Letfullin Expanding Global Nanomedicine Knowledge as Fulbright Scholar
Renat Letfullin鈥檚 expertise in nanotechnology, especially in the expanding field of nanomedicine, contributed to his being featured as a Fulbright Faculty Scholar at the National University of Uzbekistan in Central Asia.
Associate physics and optical engineering professor Renat Letfullin is expanding global knowledge in nanomedicine through education and research as a Fulbright Faculty Scholar in the Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan.
Letfullin is the second Rose-Hulman professor to receive a Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant for the 2018-19 academic year.
At the National University of Uzbekistan, in the capital city of Tashkent, Letfullin is teaching aspects of applying nanotechnology – which involves the manipulation of matter on an atomic and molecular scale – to address a variety issues in chemistry, biology, physics, optics, materials science and engineering. He is also increasing research and training opportunities for students interested in using nanotechnology and nanoscience to address a variety of issues associated with cancer and other medical issues.
“There’s a big demand for medical physics and nanomedicine experts in the country,” says Letfullin, pointing out that officials in Uzbekistan estimate that 15,000 new cancer cases are diagnosed annually in the former Russian republic. “Nanomedicine is opening new frontiers for human society to defeat cancer and give life to current cancer patients.”
Letfullin will soon begin working with students on research that focuses on selective nano-photothermal therapy of cancer. The project will utilize molecular targeting mechanisms and the plasmonic properties of nanoparticles at the sub-cellular level for the thermal surgical removal of body tissue affected by cancer cells.
Letfullin has been recognized for his career contributions in nanotechnology as a Fellow in the International Society of Optics and Photonics, SPIE, and the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers, along with being a senior member of the Optical Society of America. He has been editor for the International Journal of Theoretical Physics, Group Theory and Nonlinear Optics since 2009, authored the textbook “Computational Nanomedicine and Nanotechnology: Lectures with Computer Practicums,” and has numerous patents in optical engineering and laser technology.