Dr. Uche Udeochu

Dr. Uche Udeochu is an Associate Professor of Analytical Chemistry in the Division of Sciences and Mathematics in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of the District of Columbia. His research highlights the use of spectroelectrochemical methods to understand the structure-activity dynamics that justify the interaction of small significant bioactive molecules with nucleic materials. Dr. Udeochu received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Nigeria’s premier university – the University of Ibadan — in chemistry and analytical chemistry, respectively. Before coming to the U.S. in 2002, he worked briefly as an Analytical Chemist at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan. Dr. Udeochu earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry at Howard University (HU).  His research explored the use of electrochemical and spectroscopic methods for investigation of bioactive compounds. At HU, he received awards such as the overall best graduate student award in his class, and published several papers on bioactive molecules in peer-reviewed journals. Before beginning his career as a tenure-track assistant professor at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in 2013, Dr. Udeochu had a brief period of post-doctoral training at HU in material chemistry research, working on an NSF-funded project that focused on designing nanocomposites for fuel cell application. Dr. Udeochu spent the past 13 years at UMES, teaching and mentoring students on both the undergraduate and graduate levels, progressing from the rank of assistant professor to a tenured associate professor. As PI, co-PI or faculty participant on different university and government-funded grants, Dr. Udeochu has acquired valuable teaching, mentoring, and leadership skills required for achieving success at UDC. Dr. Udeochu’s leadership and research potential is evident in the area of course redesign aimed at improving student learning and retention (characterized by the infusion of active experiential learning activities in chemistry courses). During his career at UMES, he also spent some of his summers at the United States Environmental Protection Agency as a Visiting Professor/Consulting Chemist, assisting in training staff in the use of Raman spectroscopy for environmental analysis. Dr. Udeochu’s current research is aimed at understanding the structure-activity chemical dynamics for the interaction of DNA with novel analogs of emetine. Emetine analogs have been shown to demonstrate activity towards cancer cell lines. He hopes to understand how the condensed structure of nucleic materials modify the molecule’s binding, evaluate the extent of oxidative stress induced by the analogs on cells, and ultimately explore the development of emetine-based biotherapy and biotechnology applications. Dr. Udeochu is also interested in research that focuses on the development of analytical methods for characterizing nucleic material regulation of gene expression and cellular receptors; characterizing biomarkers associated with DNA damage; mapping and trapping free radicals in organelles, cells, and tissue; in-vivo data-driven spectroscopy; integration of artificial intelligence for chemical fingerprints analysis; design and development of biocompatible polymeric materials; and the design of SERS-active surfaces for material applications.