LANL's Patrick Chain receives 2026 E.O. Lawrence Award

LOS ALAMOS - Patrick Chain of Los Alamos National Laboratory has been named a recipient of the U.S. Department of Energy's E.O. Lawrence Award for 2026, the laboratory said in a news release Wednesday.

According to the release, the Energy Department's announcement cites Chain's work in genomics and microbiome science, including discoveries of new interactions between bacteria and fungi and efforts to widen access to advanced bioinformatics tools.

The award, created in 1959 and named for cyclotron inventor Ernest Orlando Lawrence, is given by the Secretary of Energy to mid-career U.S. scientists and engineers, the release says.

"It is a tremendous honor to join such a talented pool of Lawrence winners," Chain said in the release. Laboratory Director Thom Mason and Deputy Director Patrick Fitch also praised the work.

Chain and nine other recipients will receive the award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 13, according to the laboratory.