On Monday, November 25h, UConn ECE Chemistry instructors convened on the UConn Storrs campus for their annual professional development conference, under the guidance of Dr. Fatma Selampinar, ECE Faculty Coordinator for Chemistry.

We were joined by Assistant Professor Alexander Askenov, who led a lecture on his research entitled “Introduction to Molecular Community Networking and the Dark Matter of Metabolomics”. Following the talk, instructors participated in an interactive workshop, involving analysis of public mass spectrometry data using the “MCN Approach” (steps outlined below):

– Setting up molecular networks using GNPS

– Use of Cytoscape software

– Displaying molecular structures with ChemDraw

– Exploring antibiotic-focused networks

– Structure prediction and prioritization

Following a short lunch break, the workshop wrapped with a discussion on “Future Applications in Drug Discovery” and closing remarks.

Many thanks to Dr. Askenov for creating an enriching experience for our instructors, and Dr. Selampinar for all of her work to support our ECE Chemistry community!