Lokesh Joshi, B.Sc., M.Sc., Ph.D
Prof. Joshi is the Science Foundation Ireland appointed Stokes Professor of GlycoSciences at National University of Ireland Galway, Ireland. His primary research interest is in the roles played by complex sugars in biological systems and technologies to study and understand these roles in maintaining health and during disease processes. His laboratory is developing technologies for high-throughput biomimic discovery and microarray based glycomics studies for clinical and industrial applications including infectious and chronic diseases and biopharmaceuticals.
Prof. Joshi has a PhD in Biological Sciences and Biochemistry from Bath University, UK, where he worked on the strategies adopted by pathogenic fungi to colonize the host. He then completed Post-Doctoral and Research Associate experience in molecular fungal pathology and glycobiology at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.
He was appointed Research Assistant Professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University in 2000 and joined the Department of Bioengineering and the Biodesign Institute as an Associate Professor in 2003 where he led a team of researchers working on the glycosylation pathway discovery and engineering and peptide therapeutics to produce biomolecules of therapeutic value. During this period, Prof. Joshi also co-founded a successful biotechnology start-up, Arizona Engineered Therapeutics (AzERx).
In 2005, he was appointed as the Director of the Center for Glycosciences and Technology in the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University. Prof. Joshi relocated to Ireland in 2007 as Stokes Professor of Glycosciences and Bristol-Myers Squibb Professor at the National Center for Biomedical Engineering Science at National University of Ireland Galway. He was appointed the Associate Director of Center for BioAnalytical Sciences funded with €10M by BMS and Industrial Development Agency (IDA) Ireland. In 2009, a team led by Prof. Joshi was awarded with €5.2M grant by Science Foundation Ireland to establish Alimentary Glycoscience Research Cluster (AGRC) with the objectives of understanding the role of glycosylation in host-microbial interactions in the gut.
In 2010, Prof. Joshi and colleagues won a €3M European Union grant to establish an international research consortium (GlycoHIT) to develop the next generation of glycobiomimic and glycosensor tools for the diagnosis of cancer glycobiomarkers in patient serum. Prof. Joshi was appointed the Vice President for Research at National University of Ireland Galway in January 2013 and in this capacity, he leads the Office for the Vice President for Research responsible for sustaining and growing research, innovation and entrepreneurship
Katherine J. Roberts
Dr. Roberts is the President and Founder of Interactive Health, LLC, which began in 1999 with the mission to evaluate and disseminate research-based models of prevention and health promotion. Through Interactive Health, she has evaluated large federal and state-funded school and community-based projects, which has allowed her the opportunity to see prevention and intervention programs being implemented in a real-world setting and determine their effectiveness.
Dr. Roberts holds a doctorate from Columbia University as well as master degrees in both public health and science from Columbia University. Along with her education in the health field, she is a Master Certified Health Education Specialist (MCHES) and Certified in Public Health (CPH). Dr. Roberts is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Health and Behavior Studies at Teachers College Columbia University.