Dr. Mehnaaz Ali’s research interests are in the field of
bioanalytical chemistry and include developing sensors
and detection strategies for clinically relevant biomarkers.
Specifically, this group is involved with aptamer based
immobilized sensors combined with an enzyme
reactivation signal transduction component.
Dr. Bryan Bilyeu's projects include water analysis &
treatment and temperature-dependent structural
changes in proteins & pharmaceuticals. This includes
analyzing water for heavy metals and evaluating the
effectiveness of treatment techniques. The protein/
pharmaceutical work involves studying small structural
changes due to temperature.
Dr. Stassi DiMaggio’s research involves the synthesis
of targeted drug delivery systems. In particular, the
reactions between small molecules, such as chemotherapy drugs, and a polymer platform are studied to
create an efficient nanoscale drug delivery vehicle. In
addition, these systems are also studied as non-viral
gene delivery systems for gene-therapy.
Dr. Maryam Foroozesh’s group is involved in the
design, synthesis and biological studies of new
selective inhibitors of P450 enzymes involved in
carcinogenesis, and ceramides with the potential
of causing reversal of chemoresistance and
endocrine resistance in breast cancer.
Dr. Galina Goloverda works on synthesis of organic
molecules that would stabilize small magnetic particles in
aqueous colloids and make them biocompatible, to be
used as targeted carriers for drug delivery and other
biomedical applications. This synthesis involves
chemical modification of natural acids.
Dr. Kelly Johanson Pax3-FOXO1 is
an oncogenic transcription factor involved in the
development of Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma. My
research involves studying the DNA binding properties
of this protein in order to examine the contributions of
each of the DNA binding domains as well as identify
downstream targets.
Dr. Candace Lawrence’s group is interested in studying
the use of modified nucleic acids (nucleobases) as
potential hydrogel delivery systems. Secondly, the group is
developing more elaborate nucleobase-appended,
biologically relevant covalent polymers as additional drug
delivery carriers. Additionally, the pairings are being
studied in electron transfer systems.
Dr. Neil McIntyre Peptidylglycine aamidating mono-oxygenase activates >50% of peptide
hormones in vivo through a C-terminal amidation reaction.
Overproduction of amidated peptides have been implicated
in the progression of a number of cancers and autoimmune
diseases. My research goal is to elucidate the complete
kinetic and chemical mechanism to develop novel
therapeutics.
Dr. Lamartine Meda uses vapor deposition techniques to
synthesize nanomaterials for energy storage technology
including pace makers, smart cards, and cell phone batteries.
He also works on materials for gas sensors.
Dr. Kathleen Morgan studies organic
thermochemistry and reaction
mechanisms. Current projects include using reaction
calorimetry and calculations to determine how structural
variations (substituents) influence the energy of simple
epoxides and aziridines. Substituents can affect the
strain of these molecules, which can influence their
reactivity, another subject of study.
Dr. Florastina Payton-Stewart focuses on identifying
novel endocrine therapeutics via synthetic chemistry and
molecular biology. The research involves understanding
the molecular mechanism and biological activity of
naturally occurring plant phytoalexins and their analogs as
they pertain to breast carcinomas.
Dr. Kevin Riley studies noncovalent interactions using
quantum chemical tools. These interactions include
hydrogen bonds, van der Waals interactions, and halogen
bonds, forces responsible for holding molecules together.
Specifically, noncovalent interactions in biological systems,
such as protein-ligand complexes, are being studied.
Dr. Vladimir Kolesnichenko works on synthesis of metal
oxide clusters with strong magnetic properties, of interest for
materials and medicinal branches of nanotechnology. The
materials project is in collaboration with physicists specialized
in magnetism, and the medicinal project is developed with
radiologists.
Dr. Jaya Sridhar focuses on the design and
development of selective inhibitors for protein
kinases and cytochrome P450 enzymes towards
cancer therapy. Computational molecular modeling
tools are used for designing new inhibitors and
organic synthetic methods are used for synthesizing
the designed compounds which are then assayed to
determine their efficacy.
Dr. Zhe Wang’s studies focus on interfacial
phenomena, particularly on the molecular reactions at
the electrode/liquid/gas interface. Research aims the
designing of the functional surfaces for bio-recognition
and early cancer detection, and also focuses on study
of the relationship of interfacial structure and catalytic
properties for sensor and energy conversion application
Dr. Guangdi Wang’s research focuses on:
Environmental studies that track the pollution levels
of endocrine disruptors and carcinogens; Study of
breast cancer signaling pathways by proteomics
analysis; and, Design, synthesis, and biological
evaluation of selective estrogen receptor modulators
that can be used to treat breast cancer.
Dr. Terry Watt's research activities focus on molecular
recognition in biochemical systems. He is currently
researching post-translation modifications by histone
deacetylases, proteins which regulate the acetylation of
lysine residues, and how histone deacetylases
distinguish between the thousands of intracellular
proteins that could serve as reaction substrates.
Dr. Sarah Weaver Styrene is the 8th largest organic
chemical produced in the world but the detailed
mechanism of how it is made is not known. This
transformation is investigated by using isotope and
substituent effects. Students will carry out organic
synthesis and learn a variety of instruments.
Dr. Jian Zhang is interested in the synthesis, fabrication,
and characterization of nanoparticles, nanocomposites
and thin films of magnetic oxides with useful electric and
magnetic properties for use in the development of sensing
devices and in biomedical applications.
T H E D E PA RT M E N T
~50 B.S. Chemistry Degrees
Awarded Annually
633 Chemistry Majors (including
ACS-certified & Pre-professional majors)
31% go on to graduate and professional programs
26 Full-Time Faculty
~$10M in federal research funding
(Also, HBCU-UP, EPSCoR, MARC, RISE, RCMI,
HHMI, LaSpace
Louisiana Cancer Research Consortium,
Center for Bioenvironmental Research)
7 Postdoctoral and 40 undergrad researchers
Instrumentation
State-of the Art equipment for research in
nanotechnology, materials science, synthesis and drug
design, crystallography, molecular modeling
NMR: 300 & 400 MHz Bruker,
GC-MS: Agilent; GC: Agilent & Varian
LC: Agilent; LC-MS: Shimadzu
UV-Vis: Beckman & Shimadzu
IR: Thermo
Department of Chemistry
Xavier University of Louisiana
1 Drexel Drive
New Orleans LA 70125
(504) 520-5082 Main Office
(504) 520-7942 Fax
“Xavier is a school where achievement has been the
rule, and beating the odds against success a routine
occurrence.”
Email:
mforooze@xula.edu
~ The New York Times Selective Guide to Colleges
Physical Location:
3rd Floor NCF Science Complex
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