John Yates receives 2014 Ralph N. Adams Award,

named KU Chemistry’s 45th Werner Lecturer

John R. Yates III, the Ernest W. Hahn Professor in the Department of Chemical Physiology and Molecular and Cellular

Neurobiology at The Scripps Research Institute, was awarded the 2014 Ralph N. Adams Award in Bioanalytical

Chemistry at Pittcon in New Orleans on March 11, 2015. The Adams Award, sponsored by the Pittsburgh Conference

and Friends of Ralph N. Adams, was established in 2005 to honor an outstanding scientist who has advanced the field of

bioanalytical chemistry through research, innovation and/or education.

Yates’ research interests include development of integrated methods for tandem

mass spectrometry analysis of protein mixtures, bioinformatics using mass

spectrometry data, and biological studies involving proteomics. He is the lead

inventor of the SEQUEST software for correlating tandem mass spectrometry data

to sequences in the database and developer of the shotgun proteomics technique for

the analysis of protein mixtures. His laboratory has developed the use of proteomic

techniques to analyze protein complexes, posttranslational modifications, organelles

and quantitative analysis of protein expression for the discovery of new biology.

Prior to receiving the Adams Award, Yates visited KU on Sept. 19, 2014 to give the

Chemistry Department’s 45th Werner Lecture, “From Yeast to Brain:

Disruption in Protein Analysis Technologies.” The Werner Lecture series was

established by the department in 1957 as an annual program of visits by

distinguished chemists, and is co-sponsored by the Adams Institute.

2014 - 2015

issue #6

Welcome to the 2014 & 2015 combined edition of the Adams Institute’s newsletter, @Adams! I hope you enjoy

the articles and photos that we’ve put together for you in the pages that follow. Our faculty colleagues

continue to receive awards, grants and recognition for their work in the lab and in the classroom. We are

extremely proud of our students, graduate and undergraduate alike, who continue to successfully balance their

academic and research pursuits.

During the process of putting together this newsletter, a tragedy occurred that affected the Institute, KU, the

Chemistry department, and my family. Craig died on April 13, 2015 from a heart attack. He was my husband,

best friend, and research collaborator, and we all miss him immensely. I want to thank all of you who showed

your support to my family, the department and the institute through flowers, emails, telephone calls, letters

and, contributions to KU Endowment. Cady Bush (our new Program Coordinator) has put together an insert

for the newsletter about Craig and his career at KU along with information about five different conferences

with symposia dedicated to Craig. We are also assembling a special combined issue of Analytical Methods and

Analyst in his honor. Lastly, a special fund to enable chemistry students to travel to international conferences has

been set up in Craig’s honor through the KU Endowment Association, and we welcome contributions in his

name. Craig loved to travel and he sent many of his students abroad for research internships and international

conferences. This fund will allow students in future generations to have that opportunity.

I hope you enjoy the newsletter and best wishes for a happy and healthy 2016.

~Susan Lunte

The Director’s Letter

Yates (pictured right) receives

R alph N. Adams Award at Pittcon

Craig Lunte, Professor of Chemistry, was named a recipient of a

2014 Higuchi-KU Endowment Research Achievement Award, the most prestigious award for scholarly excellence in

Kansas. Lunte received the Dolph Simons Award in Biomedical Sciences, making him the fourth member of KU’s Chemistry

Department to receive the award. Previous recipients are Richard Schowen (1982), Kristin Bowman-James (2002) and Susan Lunte (2012).

Lunte was one of four faculty members statewide to receive the award at a special ceremony on Dec. 10, 2014. The other

recipients were Victor Bailey (KU) who received the Balfour Jeffrey Award in Humanities and Social Sciences; Susan J. Brown (Kansas State) who was presented the Olin Petefish Award in Basic Sciences; and Frank F. White (Kansas State), who accepted

Irvin Youngberg Award for Applied Sciences. Four other chemistry faculty are past recipients of the Olin Petefish Award in Basic Sciences: Ralph Adams (1982), Shih-I Chu (1988), George Wilson (1993) and Daryle Busch (1994).

Page 2

Faculty news

Jackson recognized for teaching excellence

Tim Jackson, Associate Professor of Chemistry, was honored with a 2014 Outstanding Educator Award at

halftime of the Nov. 14, 2014 KU men’s basketball game. This is an annual award given by KU's chapter of Mortar Board, a national honor society, to recognize teaching excellence in the classroom. Six awards were presented in

2014.

Mortar Board is a national honor society that recognizes college seniors for superior achievement in scholarship, leadership and service. Currently, there are 47 active student members of KU’s chapter. The Outstanding Educator Award is determined by

nominations given to the KU Torch Chapter of Mortar Board, a senior honor society. Each year, five instructors are recognized for their dedication to KU and their positive influence on students both academically and personally.

Jackson was also a 2014 H.O.P.E. Award finalist, recognized at the Nov. 15 KU football game on N. Established by the Class of 1959, the H.O.P.E. (Honor for an Outstanding Progressive Educator) Award recognizes outstanding teaching and concern for

students. It is the only KU award for teaching excellence bestowed exclusively by students and is led by the KU Board of Class Officers. The winner is selected by the senior class members.

Wilson receives 2015 ACS Electrochemistry Award

Congratulations to George Wilson for being named the 2015 recipient of the Award in Electrochemistry

presented by the Division of Analytical Chemistry for the American Chemical Society! Wilson, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Chemistry and former associate vice provost for research at the University of Kansas,

focused his research on developing a blood glucose sensor for patients with diabetes that can be injected under the skin. He was one of the first electrochemists to consider in-vivo electrochemistry, and has helped launch many

of the careers of bioanalytical chemists in academia and industry.

Wilson joins 25 other recipients of this award since its inception in 1988, including Ralph Adams in 1989 and Theodore Kuwana in 1995. The award is given to someone who has advanced the field of electrochemical analysis through conceptualization and development of unique instrumentation, development of novel and important instrumentation, elucidation of fundamental events

or processes, and/or authorship of important research papers and/or books.

Craig Lunte receives 2014

Higuchi-KU Endowment Award

2014 Higuchi Award recipients Lunte, Bailey, Brown, White

Rivera and team awarded KU Strategic Initiative Grant

A project to explore a new and innovative direction for the development of antibiotics has received a Level I

Strategic Initiative Grant from KU’s Research Investment Council. A team led by Mario Rivera, professor of chemistry, was awarded approximately $300,000 over two years (2015-2016) in support of “Validating Bacterial

Iron Metabolism as Target for Antibiotic Discovery.”

Rivera is joined by Josephine Chandler, assistant professor of molecular biosciences; John Karanicolas, associate professor of molecular biosciences and computational biology; Bill Picking, Foundation Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry;

Lester Mitscher, emeritus professor of medicinal chemistry; and Richard Bunce, professor of chemistry at Oklahoma State University.

Page 3

Faculty news and more

Adams Institute Program Coordinator retires

Gary Webber, Program Coordinator for the Adams Institute and for the COBRE Center for Molecular Analysis of Disease

Pathways (CMADP), retired in July 2014. Gary came to KU in 2000 to work for Joe Heppert at the Center for Science Education

in the Chemistry Department, before moving to CReSIS in Mechanical Engineering in 2003. He

returned to Chemistry to help open the newly funded Adams Institute in 2007. Before coming to

KU, Gary taught science for 10 years at the middle school level in the Lawrence school district.

Gary has many interests that keep him busy and happy in retirement. He is a third degree black belt

in Ki-Aikido, and will continue to practice and teach. His hobbies include building and flying aerobatic

model airplanes, gardening, and bowling. He and his wife Phyllis enjoy a number of outdoor passions,

including camping, hiking, canoeing, snorkeling, and biking. After Phyllis retires in 2016, the couple

plans to travel extensively, returning to Europe, and visiting South America and East Asia for the first

time.

His successor, Cady Bush, joined the Adams Institute in July 2014 with over 9 years of experience in NIH grant administration at

KU, having served as the program assistant for KU’s Chemical Methodologies and Library Development Center and the

Specialized Chemistry Center.

Yong Zeng, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, received two new grant awards during the summer of 2014. He

received a competitive R21 award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The grant is entitled “Integrated Microfluidic Exosome Profiling for Early Detection of Cancer.” The major

goal of this project is to develop an integrated microfluidic platform for multiplexed biomarker profiling of circulating exosomes as non-invasive markers for cancer screening and early detection.

Zeng was also selected for a J.R. & Inez Jay Fund Award funded through the Higuchi Biosciences Center (HBC) at KU. His

proposal is entitled "Microfluidic Molecular Analysis of Tumor-Derived Exosomes.” The objective of this proposal is to develop novel microstructured functional materials for high-performance microfluidic isolation and molecular profiling of circulating exosomes in cancer.

Shenqiang Ren, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, received a 2014 Army Research Office Young

Investigator Award to conduct research on cutting-edge photovoltaic technology intended to give American forces tactical advantages in the field. This grant will allow Ren and his research group to pursue work that lines

up with “current Army interests” such as development of nanomaterials with exotic properties that could enable applications like self-powered sensing nanodevices. Since the devices are self-powered, the need for batteries is

eliminated. Ren’s work focuses on materials chemistry, synthesis and self-assembly of low-dimensional nanomaterials.

Junior faculty win research grant awards

Page 4

Student news

The American Chemical Society (ACS) Division of Analytical Chemistry (DAC) awarded a 2014 Summer

Graduate Fellowship to Zhikai Zhu, (Heather Desaire group). The fellowship was sponsored by the Eastman

Chemical Company. Zhu’s research focused on the development of high-throughput analytical methods for

glycopeptide analysis. He used the techniques to analyze the glycosylation of HIV envelope proteins to gain insight

on how glycosylation impacts HIV vaccine efficacy. Zhu went on to complete his Ph.D. with honors in July 2015

and is now a scientist at AbbVie in Redwood City, CA, a pharmaceutical company working on protein therapeutics.

Six Adams Institute students received $500 Kuwana Travel Award stipends this past academic year that enabled them to attend

various conferences and give presentations on their research. Thank you, Dr. Kuwana!

Tom Field (Mike Johnson group): oral presentation at Pittcon 2015, New Orleans, LA “Development of a Photocaged Mercaptan for the Modulation of Hydrogen Peroxide in Brain

Slices”

Kasun Imaduwage (Heather Desaire group): poster presentation at ASMS Conference on

Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics, St. Louis, MO

“High Throughput Screening of Libraries for Protein Binding Interaction Using LC-MS”

Daniel Kim (Bob Dunn group): oral and poster presentations at Gordon Research

Conference and Seminar on Bioanalytical Sensors, Newport, RI; Kim won a poster award

Talk/Poster title: “Development and Application of Novel Biosensor Platforms Using Whispering

Gallery Mode Imaging”

Joe Siegel (Sue Lunte group): oral presentation at Pittcon 2015, New Orleans, LA

“Analysis of Macrophage Cells for Reactive Nitrogen Species Using Microchip Electrophoresis ”

Yunan Wang (Craig Lunte group): oral presentation at Pittcon 2015, New Orleans, LA “LC-MS Determination of Prostanglandis, Leukotrienes, Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic Acids in Rat Colon Microdialysate During Inflammatory

Bowel Disease”

Sarah Wildgen (Bob Dunn group): oral presentation at Pittcon 2015, New Orleans, LA

“Whispering Gallery Mode Resonators for the Development of Label-Free Biosensing Platforms “

Daniel Kim and Yunan Wang with

Dr. Pete Conn at Pittcon 2015

2014-2015 Kuwana Travel Award rec ip ients

Sarah Wildgen (Bob Dunn group) was selected to attend the 65th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in

Lindau, Germany June 28—July 3, 2015. The week-long meeting brought together 650 young researchers

from 88 countries to interact with 70 Nobel Laureates from the fields of physiology and medicine, physics and

chemistry. At this interdisciplinary meeting, Wildgen had the opportunity to learn from and interact with the

Nobel Laureates through lectures, panel discussions and master classes, as well as closed door discussions on

topics of the students’ choices (career and scientific advice, etc.).

Wildgen’s favorite talks included one by Dr. Oliver Smithies, 2007 Nobel Prize

winner in Physiology and Medicine, who showed pictures of his lab notebook pages

from 1950 to just last year, and also talked about how proud he was of publishing a

paper as first author at the age of 90. She also really enjoyed Dr. William E.

Moerner's talk (2014 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry) which included a

fluorescence demonstration on stage. Wildgen later had the opportunity to meet Dr.

Moerner as they traveled to Mainau Island for the closing ceremony on July 3.

Sarah Wildgen and Dr. William Moerner en route to Mainau Island

Several students from the Adams Institute were honored for their scientific research presentations at the 2014 and 2015

Annual Kansas IDeA (Institutional Development Awards) Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (K-INBRE) Symposium. These annual symposia are part of the K-INBRE initiative to identify and recruit promising college

science students into careers in biomedical research in Kansas. Led by the KU Medical Center, this collaborative network covers ten college campuses in Kansas and northern Oklahoma.

The following Adams students received awards for their presentations at the January 2015 symposium:

Thomas Field, graduate student in chemistry (Mike Johnson group), “Synthesis and characterization of photocaged sulfhydryls,” oral presentation.

Ryan Limbocker, senior in chemistry (Mike Johnson group): “Analysis of neurochemistry in chemotherapy-treated rats

to understand the mechanism of neurodegeneration in Post-Chemotherapy Cognitive Impairment,” oral presentation.

Meng Sun, postdoc in chemistry (Mike Johnson group): “Measuring Total Antioxidant Capacity (TAC) in Transgenic Mice Modeled Huntington's disease (HD) on Craft Paper-based Analytical Devices (cPADs),” oral presentation.

The following Adams students received cash prizes for their presentations at the January 2014 symposium:

Rachel Gehringer, graduate student in chemistry (Mike Johnson group), “"Measurements of serotonin release in

Huntington's disease model R6/2 mice", poster presentation

Ryan Limbocker, junior in chemistry (Mike Johnson group): “Neurochemical analysis of Chemobrain,” Poster Award of Excellence

Mitchell Newton, sophomore in chemistry (Craig Lunte group): “Utilization and development of methods for the analysis of brain dialysis to understand oxidative stress,” oral presentation.

Page 5

Student news, cont.

Ryan Limbocker, an undergraduate researcher who worked in part in Mike Johnson’s lab, has been

awarded a Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, the nation’s premier undergraduate award established in

1986 to honor academically gifted students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. He is only

the 56th KU student to be recognized with a Goldwater scholarship.

Limbocker has also been named a Gates Cambridge Scholar, a scholarship established in 2000 by a

donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge in the United

Kingdom. Limbocker graduated from KU in May 2015, and this scholarship has given him the opportunity

to pursue his doctorate under the direction of Christopher Dobson, the John Humphrey Plummer Professor of Chemical

and Structural Biology at Cambridge. His plans are to pursue a doctorate in analytical chemistry and research the

fundamental origins of neurodegeneration, focusing on post-chemotherapy cognitive impairment, Huntington’s disease and

Alzheimer’s disease.

2014-2015 student awards at K - INBRE Symposia

Ryan Limbocker receiving 2014 Poster Award of Excellence Mitchell Newton receiving 2014 award for oral presentation

Page 6

Student news, cont.

The 17th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, a celebration of research, scholarship and creative

work from undergraduate students, took place on Saturday, April 26, 2014 in the Kansas Union on the Kansas

University campus. Mitchell Newton, a junior in chemistry from Overland Park, KS was one of only six

undergraduates chosen to speak at the event. His talk, “Utilizing Microdialysis and Electrocortiography to

Understand Seizure Activity in the Brain”, detailed research performed in Craig Lunte’s laboratory.

Congratulations to Erin Evans and Mitchell Newton, two chemistry students from Adams Institute–

affiliated faculty labs who won KU Undergraduate Research Awards from the KU Center for

Undergraduate Research in the spring of 2014! Each student received $1000 to fund their proposed

research projects:

Erin Evans (Sue Lunte group): “Separation optimization of neurotransmitters in Caenorhabditis elegans using capillary electrophoresis with UV detection,” a study to effectively correlate

concentration of neurotransmitters with behavior

Mitchell Newton (Craig Lunte group): “Developing a Local Seizure Model in the Rat to Elucidate the Chemical and Electrical State of the Brain after a Seizure Event,” a project to develop a complete model of a localized seizure in rats

that more closely represents human epileptic events using liquid chromatography and electrocorticography

Students from across campus and across disciplines apply for the awards by writing a four-page research proposal under the

guidance of a faculty mentor. The Spring 2014 competition saw a 25 percent increase in the number of applications from the

previous spring, making the awards all that much more competitive. Proposals were selected on the merit of the applicant's

proposal, the applicant's academic record, and the recommendation from a faculty member familiar with the applicant and

the proposed project.

John Bliss and Thomas Hurley, undergraduates in Christopher Elles’ research group, won the award for best

poster presentation at the 5th Annual Wakarusa Valley ACS Student Research Symposium at Benedictine

College in Atchison, KS on September 20, 2014. Thomas was present at the symposium to accept the award for their

poster "Developing New Tools for Teaching Spectroscopy in the High School Classroom".

Congratulations to these graduates and award

winners from the Chemistry Department’s

Graduation Recognition and Awards

Reception in May 2015! Information on Adams

Institute affiliated winners can be found on

pages 7-8 of this newsletter for both the

2014 and 2015 ceremonies.

The Adams Institute was well represented at both the Chemistry

Department’s 2014 and 2015 annual Graduation Recognition and

Awards Receptions (held each May at the end of the academic year). Over

the past two years, a total of 32 students from 14 Adams Institute-affiliated

faculty research groups received awards and scholarships for their academic

and research accomplishments. Congratulations to these students and their

faculty mentors!

Undergraduate Student Awards

Analytical Chemistry Book Award for superior achievement

2014: Lianna Dang (Shenqiang Ren group)

Fassnacht Scholarship, given to an advanced student with a major in chemistry

2014: Nicolette Warnke (Craig Lunte group)

Frank Newby—Physical Science Award, awarded to a student of exceptional merit in the field of physical science, attended a Kansas

high school and residents of Kansas or a bordering state

2015: Emmaline Lorenzo and Brooks Hidaka (both in Chris Elles group)

Ginny Adams Research Award, for undergraduates who demonstrate

dedication to exemplary scholarship and research in analytical chemistry

2015: Stephanie Assimonye (Mike Johnson group)

K. Barbara Schowen Undergraduate Chemistry Scholarship, awarded

to a deserving undergraduate

2014: Zunwu Zhou (Shenqiang Ren group)

Leonard V. Sorg Scholarship, for outstanding performance by a chemistry

major doing research

2015: Anthony Howcraft (Tim Jackson group)

Owen W. Maloney Scholarship, given to an outstanding first year

chemistry student

2015: Collin Clay (Carey Johnson group)

Ralph E. and Esther Weik Badgley Scholarship, a scholarship to an outstanding female undergraduate student

2015: Nicolette Warnke (Craig Lunte group)

Reynold T. Iwamoto Scholarship, a scholarship based on academic

performance by a minority student

2015: Rachel Phillips (Mike Johnson group)

Seo Research Award, given to students who demonstrate dedication to

exemplary scholarship and research in analytical chemistry

2014: Ryan Limbocker (Mike Johnson group)

Steve and Susan Snyder Award, awarded to an undergraduate student of

considerable promise

2015: Karie Robertson (Mario Rivera group)

Talty Scholarship for excellent performance by a chemistry major

2014: Brian Lamoreux (David Weis group)

Ted Gardiner Award, awarded to a deserving undergraduate

2015: Leif Oas (Mario Rivera group)

Walter Gubar Scholarship for outstanding performance by a first-year

chemistry major

2014: Nicci Bowman (Tim Jackson group)

Adams Institute students receive departmental awards

Page 7

Dr. Chris Elles, Amanda Houk, Emmaline Lorenzo

Nicci Bowman, Dr. Tim Jackson, Gayan Wijeratne

Outstanding Senior Awards

Chemistry Departmental Honors

2015: Ryan Limbocker (Mike Johnson group)

ACS Division of Inorganic Chemistry Award, an undergraduate award in inorganic chemistry

2014: Lianna Dang (Shenqiang Ren group)

Alpha Chi Sigma Award, given to an outstanding graduating senior in chemistry

2014: Lianna Dang (Shenqiang Ren group); 2015: Ryan Limbocker (Mike Johnson group)

American Institute of Chemists Award, a national award presented to a

graduating senior who has achieved an outstanding record as a chemistry major

2014: Kristopher Southard (Yong Zeng group)

Wakarusa Valley ACS Section Award, presented to an outstanding senior

2014: Lianna Dang (Shenqiang Ren group);

2015: Ryan Limbocker (Mike Johnson group)

Graduate Student Awards Adrienne Hiscox Mitchell Scholarship, awarded to an outstanding female

graduate student

2014: Cassandra Ward (Chris Elles group);

2015: Yunan Wang (Craig Lunte group)

Bijan and Mary Taylor Amini Scholarship, for outstanding chemistry students

2014: Gayan Wijeratne (Tim Jackson group); 2015: Rachel Saylor (Sue Lunte group)

Ernest & Marvel Griswold Award in Inorganic Chemistry, awarded to an outstanding advanced graduate student in inorganic

chemistry

2014: Domenick Leto (Tim Jackson group); 2015: Alec Kirkeminde (Tim Jackson group)

H.P. Cady Award, given to a first-year graduate student for excellent performance

2014: Tyler Hageman (David Weis group)

Higuchi Doctoral Progress Award, given to a superior, post-comprehensive graduate student in his or her final year

2014: Zhikai Zhu (Heather Desaire group); 2015: Gayan Wijeratne (Tim Jackson group)

J.K. Lee Award in Analytical Chemistry, given for superior academic performance and research accomplishments by

an advanced doctoral student

2014: Sarah Wildgen (Bob Dunn group); 2015: Daniel Kim (Bob Dunn group)

Kuwana Graduate Opportunity Fund Awards, given to graduate students pursuing studies in Analytical Chemistry

2014: Rachel Saylor (Sue Lunte group) and Yunan Wang (Craig Lunte group)

2015: Thomas Field (Mike Johnson group) and Joseph Siegel (Sue Lunte group)

McCollum Research Scholarship, awarded to outstanding advanced graduate students

2014: Mohammad Al-Naqshabandi (David Weis group) and Daniel Kim (Bob Dunn group)

2015: Tyler Hageman (David Weis group) and Trey Ronnebaum (Minae Mure group)

Paul and Helen Gilles Award in Physical Chemistry, given for superior academic performance and research accomplishments by an

advanced doctoral student

2015: Amanda Houk (Chris Elles group)

Ralph E. and Esther Weik Badgley Scholarship, awarded to an outstanding female graduate student

2014: Amanda Houk (Chris Elles group); 2015: Sarah Wildgen (Bob Dunn group)

Snyder Award, given to a graduate student of considerable promise

2014: H. M. Dulan B. Gunasekara (Sue Lunte group); 2015: Jennifer Totleben (Cindy Berrie group)

Takeru & Aya Higuchi Scholarship in Physical Chemistry, a scholarship awarded to a deserving graduate student in physical

chemistry

2015: Oluwaseun Mesele (Cindy Berrie group)

Lianna Dang

Zhikai Zhu

Dr. David Weis, Mohammed Al-Naqshabandi,

Tyler Hageman, Brian Lamoreux

Adams Institute students receive departmental awards, cont.

Page 8

Ryan Limbocker

Have science, will travel

Page 9

A large group of Adams Institute-affiliated graduate students and faculty attended Pittcon 2015 in New Orleans —almost 15 people giving oral and poster presentations on their latest research, taking time out only for beignets and coffee & chicory at Café Du Monde. The Big Easy may never be the same!

Elton Melo (visiting scholar,

Sue Lunte group) in his element

Amanda Furness (grad student, Craig Lunte group)

Sarah Wildgen and Daniel Kim

(grad students, Bob Dunn group) at Café Du Monde

Leena Suntornsuk (visiting professor,

Sue Lunte group) and Elton Melo (visiting scholar, Sue Lunte group)

Nhan To and Ryan Johnson

(grad students, Craig Lunte group) with Dr. Pete Conn

Craig Lunte and Ryan Johnson

(grad student, Craig Lunte group)

Paige Skillett (summer 2014 REU student, Sue Lunte

group) and Joe Siegel (grad student, Sue Lunte group)

Abdullah Al-Hossaini

(grad student, Sue Lunte group)

Jayhawks in New Orleans

Silicon Prairie International Microfluidics Symposium

2030 Becker Drive, Room 220

Multidisciplinary Research Building

Lawrence, KS 66047

Phone: (785) 864-2342

E-mail: adamsinstitute@ku.edu

Web: www.adamsinstitute.ku.edu

On Nov. 1, 2014 more than 60 people gathered at KU for the Silicon Prairie

International Microfluidics Symposium (SPIMS) for an afternoon of

outstanding short talks by eight experts in the field of microfluidics. SPIMS featured

talks by:

Cindy L. Berrie, Department of Chemistry, KU Wendell Karlos Tomazelli Coltro, Institute of Chemistry,

Federal University of Goiás (Brazil) Christopher T. Culbertson, Department of Chemistry,

Kansas State University Prajna Dhar, Department of Chemical & Petroleum

Engineering, KU José Alberto Fracassi da Silva, Institute of Chemistry,

State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) (Brazil) Dulan B. Gunasekara, Department of Chemistry,

University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill Mei He, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering,

Kansas State University Sabeth Verpoorte, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen (Netherlands)

Participants had an opportunity not only to hear about some of the latest research in microfluidics, but also to present

their own research at what was an extremely interactive poster session with 18 posters given. During the poster session,

attendees also had time to tour the Microfabrication and Microfluidics Core facilities in the Multidisciplinary Research

Building on KU’s west campus.

Front row, L-R: Verpoorte, Dhar, Berrie, Fracassi da Silva

Back row, L-R: Gunasekara, Sue Lunte, Coltro, He, Culbertson

Marlin and Nancy Harmony enjoying a KU basketball

game in Allen Fieldhouse

Kathy Olson, Sue Lunte and Melissa Perkins catching up after

their Hospira presentation at KU

Steve Soper, Sue Lunte and Craig Lunte discussing the “secret of life”

at The Eagle in Cambridge, UK

In memory of Craig Lunte

Page 11

In his memory, KU’s Chemistry Department has established the Craig Lunte Memorial International Travel Award for Analytical Graduate Students. This travel award will be given annually to an outstanding graduate student(s) pursuing studies in analytical chemistry, providing them the resources to present their research at the international conference of their choosing. If you would like to contribute to this international travel award in Lunte’s memory, please send donations to KU’s Chemistry Department (c/o Susan Teague) made payable to the “Craig Lunte Memorial International Travel Award.”

The Royal Society of Chemistry’s journals Analytical Methods and Analyst will be publishing a joint online web collection next year in memory of Craig Lunte. This very special issue aims to highlight analytical research being conducted in the fields of bioanalytical chemistry, microseparations, sampling, electrochemistry, pharmacokinetics and mass spectrometry. For information contact Sue Lunte (slunte@ku.edu) or Rebecca Brodie at the RSC (BrodieR@rsc.org).

Events in honor of Craig Lunte

Page 12

Craig Lunte was a major force within KU’s Chemistry department, both as a leader and an exemplary scientist. He was an

internationally recognized and respected leader in the field of microdialysis and its applications in the pharmaceutical

sciences. He had collaborators, colleagues and friends all over the world from Ireland to Brazil to Australia. This

“extended family” is graciously honoring Craig over the next several months at a number of events around the world.

November 17, 2015

Dublin City University (DCU) Craig Lunte Memorial Symposium

Hosted by DCU School of Chemical Sciences in Dublin, Ireland

https://www.dcu.ie/chemistry/index.shtml

December 5-8, 2015

LACE-2015 Symposium in Cartagena, Colombia

Dedicated to the memory of Dr. Craig Lunte

http://www.latince.com/index.html

March 6-10, 2016 (during Pittcon 2016 Conference & Expo in Atlanta, GA)

Wednesday, March 9: Symposium and Organized Contributed Session on

“Precision Bioanalytical Measurements” inspired by the work of Professor Craig Lunte

8:30-11:30am: Symposium

1:30-4:05pm: Organized Contributed Session

http://pittcon.org/technical-program (Bioanalytical section)

Also, 6:00-8:00pm informal reception on March 9

Meehan’s Public House Downtown (200 Peachtree St)

Come-and-go event—all are welcome!

May 25-27, 2016

8th International Symposium on Microdialysis in Uppsala, Sweden

Organized by Uppsala University in collaboration with EUFEPS

Microdialysis and Analytical Aspects Section devoted to the memory of Professor Craig E. Lunte

www.microdialysis2016.org

June 12-16, 2016

ESEAC16th International Conference on Electroanalysis in Bath, UK

Program will include the Craig E. Lunte Memorial Lecture

http://www.eseac2016.com

In memory of Craig Lunte

Page 13

Whether in front of a classroom full of eager minds or in the laboratory providing hands-on instruction to

curious students, Professor Craig E. Lunte, Ph.D. never missed an opportunity

to share his wealth of knowledge. Once described as the “doyen of

microdialysis,” Lunte was internationally recognized for his use of microdialysis

sampling for drug metabolism studies. He also developed many novel

separation and detection methods for the analysis of microdialysis and other

biological samples. He was a well known electrochemist and developed several

new electrochemical detectors for liquid chromatography and electrophoresis,

and was an active member of the separations community as well. Lunte died on

April 13, 2015, at the age of 57, at his home in Lawrence, Kansas.

Lunte received his bachelor's degree, cum laude, from the University of Missouri-Rolla in 1979 and his

doctorate from Purdue University in 1984 under the direction of Peter Kissinger. He subsequently held a

postdoctoral appointment at the University of Cincinnati with William Heinemann until he joined the

Department of Chemistry at the University of Kansas in 1987. He was chair of the Chemistry department from

2001-2005 and from 2009-2013. He spent two sabbaticals at Dublin City University in Ireland and was a SFI

Walton Fellow.

The author of more than 150 research papers, Lunte was a member of several scientific societies including

holding multiple positions within the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS). He was also a

Fellow of AAPS and received the AAPS Research Achievement Award in Analysis and Pharmaceutical Quality in

2008. He received the Higuchi Research achievement award in 2013. He was also on the review and editorial

boards of numerous scientific journals.

Trained as a classical analytical chemist, Lunte also had expertise in biochemistry, pharmacology, and

neurochemistry as a result of his numerous collaborations across the globe. He took the most pride, however,

in acting as mentor to 18 postdoctoral research associates, 42 graduate students, over 65 undergraduate

students, and 17 visiting students and scholars. This dedication to teaching was further evidenced by the Self

Graduate Fellowship Program Mentor Achievement Award received in 2001 and the John C. Wright Graduate

Mentor Award received in 2007.

Lunte grew a vast “extended family” of academic and industrial professionals throughout his career. Stacy

Arnett, Ph.D. recalls his “ability to see each researcher as an individual and challenge each researcher based on

his or her personalities, talents, and interests.” His “kindness and excellent mentoring to incoming international

graduate students” is fondly remembered by M. Ehsanul Hoque, Ph.D.

Lunte also provided numerous opportunities for his students to attend conferences and participate in internships

as an avenue to share their research with the broader public. Eric Crick, Ph.D. recalls his six-month internship in

the laboratory of Malcolm Smyth at Dublin City University (Ireland) as being “one of the best opportunities” that

he was given toward his professional development. Crick also remembers Lunte as “a very generous person. Late

in my graduate school career, he took three graduate students (including myself) to a very small, but focused

conference on microdialysis in Holland. It was initially very intimidating, but being able to interact with the leaders

in the field and discuss your research one-on- one was a very rewarding experience.” Lunte was always quick to

share what motivated him to keep doing what he loved – being able to graduate successful Ph.D. students. His

main focus was that students leave his laboratory as better scientists and even better individuals; he wanted to see

his students get the jobs that they wanted, doing science that makes a difference.

In addition to mentoring students, Lunte worked tirelessly to improve the Chemistry Department. During his

tenures as Department Chair, he welcomed 14 new faculty to the Department. Lunte took a strong interest in

seeing these Assistant Professors succeed, and to date, not one of Lunte’s hires has been denied tenure. Heather

Desaire was one of these faculty. She joined the Department in 2002. She commented, “Craig always supported

his faculty. He was a tireless advocate for us, and he also challenged us to reach our full potential. His advice,

about gaining tenure, was that faculty should not focus on whether or not they met the standards for tenure.

Rather, we should aspire to greatly exceed the standards, leaving no doubt that we deserved it. Craig held

himself up to these high expectations. He was an excellent role model to all of us.”

Outside of his primary passion for teaching, Lunte stayed busy with several hobbies including traveling, golfing, and

cooking. “He loved life and lived it to the fullest,” stated Arnett. He was never at a loss for a good story from his

worldly travels and his infectious laugh could be heard echoing through the hallways at KU or across the golf

course. He got the most enjoyment from his notorious Fourth of July parties. “The food was plentiful, the laughs

were endless, and the good times were unforgettable,” remembers Crick. Lunte was known to start the planning

process for these parties months in advance and spend the entire week before smoking all the meats using his

homemade rubs and seasonings.

Lunte is survived by his wife, Susan Lunte, also in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Kansas and

two daughters, Alyson Lunte and Kathryn Lunte. He is sorely missed by his immediate family as well as his

“extended family” across the world.