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Undergraduate Students Work Closely With Professor on Important Research
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Most college science students interact with their professors from a seat in a vast lecture hall. Not until they are graduate students do most budding scientists have the opportunity to work side-by-side with faculty on important research. At Dowling College, undergraduate students Dan Badia and Mia Jurjevic are currently working closely with Dr. Vishal Shah, Assistant Professor of Biology, on research that may one day result in valuable benefits to the pharmaceutical industry.
The team is working to produce Sophorolipids having novel structures for its application in pharmaceutical industry. Sophorolipids boast a wide array of therapeutic benefits having antibacterial, antifungal, anti-HIV, and spermicidal activities. The work has been published in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. The Dowling research team is partnering with outside institutions such as Shimadzu Scientific Instruments Inc. on this work. The laboratory is also carrying out research on finding an inexpensive source of SLs. This would be most significant and advantageous to the pharmaceuticals industry. In the work that has been accepted for publication in journal Biotechnology Progress, the team describes the production of Sophorolipids using restaurant waste oil.
"My work with Dr. Shah truly separates me from others pursuing positions in the same field," observed Dan, a full-time, pre-medical/pre-Ph.D. student. "It is an excellent opportunity and I have learned so much. Dr. Shah has opened so many new doors for me."
"This is a great opportunity for students, but it also helps me in my research," noted Dr. Shah. "Their enthusiasm, devotion, and fresh outlook are most valuable." Authoring a scientific paper as an undergrad, Dr. Shah notes, is yet another milestone not often accomplished at most colleges in the world.
About Dowling College
Dowling College is an independent, coeducational college that serves more than 6,500 students at
its historic Rudolph Campus on the banks of the Connetquot River in Oakdale, NY, and the 105-acre
Brookhaven Campus in eastern Long Island and a business center located near the Nassau-Suffolk
border in Melville. Dowling offers Bachelor′s, Master′s, and Doctoral degrees in several
disciplines through its four schools: Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Education.
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