Congratulations to Predrag Cudic, Ph.D., professor and associate dean for research in the Schmidt College of Science’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, who had a novel intranasal drug delivery platform approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The newly patented method promises to aid in the treatment of brain and central nervous system diseases.
Thanks to a recent $435,000 grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s Schmidt College of Science and FAU’s Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute hope to better understand how these intricate, subcellular cholesterol transport pathways work and how they contribute to neurodegeneration.
Last summer, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science alumna Maria S. Altieri, M.S., M.D., became Section Chief of Gastrointestinal Surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital, University of Pennsylvania.
Florida Atlantic University has received a $599,503 grant from the United States Department of Defense for a powerful high resolution imaging technique that can reveal nanoscale structures.
The annual Nobel Prizes that were recently announced are largely considered the most prestigious honor in the world. While it is awarded to “those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind,” it also most certainly highlights the impactful research taking place in those given fields.
Michelle Gras is a junior in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science who is working toward a B.S. in Biological Chemistry. Michelle is both a member of the Soar-in-4 program that provides high-achieving student research opportunities and mentorship, and she is also a Morton Fellow.
The future is bright for Schmidt College of Science students! FAU provided recent graduate YashoNandini Singh, Chemistry Ph.D. ‘22, the research foundation she needed to land an amazing job as an applications scientist (bio-consumables) at Agilent Technologies, Inc., in Folsom, CA.
Congratulations to FAU senior Chemistry student Jared Kahn! He received the Most Outstanding Senior Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Student award from the American Chemical Society (ACS), Division of Organic Chemistry for the 2021-22 academic year.
Maciej Stawikowski, Ph.D., Assistant Scientist in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and member of the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, was awarded a Research Cores Internal Pilot Program grant. Stawikowski will utilize the FAU Advanced Cell Imaging Core for this award. Learn more about Stawikowski's research in a recent profile called, "The Beauty of Science" that details his studies on neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer's disease.
Congratulations to all of the 2022 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry student poster presentation winners! We are so proud of our student researchers!
NIH Grant Awarded to Target RNA Through Drug DesignIlyas Yildirim , Ph.D., an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, was awarded $419,485 through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study "In Silico Drug Design Targeting RNA Repeat Expansions." Read more.
Maciej Stawikowski Named Winner of FAU Art of Science Photography ContestMaciej Stawikowski, Ph.D., an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, was awarded first place in the Division of Research Art of Science Photography Contest. The photo is titled "Understanding Cholesterol Imbalance. The Schmidt College of Science had winners in a range of categories, including "In the Field," "In the Lab," and a number of "Honorable Mentions." View all of the photos and winners.
Maré Cudic Appointed as ASBMB Education AssociateThe American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) recognized Associate Professor, Mare Cudic, Ph.D., as an Education Associate for important contributions to the development and scoring of the society's annual certification exame in 2021. Cudic's support has provided continued growth and success of this program, and is helping influence undergraduate education in biochemistry and molecular biology on a national scale.
Salvatore Lepore Recognized by National Academy of InventorsProfessor Salvatore Lepore, Ph.D., was selected for induction into the FAU Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors. The chapter is one of more than 50 university chapters nationwide, established to recognize inventors for their accomplishments in research and commercialization, and to enhance the visibility of scientific innovation. Read more.
Vivian Merk, Ph.D., Receives NSF LEAPS-MCS AwardVivian Merk, Ph.D. was awarded the National Science Foundation LEAPS-MPS (Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences) grant. The award will support "Investigating the role of carbohydrate-mineral interactions." The NSF award totals $244,109 for a duration of two years.
Student Awarded Alzheimer’s Summer Research FellowshipBrandon Lubin, an undergraduate student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, was awarded the Alzheimer’s Disease Summer Research Fellowship. The award will assist Brandon’s research on “the role of methionine sulfoxide reductase in Alzheimer’s disease pathology,” and is funded by the I-BRAIN and I-HEALTH Pillars.
Department Faculty PromotedCongratulations to Andrew Terentis, Ph.D. (left) on his promotion to Full Professor and Tito Sempertegui, Ph.D. (right) on becoming a Senior Instructor for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
Vivian Merk, Ph.D. Receives DoD GrantVivian Merk, Ph.D. is awarded the FY 2021 Department of Defense (DoD) Research and Education Program for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority-Serving Institutions (HBCU/MI) Equipment/Instrumentation grant. The title of the award is Acquisition of a Transmission Electron Microscope to Enhance Multidisciplinary Research and STEM Education.
Our undergraduate student Daniel Gil Valenzuela, mentored by Vivian Merk, Ph.D., was selected to be Florida Atlantic University’s 2021 Stan and Renee Wimberly Scholar. The Wimberly Scholar award, which has been given to one FAU student each year since 1971, is the most prestigious student academic prize given by our university. It is awarded in recognition of outstanding academic achievement.
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Chemistry Professor Elected for 3-year TermThe American Chemical Society elects Charles Carraher, Ph.D. for a 3-year Term.
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Congratulations to Alumna Debbie Thomas
Alumna Debbie Thomas becomes the first author of a journal article for the work she performed as an undergraduate in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Debbie is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Chemistry at the University of Chicago. This work was supported through OURIs Undergraduate Research Grant program. Read more.
Maré Cudic Earns Rank of Associate Professor Congratulations to Maré Cudic, Ph.D., who was promoted to the rank of Associate Professor with tenure in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. She earned a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Zagreb, Croatia. Prior to joining FAU in fall 2014, she worked at academic and non-profit research institutions in the U.S. and Europe. Read more.
Alzheimer's Study Awarded NIH Grant
Deguo Du, Ph.D.
, an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and collaborators, were awarded a National Institute of Health (NIH) grant of $444,434 for the research project titled “Role of the N-terminal Region in Abeta Oligomer and Fibril Formation.”
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Andrew Terentis Recognized as Fulbright ScholarAndrew Terentis, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, was selected as a 2020-2021 Fulbright Scholar in Cyprus. He will be conducting research and teaching a course in Raman spectroscopy at the University of Cyprus, as part of a project to study how cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) interact with lipid membranes. Read more.
