Raymond Schinazi. Photo via Emory University.

Emory University faculty member Raymond Schinazi, a world-renowned chemist and antiviral drug researcher who co-invented the HIV/AIDS drugs taken by 94 percent of all U.S. patients on drug therapy, was honored today by Atlanta’s Consulate General of France for his recent receipt of the Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur – the French Legion of Honor medal with the rank of knight.

Schinazi is the Frances Winship Walters Professor of Pediatrics, director of the Laboratory of Biochemical Pharmacology at Emory University and director of the Scientific Working Group on Viral Eradication at the Emory Center for AIDS Research. The honor he received is the highest decoration bestowed in France. He was recognized for his remarkable work in combatting disease worldwide.

“Dr. Schinazi’s work has been groundbreaking, transformative and lifesaving for patients around the globe,” Jonathan Lewin executive vice president for health affairs at Emory University, said in a statement. “We are extremely fortunate to have him as a member of our Emory faculty, and we congratulate him on this tremendous and well-deserved honor.”

Schinazi has served on the Presidential Commission on AIDS and is the recipient of numerous awards for his efforts. He currently serves as a Governing Trustee for the Foundation for AIDS Research, as a board member for the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Global Virus Network.