Alabama State University faculty member Dr. Qiana L. Matthews, an associate professor of microbiology for the Ph.D. program in Microbiology, will join other Alabama and global researchers and scientists, as well as business leaders for the Bio Alabama Virtual Annual Conference on Oct. 5-9.
Connectivity and collaboration, as well as bringing the bioscience community together are key components of the conference.
“A global pandemic made science, specifically bioscience, an overnight media sensation and the #ALBioTech community has responded rapidly with jaw dropping innovation,” Matthews said. ‘Beyond COVID-19, our researchers, scientists, and business leaders bring the same sense of urgency to solving the world’s most challenging health and environment problems.”
With more than 20 sessions and more than 40 presenters, the conference will focus on five key areas: economic development; funding and access to capital; diversity, equity and inclusion; COVID-19 and scientific research; and entrepreneurs and startups.
Other topics include biopharmaceutical manufacturing, bioagriculture and precision and genomics medicine.
Matthews will join five other panelists in a BIO Alabama discussion on “Drug and Gene, Delivery in the Age of Nanotechnology.”
“Specially, I will discuss vaccine development using the common cold virus (Adenovirus). The conference will display all the research being done in the state of Alabama,” Matthews added.
Keynote speakers are:
- U.S. Sen. Doug Jones of Alabama
- Michelle McMurry-Heath, CEO of BIO-Biotechnology Innovation Organization, the world’s largest biotechnology advocacy group
- Bob Hess, site selection expert and vice chairman of global corporate services at Newmark Knight Frank
- Regina Benjamin, an Alabama native and former U.S. Surgeon General who is a leader in developing community-based health strategies for low-income and rural communities
“From capital investments to research and development, Alabama’s bioscience industry is critically important to our state and we are proud to work closely with partners like the Department of Commerce to help ensure the future of the industry and its role as an economic driver,” said Sonia Robinson, executive director of BIO Alabama, in a news release. “Small- and mid-sized companies play a significant role in our bioeconomy, and the Alabama bioscience community has responded rapidly to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
