Inhalation Toxicology Division Manager Wins Technology and Scientific Advancement Award

Dr. Narayanan Rajendran has received IITRI's Presidential Award for Technology and Scientific Advancement for his expertise and cutting-edge work in inhalation studies at IITRI.

As assistant vice president and manager of the Inhalation Toxicology Division of IITRI's Life Sciences Group, Dr. Rajendran oversees inhalation toxicology studies for the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and tobacco industries.

	"The factor that differentiates IITRI is our ability to generate and control test atmospheres consistently at the appropriate concentration, and with difficult materials." Dr. Narayanan Rajendran Assistant Vice President and Manager Inhalation Toxicology Division

Division Sees Research Capabilities Expand

Since becoming manager in 1999, Dr. Rajendran has been a primary force in expanding the division's research capabilities and has overseen the growth of its research volume by more than 25 percent each year, said Dr. David L. McCormick, vice president and director of IITRI's Life Sciences Group.

"His expertise in practical aspects of aerosol generation and monitoring has been an essential component of this growth, and his state-of-the-art work with metered dose inhalers and other inhalation technologies brings the prospect of outstanding future growth and prominence for our Inhalation Toxicology Division," McCormick said in his nomination of Dr. Rajendran for the award.

IITRI Excels in Generating Consistent Test Atmospheres

As a result of this expertise, IITRI has had numerous successes in delivering quality results for its sponsors' inhalation toxicology studies. "In order for the biological endpoints of an inhalation study to be meaningful, you need to expose the animals to an appropriate test atmosphere in a consistent manner," Dr. Rajendran explained. "The challenge is in establishing a temporally stable test atmosphere at the target concentration levels, so that the results are reproducible."

Under Dr. Rajendran's guidance, IITRI has repeatedly proven its ability to meet this challenge. "The factor that differentiates IITRI is our ability to generate and control test atmospheres consistently at the appropriate concentration, and with difficult materials," he said.

Dr. Rajendran's Career Thrives at IITRI

After receiving a Ph.D. in Engineering Sciences from State University of New York, Dr. Rajendran first joined IITRI in 1977 in the Fine Particles Section of IITRI's Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Department. He assumed additional duties as an aerosol scientist on inhalation toxicology programs in the mid-1980s and formally joined the Life Sciences Group in 1993. Promoted to manager of the Inhalation Toxicology Division in 1999, he currently directs approximately 35 staff working in 20,000 square feet of laboratory space.

Dr. Rajendran's expertise in aerosol science and inhalation technology is well-known in the field of inhalation toxicology. From the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, he served as principal aerosol scientist for several multi-million dollar inhalation toxicology studies conducted for the National Toxicology Program (NTP) of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

Recent Efforts Focus on Commercial Programs

More recently, Dr. Rajendran has focused his efforts on commercial inhalation toxicology programs and is responsible for the design and development of all study-specific test atmosphere generation and monitoring systems at IITRI. He developed aerosol/vapor generation systems for nose-only inhalation toxicity studies conducted for pharmaceutical companies, which employed a powder dispenser, metered-dose inhalers, or flash evaporator.

Dr. Rajendran is a member of the American Association of Aerosol Research and is the author or co-author of 29 publications, 15 abstracts/presentations and one patent pending in the fields of particle deposition in the human respiratory tract, acoustic agglomeration of aerosols, measurement of highly dispersed concentration aerosols, and cigarette smoke inhalation exposure.