Qingguo Xu is a Blick Scholar Associate Professor of Pharmaceutics, with joint appointment in Biomedical Engineering, Ophthalmology, and Pediatrics at the Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Xu received B.E and M.E. in Polymer Materials and Engineering from Tianjin University in China, and DPhil in Materials Science from the University of Oxford. Dr. Xu worked as a Process Scientist in Unilever R&D center in England for two years and received postdoc training from the Center for Nanomedicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine before his faculty position. Dr. Xu has experience in materials science, drug delivery and nanotechnology. A significant portion of his current work has involved the design and development of new methods for safe, effective drug delivery to treat various eye diseases, lung diseases and opioid use disorders. Dr. Xu is PI of multiple NIH and FDA grants. Dr. Xu has authored ~15 patents and 40 research papers. These efforts have led to awards and recognitions including 2018 Powe Junior Faculty Award, 2019 CRS Ocular Delivery Young Investigator, 2024 CAB-Mid-Career Investigator Award.

Mircea Cotlet is a Physical Chemist and tenured Principle Investigator at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New York. His research group utilizes self-assembly methods to engineer nanostructures with potential applications in sensing, optoelectronics and quantum information processing. Cotlet is an expert in pump-probe ultrafast and single molecule optical methods applied to the study of electron and energy transfer in nanoscale systems. He manages the Advanced Optical Facility of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials for the Department of Energy, where he provides scientific and infrastructure support to users from academia, industry and national laboratories in pursuit of research projects benefiting from advanced optical characterization. Dr. Cotlet is the recipient of the 2019 Battelle Inventor of the Year, awarded by the Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus OH and has published over 100 peer reviewed papers including several expert reviews in the field of his research.

Dr. Cotlet earned a doctorate in chemistry from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, where he developed single molecule optical methods to investigate oligomerization of fluorescent proteins. Before joining the Brookhaven Lab., he completed a visiting postdoctoral stay at Harvard University with Sunney Xie to work on biological non linear imaging and was a Director's Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory where he worked on protein folding and intracellular calcium ion imaging.

Dr. Saddow's research interests are to develop wide-bandgap semiconductor materials for biomedical applications MEMS/NEMS applications. His group has demonstrated the in-vitro biocompatibility of 3C-SiC to numerous cell lines and lately his research has focused on the central nervous system. His group has demonstrated several advanced biomedical devices, such as microelectrode arrays (MEAs), neural probes, in-vivo glucose sensors and impedance-based biosensors. Dr. Saddow was recently recognized for these contributions by being named Fellow of the AIMBE. He recently edited his third book in this field SiC Biotechnology for Healthcare Applications, Elsevier © 2022, which is the basis for this tutorial.

Dr. Alberto E. Musto, M.D, Ph.D., FAES, is an Associate Professor of Pathology, Anatomy and Neurology and member of the Center of Integrative Neuroscience and Inflammation at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia. He integrates an interdisciplinary approach in medical education and neuroscience research. Dr. Musto's primary scientific goal is to identify a potential biomarker and preventive therapies for epilepsy, glioblastoma multiforme, and Alzheimer's disease. As the head of a scientific laboratory and with more than 30 years of experience in academic medicine, Dr. Musto develops and directs pre-clinical and clinical studies with the aim to develop future therapies in neurology. Dr. Musto's leadership skills have been contributing to create, organize, lead and supervise several scientific discoveries, educational and research programs and community projects in Argentina and USA. He is the founder and CEO a biotechnology company to develop new clinical treatment for epilepsy and brain injuries. Dr. Musto has published in major journals in the field of neuroscience and epilepsy and is a frequent member of the National Institute of Health grant review study sections and a clinical and scientific reviewer for the Department of Defense. He has patents in neuroprotection and neuroinflammation and has been invited to speak at national and international scientific meetings.

Prior to join EVMS, Dr. Musto was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Louisiana State University Health Science Center (LSUHSC), School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA (2007-2015), where he was actively involved in neuroscience research, graduate medical education and mentoring underrepresented undergraduate students. His scholarly activities have been funded, as a principal investigator, mainly by National Institute of Health, Board of Regents (LSU), EVMS Research Office, National Science Foundation and Commonwealth Research Board of Virginia. Dr. Musto was born in Argentina and received his MD degree from the Universidad de Buenos Aires, School of Medicine. He obtained board certifications in both Neurology and Radiology after completing their respective clinical training. In addition, he completed post-graduate studies in medical education and management in health systems. Dr. Musto obtained his Ph.D. degree in Neurobiology from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and relocated to the United States where he completed a 4-year postdoctoral fellowship in Neuroprotection at LSUHSC, New Orleans, LA. Dr. Musto is a Fellow of the American Epilepsy Society (FAES) - a lifetime professional honor in recognition of his accomplishments and dedication to excellence in epilepsy.

LaConda G. Ambrose Fanning, Psy.D, is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner, and Registered Nurse. She holds a several Masters Degrees and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Regent University with a concentration in Organizational Consultation and Supervision. Dr. Fanning is a part of the Eastern Virginia Medical School with the office of Graduate Medical Education where she serves as the Director of Assessment and Mentorship Program, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, the Associate Director of the Academic Fellowship Program and has a Faculty Appointment with Internal Medicine. Dr. Fanning is an Executive Coach with three designations as a Physician, Wellness and Life Coach with the Certified Coaches Alliance. Dr Fanning is the recipient of the 2023 EVMS President's Champion Diversity and Inclusion Award. She has a special interest in health equity, diversity and inclusion, religious coping, and generational effects of trauma. In the community, she serves as an Ordained Pastor within a local congregation and serves as the Immediate Past President on the Executive Board of the Virginia Counselors Association. Dr. Fanning is the 2023 Virginia Counselors Association Counselor of the year recipient and received the 2023 American Counseling Association Southern Region Chairs.