Storage room becomes new lab

The College of Engineering and Science recently dedicated its new iNSPIRE Laboratory in the Chemistry Building.

The lab is part of a five-year, $22 million grant that transformed an old storage room into a new high-tech space for students to work on new projects and ideas. “INSPIRE” is an acronym for Innovative Space for Research and Exploration.

 The dedication event featured members of the REBUILDetroit program, a research enhancement group dedicated to diversifying the biomedical field not only on the Detroit Mercy campus but Marygrove College and Wayne State University as well. Students presented their research to other students, staff and alumni visiting the event.

Vanessa Lee, a sophomore in the nursing program at Detroit Mercy presented her research on perceptions of nursing discipline among different cultural groups. Anthony Croft, a student at Detroit Mercy and member of REBUILDetroit, studied the regulation of toxic gene expression in which he focused on the spread of an illness that effects hospital patients. Also, Madeleine Reardon researched a novel strategy to inhibit drug resistant non-small lung cancer cells.

 “What I found I interesting that I did not know previously is that lung cancer was the lead cause of cancer deaths,” said Reardon she dedicated her research to finding why was this happening and what scientists could do change or reverse these results.

The event featured speeches from Detroit Mercy President Antoine Garibaldi and Gary Kuleck, the dean of students.

For an alumni perspective, Professor Matthew Mio and Nicole Najor  shared their perspectives with undergraduate and graduate research, their experiences as professors at the university, and gratitude they had for the university.

Keynote speaker, Victor Carmona, biology professor at Loyola Marymount University, gave a brilliant presentation on the use of peer-to-peer mesh-networks to improve data partnerships, wireless projection to enrich troubleshooting experiences, and other valuable research tools.

Following the speeches, the new iNSPIRE lab was dedicated to The Rev. Gerard Albright, a longtime professor of biology. Albright has been with University for over 60 years and has made an impeccable impact on his students as they went on and became leading scientists and physicians.