Los Alamos, NM, April 21, 2016:  Los Alamos National Laboratory researcher Dr. Harshini Mukundan will address the re-emergence of tuberculosis in a lecture titled “The Microbe Strikes Back: The Return of Tuberculosis.”  Dr. Mukundan will discuss her research on the rise of multidrug resistant tuberculosis, its growing threat to human health, and how effective diagnosis can prevent its spread and save lives. 

Mukundan, of the Laboratory’s Physical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy Group, presented a series of three lectures on this topic last year for the Frontiers in Science lecture series sponsored by the Fellows of Los Alamos National Laboratory.

UNM-LA adjunct professor Dr. Katie Belobrajdic heard Mukundan speak last year and found her style particularly accessible to the general public. Belobrajdic teaches Biology 239: Microbiology for Health Sciences and Non-Majors. This is an introduction to microbiology with emphasis on principles of infection and immunity.  Belobrajdic recognized that her students could benefit from Mukundan’s thoughts and invited her to speak on campus. Mukundan will speak at UNM-LA from 10-11 a.m. on Monday, April 25. The lecture will take place in the Jennette O. Wallace Hall, room 505 at UNM-LA. The public is welcome to attend.