UAlbany Hosts Second International Spectroscopy Conference

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ALBANY, N.Y. (July 28, 2010) -- The University at Albany is convening some of the leading scientists in the world for the Second International Conference on Vibrational Optical Activity (VOA-2) and Bio-Medical Applications of Raman Spectroscopy (BMARS), Aug. 5-7.

Organized by Igor Lednev, associate professor of chemistry at UAlbany, and distinguished professor of chemistry Laurence A. Nafie of Syracuse University, the conference will address the foremost problems confronting medicine over the next 15 to 20 years where biophysical research and Raman spectroscopy can have significant impact.  Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between radiation and matter.

Raman Spectroscopy: An Aid to Understand Neurodegenerative Diseases
Lednev recently received a $1,074,000 grant from the National Institute of Aging, part of the National Institute of Health, to further research on a novel approach he developed to characterize the structure and formation mechanism of plaques associated with many neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's, Huntington's and Parkinson's diseases. Lednev's approach will facilitate the development of new types of drugs through the validation of in vitro model systems used in the pharmaceutical industry. Lednev also recently received a $375,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to improve forensic investigation through Raman spectroscopy at crime scenes.

Spectroscopic Diagnosis: Advancing Medical Research
Renowned expert on spectroscopic diagnosis Professor Hugh Barr will give the keynote address. Barr will also facilitate a panel discussion.

Barr has been a consultant general surgeon at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, U.K. for more than 15 years. He conducts research on upper gastrointestinal disease, including Barrett's esophagus and its early optical detection and early treatment. Barr has published over 80 papers in peer-reviewed journals and 25 book chapters. He leads a major research group on optical/spectroscopic diagnosis. He has been awarded several major research grants for the development of Raman spectroscopy in various fields.

The Symposium, which will be held on UAlbany's uptown campus, will include plenary and invited lectures and poster presentations. The Symposium format will be two separate conferences, where some shared time will be devoted to overlap in the area of biological Vibrational Optical Activity (VOA) and Raman spectroscopy. But each conference will have its own identity.

The VOA conference will showcase the leading edge research and applications in the field of Raman optical activity (ROA) and vibrational circular dichroism (VCD), including experimental and theoretical advances.

 At the Biomedical conference, in addition to lectures given by Raman spectroscopists, leading medical doctors will give plenary lectures and facilitate panel discussions to identify key areas in medicine where research in vibrational spectroscopy, Raman and infrared, can have a significant influence.

For more information visit https://www.albany.edu/ramanconference

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