Dr. Anahita Izadyar, associate professor of chemistry, has received a U.S. Department of Agriculture – National Institute of Food and Agriculture grant totaling $149,318. The project is titled “Development of a Nano-Biosensor to Detect Glucose for Diabetics using Recombinant Manganese Peroxidase from Corn Grain.” She will be principal investigator (PI) and Dr. Elizabeth Hood, Lipscomb Distinguished Professor, will be co-PI.

Dr. Katherine Baker, assistant professor of art history, made a presentation to the Renaissance Society of America (RSA) conference last month. The virtual event featured numerous interdisciplinary sessions with international scholars. Baker presented her paper, "All the Small Things: Ivory Miniatures in the Early 16th Century," as part of “The Miniature In and Around the Low Countries.” Program details are online.

Dr. Mohammad A. Alam (left) and Dr. David Gilmore (right) published a paper in the European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. They describe the synthesis of 80 pyrazole compounds as potent antimicrobial agents. Several of these compounds are potent growth inhibitors of MRSA and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), two of the more worrisome of the antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The compounds appear non-toxic in mice, indicating that they have potential to become new antibiotics.

Dr. John Mello, professor of supply chain management, recently delivered an invited presentation, “So You Think You Want to Do Grounded Theory,” to the annual Logistics Doctoral Symposium. With co-presenter Dr. Shane Hunt of Idaho State, they focused on the proper use of grounded theory and qualitative research in the field of supply chain management and logistics. The symposium was sponsored by the universities of Maryland and Tennessee.

Dr. Veena S. Kulkarni, associate professor of sociology, was one of the panelists for the spring workshop, “National and Global Governance Failures in the Time of COVID-19,” organized by the Department of International and Middle Eastern Studies, American University in Dubai. Her talk, “Pervasiveness of the Pandemic: Insights in the Context of India,” focused on its impact and the governmental response with the economy, education and health.