Vol 61 Issue 1, Spring 2025
Featured Quote
“Mother Nature can do everything and does everything”
- Michel de Montaigne, French writer of 16th century
Editor’s Corner
by Edward J. Kennelly, PhD
As I write this on May Day in New York, it seems like summer is right around the corner. I hope many of us will be able to meet at the International Congress of Natural Product Research to be held in Kraków in July.
Read MoreNewsletter Staff
Edward J. Kennelly, PhD
Editor In Chief
Patricia Carver, MA
Copyediting & Proofreading
Craig Hopp, PhD
Newsletter Committee Chair
Gordon Cragg, PhD
Melissa Henckel, MS
Social Media Committee
Dayani Sarath Parakumge, PhD
Social Media Committee
Arvie Grace Masibag, MSc
Dongdong Wang, PhD
Patricia Van Skaik, MA, MLS
Christine Jankowski, MA
Contribution Deadlines
Spring: Feb. 15; Summer: May 15 Fall: Aug. 15; Winter: Nov. 15
Please send information to
Edward J. Kennelly, PhD Editor,
ASP Newsletter
Department of Biological Sciences
Lehman College, CUNY
250 Bedford Park Blvd. West Bronx, NY 10468
718-960-1105
asp.newsletter@lehman.cuny.edu
ISSN 2377-8520 (print)
ISSN 2377-8547 (online)
Taking Action: The Imposter Syndrome and Graduate Minority Students
At some point in graduate school, most people experience imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is when you doubt your skills and talents, minimize your own accomplishments, and have an internalized fear of being exposed as a “fraud.”
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Successful ASP Summer Research Fellowship Program Continues in 2022
A highly successful Summer Research Fellowship (SRF) program was launched in 2021 and will be offered again in 2022 with a March 15 deadline.
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Behind the Scenes in Pharmacognosy: Smoke Taint in American West Coast Wines
As wildfires become more commonplace across the globe, one question is how the secondary metabolites produced as a by-product of the fires alters taste profiles or sensory perception of foods and beverages.
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In Memoriam: Heinz G. Floss
By Taifo Mahmud, PhD and Bradley Moore, PhD On December 19, 2022, Heinz G. Floss, a world-renowned natural product chemist and a former president of the American Society of Pharmacognosy (ASP) and ASP Fellow, died at his home in Bellevue, Washington following a fall. He was 88 years old. Floss was a highly regarded mentor, proponent of natural product research, valued member of the ASP, and, to many of us lucky enough to work and study with him, he was an inspiration and a dear friend. Floss was born on August 28, 1934 in Berlin, Germany. He grew up in […] Read More
ASP Announces new Editor-in-Chief for JNP
The American Society of Pharmacognosy is pleased to announce that Dr Bradley Moore will become the Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Natural Products. Dr Moore is a Distinguished Professor of Marine Biology and Pharmaceutical Chemistry at UC San Diego where he holds joint appointments at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. At Scripps, he also directs the Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine plus the Scripps Center for Oceans and Human Health. He is a past-president and fellow of the ASP, as well as a Norman R Farnsworth Research Achievement Awardee. He […] Read More
Prof. Dr. A. Douglas Kinghorn Appointed as the Chair of the 2024 Tu Youyou Award Committee
It is a great honor to announce that Prof. Dr. A. Douglas Kinghorn will serve as the Chair of the Award Committee for the 2024 Tu Youyou Award. Professor Kinghorn is a leading expert in pharmacognosy and natural products research. He is recognized for his key contributions to discovering bioactive compounds from plants, especially in anticancer, cancer chemopreventive, and substances with a sweet taste and taste-modifying agents. With extensive experience, he has published over 590 peer-reviewed works and book chapters and has edited or co-edited 40 scientific volumes. As the Chair of the 2024 Tu Youyou Award Committee, Professor Kinghorn […] Read More
Hot Topics in Pharmacognosy: What’s Old Is New Again
by David J. Newman, DPhil
This article appears in the ASP Newsletter Volume 61, Issue 1.
This column will cover a variety of topics culled from a number of recent publications including: potential methodologies against resistant microbes involved in biofilms; recent reports on boron-containing potential antibiotics, some old, some new; organo-metallic (ferrocene-containing) against fungi and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs); a short excursion into the genetics of didemnin B production; and finally a very interesting protein kinase inhibitor, from a marine sample collected under the NCI’s marine collection program, further fractionated under the later NCI’s Program for Natural Products Discovery (NPNPD), and then synthesized-yielding aplithianines A and B.
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ASP Members Recognized Among Most Influential Scientists
In 2020, PLOS Biology published their list of the 100,000 most influential scientists with regards to their publication citations and impact on the field, both in regards to career-long and single year impacts. This list includes at least 47 ASP members, some of whom are still active while others trace their impact back to the founding of the society. A few of these members are highlighted here.
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Meet a New ASP Member: Dr. Jie Li
Dr. Jie Li is our featured new member in this issue of the Newsletter. Dr. Li started his independent career as an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of South Carolina in January of 2019. He has co-authored more than 40 scientific papers and is a member of the planning committee for the 2022 ASP Annual Meeting in Charleston, South Carolina.
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New Members of ASP Spring 2024
ASP would like to welcome our new members. The Society’s main objectives are to provide the opportunity for association among the workers in pharmacognosy and related sciences, to provide opportunities for presentation of research achievements, and to promote the publication of meritorious research. New members include 7 full members and 25 associate members. We look forward to meeting you and learning more about you and your work. Information on ASP membership is available here. FULL MEMBERS Dr. Abdullah Alanzi Saudi Arabia Dr. Melissa Cadelis New Zealand Prof. Brent Copp New Zealand Prof. Brandon Morinaka Singapore Prof. Kennedy Nyongbela United States […] Read More
ASP Member Takes the Fork in the Road
by Craig Hopp, PhD
This article appears in the ASP Newsletter Volume 61, Issue 1.
Being a Program Officer at NCCIH for the past 16 years has been the most rewarding job I have ever held. The ability to shape priorities and support the ASP research community was enormously gratifying. During my tenure I watched as the number of ASP presentations and posters acknowledging NCCIH support went from minimal to substantial. Despite my high job satisfaction, I have always maintained a variety of interests and activities outside of my job with NCCIH. Additionally, the work environment has taken a dramatic turn for the worse recently. So, when presented with the “fork in the road” from the current administration, I decided to take the offer. As of March 7, I am no longer a federal employee.
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ASP Membership
Full Membership
Full membership is open to any scientist interested in the study of natural products.
Current membership dues and Journal of Natural Products subscription rates can be found at www.pharmacognosy.us.
Associate Membership
Associate membership is open to students of pharmacognosy and allied fields only. These members are not accorded voting privileges.
Current membership dues and Journal of Natural Products subscription rates can be found at www.pharmacognosy.us.
Emeritus Membership
Emeritus membership is open to retired members of the Society who maintained membership in the Society for at least five years.
Current membership dues and Journal of Natural Products subscription rates can be found at www.pharmacognosy.us.
Honorary Membership
Honorary members are selected by the Executive Committee of the American Society of Pharmacognosy on
the basis of meritorious service to pharmacognosy.
Present Honorary Members are:
Dr. Cindy Angerhofer • Dr. John H. Cardellina • Dr. Alice M. Clark, University of Mississippi
Dr. Geoffrey A. Cordell, University of Illinois at Chicago
Dr. Gordon C. Cragg, National Institutes of Health • Dr. Harry H.S. Fong, University of Illinois at Chicago
Dr. Edward J. Kennelly, Lehman College, CUNY • Dr. Ikhlas Khan, University of Mississippi
Dr. A. Douglas Kinghorn, Ohio State University • Dr. David J. Newman
Dr. Roy Okuda, San Jose State University • Dr. James E. Robbers, Purdue University
Dr. Barbara Timmermann, University of Kansas
Additional information about membership may be obtained by writing to the Treasurer of the Society:
Jimmy Orjala, PhD, Treasurer, The American Society of Pharmacognosy,
2720 Dundee Road, #260, Northbrook, Illinois 60062. Email: asphcog@gmail.com
Newsletter Archive
Purpose
The purpose of the American Society of Pharmacognosy Newsletter is to serve as the primary source to disseminate information in various scientific disciplines to the membership of the Society. It also serves to convey messages to the membership and to encourage individuals to become members.
Content
- News items are accepted in the fields related to the discipline of pharmacognosy, which includes natural product chemistry and applications, biotechnology, phytomedicine, phytochemistry, pharmaceutical technology, complementary and alternative therapies, nutraceuticals, traditional medicines, and related areas.
- Information on upcoming meetings of the American Society of Pharmacognosy and other meetings related to the areas above.
- Listings of new books related to the discipline of pharmcognosy.
- Announcements of the development of new programs in the area of natural products at colleges and universities, institutes, and governmental organizations.
- Announcements of the availability of award and grant opportunities in the area of natural products research.
- Listings of job opportunities for young professionals in relevant areas.
© American Society of Pharmacognosy, 2025
Questions about the ASP Newsletter can be addressed to:
Dr. Edward J. Kennelly, Editor
ASP Newsletter
Lehman College - CUNYs
Dept of Biological Sciences
250 Bedford Park Blvd West
Bronx NY 10468-1527
Phone: 718-960-1105
Fax: 718-960-8236
E-mail: kennelly@lehman.cuny.edu
© American Society of Pharmacognosy, 2025