A nationally recognized leader in nanomaterials education and research will be speaking at West Virginia University in April as part of WVNano’s Distinguished Colloquium Series.

Martin Philbert, Ph.D., dean of the School of Public Health at the University Of Michigan will speak in Morgantown at 4 p.m., April 15 at Fukushima Auditorium on the Health Sciences Campus to interact with WVU students and faculty, and to discuss his work as a higher education public health leader and the implications he sees for nano studies in relation to public health.

Philbert’s talk is titled “Nanomaterials: Folly, Friend or Foe?” The event is free and open to the public.

“We are very much looking forward to Dr. Philbert’s appearance,” said WVNano Director Diandra Leslie-Pelecky said. “Not only has he established a long and successful record as a teacher and researcher, he is an accomplished author who is recognized nationally for his expertise in neurotoxicology and experimental neuropathology.”

Philbert’s presentation will be based upon his observation that federal investments in nanometer-scale science have caused an explosion in the number and functionalities of materials that are being developed or deployed in virtually everything from consumer and electronic products to medical devices, drugs and imaging agents. The design of biomedical nanomaterials as carriers for drugs and imaging agents holds particularly vast potential.

Philbert said he believes the world is undergoing a revolution in understanding of areas as diverse as molecular epidemiology, nanotechnology, health care quality, the dynamics of health behavior, public health genomics and the interrelationship of ethnicity, culture and health.

“Today’s public health issues are indeed complex and they require collaboration across campus with community and academic partners around the world and with both public and private decision-makers,” he wrote. ” We have much to learn about what makes us susceptible to many diseases and what we can do to promote good health and well being and how to manage the long-term consequences of ill health.”

Philbert recently presented a program at the University of Michigan called “Nanotechnology Unplugged.”
Philbert became dean of the University of Michigan School of Public Health in January 2011. He had served as senior associate dean for research at the school since 2004. He arrived at Michigan in 1995 from Rutgers’ Neurotoxicology Laboratories. He has maintained a continuously federally funded portfolio of basic research activities throughout his career. Most recently his work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Air Force and the National Cancer Institute.

He received his Ph.D. in neurochemistry/experimental neuropathology from London University and a B.Sc. (Hons.) in biology/Chemistry from Cambridge University.

WVNano is the state of West Virginia’s initiative for nanoscale science, engineering and education and provides necessary infrastructure to stimulate innovative research in the area of nanoscale science and engineering while integrating education, workforce development and outreach programs. WVNano provides significant research and education experiences for a diverse group of undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, high school teachers and institutions in the state and enhances the prosperity of the nation by preparing our citizens for the increasingly knowledge-based economy.

The WVNano Initiative is funded by the National Science Foundation, the state of West Virginia through WVEPSCoR and the WVU Research Corp.

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CONTACT: Lisa Sharpe, WVNano
304-293-6872; Lisa.Sharpe@mail.wvu.edu

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