N.C. State hosting scientists from Bhutan at N.C. Research Campus

From N.C. State University: N.C. State University’s Plants for Human Health Institute (PHHI), located at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis, is hosting two visiting scholars from Bhutan this month as part of an international partnership that promotes environmental conservation and the discovery of health-beneficial plant compounds. The Bhutanese scientists, Chencho Dorji and Mani Prasad Nirola, are conducting research with PHHI director Dr. Mary Ann Lila and her team from July 9 through July 25.

Dorji and Nirola are part of Bhutan’s National Biodiversity Centre (NBC), a program that promotes the conservation and sustainable use of the country’s diverse biological resources like plants and animals. Bhutan, a small country of roughly 700,000 people located in South Asia east of Nepal, places great emphasis on conservation efforts and responsible interactions between humans and nature. The Bhutanese scientists are in the process of starting research programs and setting up laboratory space at NBC, but lack experience with the required lab equipment.

Working hand-in-hand with Lila, an internationally-renowned scientist, and other leading researchers in PHHI’s labs, Dorji and Nirola are gaining firsthand experience with the state-of-the-art equipment. The training is an essential step in designing their own labs and research programs while forging relationships with international research organizations like PHHI.

According to Josh Kellogg, a PHHI grad student in Lila’s lab overseeing much of the visiting scientists’ daily activities, their initial research goals include the extraction of potentially medicinal compounds from plants.

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