team Achievement Award in 2002, the ISU Regents Faculty Excellence Award in 2004 and the
Distinguished Service Award from the Federated Laboratory Consortium in 2005.
