Flinders University’s Associate Professor Jill Carr has become a fellow of the Australian Society for Microbiology – and Professor Melissa Brown, from the College of Science and Engineering, won the ASM Distinguished Service Award at last week’s four-day ASM 2021 Conference.

The Distinguished Service Award recognises exceptional service of, or contributions by, individuals to microbiology and the ASM over a sustained period of time.

A member of the ASM since 1992, Professor Brown’s award also acknowledges her encouragement for students to actively participate in scientific societies.

Over the years she has played executive roles in both the Australian and American Societies for Microbiology, helping to organise the 2019 Australian Society for Microbiology Conference in Adelaide, 14th Australian Conference on Molecular Analysis of Bacterial Pathogens held in Hahndorf and the 10th Australian Conference on Molecular Analysis of Bacterial Pathogens in the Barossa Valley..

Flinders University College of Science and Engineering PhD candidate Maoge (Lawrence) Zang, supervised by Dr Bart Eijelkamp, took out the ASM Nancy Millis Student Award for SA and NT.

He was one of the Flinders University presenters at the online conference, first scheduled for the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre before the latest COVID-19 lockdown. Professor Robert Edwards also presented at the conference, speaking on ‘Prophages, Phages, and Viruses Associated with Irritable Bowel Disease and Crohn’s Disease’.