Rutgers: Congratulations Dr. Deshpande!

Theobald Smith Society member Aishwarya Santosh Deshpande successfully defended her thesis last week! Her work improves our understanding of the hazard posed by environmental antibiotic resistance genes in riverine water, sediment, and biofilms as well as wastewater treatment plant water and bioaerosols. She also studied the impact of the pandemic and the speculated impact of increased use of disinfectants and changes in antibiotic prescription rates on the wastewater resistome. Past TSS president Nicole Fahrenfeld was Dr. Deshpande's advisor. Committee members were past TSS president and Waksman Lecturer Gerben Zylstra, past TSS president Donna Fennell and aslo Gedi Mainelis. Dr. Deshpande grew up in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India and completed her Biotechnology undergraduate degree at Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India. Aishwarya has accepted a postdoctoral research associate position at Pacific Northwest National Lab in Richland, Washington. Well done, Dr. Deshpande!