Natasha Logan has a degree in Food Quality, Safety and Nutrition, and in Food Safety & Biotechnology. She is a current PhD Student with Queen's University Belfast. Natasha recently visited the UK Colloids 2017 event in Manchester as part of the safefood Training and Mobility Funding programme. In the report below, she tells us about her experience.
Visit Aims & Objectives
The main aim of attending UK Colloids 2017 was to gain experience and enhance my knowledge on key research areas of nanotechnology, which will have a fundamental benefit on my PhD research in relation to food safety. I have a very strong interest in nanotechnology and in areas including nanomaterial synthesis & characterization, biosensor design, lab-on-chip and microfluidic devices. The objective of attending UK Colloids 2017 was to gain an insight into relevant and upcoming state of the art research in this area.
Purpose & Relevance
Currently, portable detection platforms such as Smartphones are an expanding area of research in many areas including medicine, engineering and food safety. There are currently very few portable devices that focus on detecting antimicrobial-resistant bacteria within food, which utilize the beneficial properties of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Many experienced academics from all over the globe will attend UK Colloids with much knowledge in this research area. Networking will ultimately influence my PhD research by expanding my knowledge on up to date practical applications, and allow me to consider novel applications for my own research in relation to food safety.
Activities
During the conference the activities I took part in included attending seminars from keynote speakers focused on nanoparticle synthesis and characterisation. I also presented my own work on the correlation between gold nanoparticle size and catalytic activity during the nanoparticle sessions. During the poster session I presented some work carried out within my research group at the Institute for Global Food Security (IGFS) on paper-based devices for the detection of Campylobacter jejuni in food. Networking was also a big part of the conference and while I was there I met some very experienced academics, who provided me with some very useful comments and feedback on my work.
Added Value & Realised Benefits of the Visit
By attending the UK Colloids conference I was able to gain an insight into relevant, recent and upcoming state of the art research in the area of nanotechnology. This has allowed me to expand and deepen my knowledge on the up to date practical applications of nanotechnology, and consider novel applications for my own research in relation to food safety applications. By presenting my work, this allowed me to gain experience presenting and discussing my own work, resulting in some very useful feedback and comments which will have a positive impact on my PhD research and my professional and personnel development. Networking with academics during the conference has also allowed my research group at the IGFS to gain contacts who are interested in our work, which could lead to potential collaborations in the near future.
Conclusion
Overall, the experience has given me a new outlook on future and upcoming research, thus allowing me to create novel ideas for my own research. The experience has also given me the chance to improve my personal development, and has also allowed my research group to obtain contacts which will be beneficial for future collaborations. Therefore the visit has been highly beneficial, and would not of been possible without the support of the safefood Training & Mobility Funding Programme, Ms Tracey Thompson who was extremely helpful throughout the application process, my supervisor Dr Cuong Cao, and the admin staff within the IGFS, to whom I am extremely grateful.
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