University of Otago, Department of Chemistry

‍Gordon Group

Great to see so many Gordon group students and graduates at the recent International Conference on Raman Spectroscopy (ICORS) meeting in Rome. Here in the photo we have Carlie Watt (Cushla’s student), Dr Cushla McGoverin (Auckland), Keith, Amir Sohail, Kārlis Bērziņš (Copenhagen), Sam Harris, Clare Strachan (Helsinki), Peter Remoto and Jervee Punzalan. Keith gave a keynote with Karlis and Clare giving invited talks with Sam, Peter and Jervee also giving talks.

While in Europe, Peter Remoto took the opportunity to visit the Gordon group collaborators - Professor Michael George and his team from the University of Nottingham, Professor Thomas Rades, Professor Ben Boyd and Dr Kārlis Bērziņš from the University of Copenhagen and Dr Stephan Kupfer and Dr Georgina Shillito from Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Peter Remoto gained first-hand experience of their work and their day-to-day life. He went on lab tours, discussed their current and potential collaborative work and visited some city sites afterwards.

‍

Jervee presented a talk at the ICORS 2024 conference. She started her presentation by discussing the utilisation of New Zealand flaxseed residues as a plant-based protein source before diving into the role of Raman Spectroscopy in enhancing plant-based protein extraction.

At the ICORS 2024 social dinner, people dressed in traditional Roman costumes to get into the spirit of the city. This added a bit of history to an evening of networking and celebrations.

‍Green Group

Congratulations to Anastasiia, who recently undertook a two-week training program at Professor Pall Thordarson's laboratory at UNSW RNA Institute, Australia. This trip focused on RNA synthesis and provided access to advanced equipment unavailable back in New Zealand.