NATCHITOCHES – Dr. Christopher N. Lyles, interim director of Northwestern State University’s School of Biological and Physical Sciences and assistant professor, was awarded a fellowship through the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education (ORISE). ORISE is a competitive federal appointment that recognizes academic excellence and scientific achievement. Lyles served his appointment this summer at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Engineering Research and Development Center (ERDC), Environmental laboratory located in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
“I assisted Dr. Carina Jung and her research team in developing methods to measure various compounds from soil and water samples as well as assisted on a variety of projects including understanding how various concentrations of explosives (TNT, RDX, etc.) influence the amino acid composition of nectar of flowering plants,” said Lyles.
Along with the laboratory work Lyles’s proposal included training on modern scientific instrumentation and developing a pipeline for NSU students to take advantage of the ORISE program.
“It’s important to try and stay current with the modern state of technology, the faculty at the School of Biological and Physical Sciences are always writing grants and developing curriculum around new instrumentation,” said Lyles.
Lyles has been a member of Northwestern State’s faculty since 2015. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Northwestern State, a Master of Science in Marine and Environmental Biology from Nicholls State University and a Doctorate in Microbiology from the University of Oklahoma.
