April 2018

Bronze medal of the Faculty of Science of P. J. Safarik University in Kosice, Slovakia

http://www.ccb.tu-dortmund.de/fb03/de/Fachbereich/NF173/index.html

On the 55th anniversary of foundation of the Faculty of Science of P. J. Šafárik University in Košice, Slovakia on 16th April 2018, PD Dr. Souvik Kusari has received the coveted bronze medal of the university for successful long-term scientific collaboration in the field of metabolomics and characterization of bioactive natural products.

PD Dr. Souvik Kusari started collaborating with Professor Dr. Eva Cellarova, head of Department of Genetics at the Faculty of Science of P. J. Šafárik University in Košice more than a decade ago in 2008 on well-known medicinal plants of the genus Hypericum and associated endophytic microorganisms. With the success of their initial collaboration leading to joint publications, PD Dr. Kusari intensified the bilateral collaboration with Professor Cellarova and other colleagues at P. J. Šafárik University in Košice over the last decade. Using Hypericum as an experimental model, PD Dr. Kusari has extensively contributed in demonstrating how advanced bioanalytical and imaging techniques can be used to answer important biological questions relating to biosyntheses in plants, including wild, transgenic, as well as cell cultures and hairy roots, and associated endophytes. In addition to an intensive bilateral research collaboration, PD Dr. Kusari has served as a tutor for PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and young scientists of P. J. Šafárik University in Košice visiting TU Dortmund, which has led to several joint publications in international premiere journals.

The combination of teaching and research has been clearly, for both for PD Dr. Kusari (TU Dortmund) and colleagues at P. J. Šafárik University in Košice, an added value encompassing new methods of work and intercultural exchange. Therefore, PD Dr. Kusari has been honored with the bronze medal as the youngest and selected foreign delegate in recognition for excellence in establishing and sustaining bilateral research and teaching collaboration with P. J. Šafárik University in Košice.