Oluwatoyin Asojo

Oluwatoyin Asojo
Alma mater

Pearson College UWC
University of Houston

Trent University
Scientific career
Institutions

University of Houston
Tibotec
University of Nebraska Medical Center

Olabisi Onabanjo University

Oluwatoyin (Toyin) Asojo is an Associate Professor of Crystallography in the Baylor College of Medicine at the University of Houston. She is interested in structure-based design of medicines and how to characterise proteins from neglected tropical diseases.

Early life and education

Asojo was born in Nigeria, and volunteered for an orphanage whilst at school.[1] Her father was a chief laboratory scientist at the University of Ibadan, and she would spend several hours a week in the lab.[1] She applied for a United World College scholarship that would allow her to study abroad, and was one of only seven from 10,000 applicants to be selected.[1] She earned an International Baccalaureate diploma in 1989 from Pearson College UWC. In 1993 Asojo completed a Dual Honours degree at Trent University, majoring in Chemistry and Economics.[2] She received a full scholarship for her studies.[3] Asojo earned a PhD at the University of Houston in 1999.[4]

Research

After graduating, Asojo was appointed a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute.[4] She spent a year as a staff scientist at Tibotec in Rockville, Maryland.[1] In 2003, Asojo joined University of Nebraska Medical Center as an Assistant Professor.[4] She simultaneously managed the X-Ray crystallography facility at Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases.[4] Here she studied membrane proteins involved in multi-drug resistance.[1] She was awarded two National Institutes of Health grants in 2005, studying alternative treatments to the Hookworm infection.[1] She held an adjunct position at Olabisi Onabanjo University.[1]

Asojo is now based at the Baylor College of Medicine, where her lab are dedicated to the creation, purification and crystallisation of proteins.[4] She shares equipment with the Sabin Vaccine Institute.[4] She works with the American Chemical Society to run summer placements for disadvantaged high school students through Project SEED.[4] She is on the Fulbright Specialist Roster between 2016 and 2021.[3] She won the Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship in 2016.[3]

Awards and honours

2004 - Gladys Pearson Fellowship in Pediatric Cancer[5]

2006 - University of Nebraska at Omaha Woman of Color Award[1]

2015 - Gordon Research Conference Carl Storm Underrepresented Minority Fellowship[3]

2016 - Fulbright specialist[6]

2016 - Society for Science & the Public Science Advocate Grant program[7]

2016 - Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship in 2016.[3]

2017 - Baylor College of Medicine Norton Rose Fulbright Faculty Excellence Award in Teaching[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Dr. Asojo receives UNO Women of Color award | UNMC". www.unmc.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  2. ↑ "Oluwatoyin Ajibola Asojo, Ph.D." Baylor College of Medicine. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "OLUWATOYIN ASOJO | Profiles RNS". profiles.viictr.org. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Oluwatoyin Asojo - American Chemical Society". American Chemical Society. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  5. ↑ "Spotlight on new faculty - meet Oluwatoyin Asojo, Ph.D. | UNMC". www.unmc.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  6. ↑ "SACI2018". www.saci.co.za. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
  7. ↑ "Society for Science & the Public Announces 31 New Mentors of the Advocate Grant Program | Society for Science & the Public". www.societyforscience.org. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
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