Temple University Lab Experience Catapults Brazilian Student into European Ph.D. Program
By Bruce E. Beans
After completing his B.S. degree in Chemistry at the Universidade de São Paulo in December 2014, João Luiz Petrarca De Albuquerque will pursue a Ph.D. degree at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. His university is Brazil’s best and the best for the sciences in South America. The undergraduate also works in the laboratory of an outstanding organic chemistry professor, Alcindo Ali dos Santos, Ph.D.
Yet De Albuquerque doubts he would be pursuing a doctorate in Europe if he had not recently spent a half year working in in the laboratory of Rodrigo B. Andrade, Ph.D., an associate professor of organic chemistry at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “During the interview process I was asked questions about chemistry,” says De Albuquerque, “and the experience I gained and what I learned while I was at Temple were essential to my being accepted.”
He arranged to come to Temple after attending a lecture last year at his university given by Andrade on the synthesis of bioactive natural products using a process developed by Franklin A. Davis, Ph.D., a Temple professor of organic chemistry who also lectured during the trip. De Albuquerque, who was already conducting similar research in dos Santos’ laboratory, was intrigued. “I wanted to come to the United States because it is the world’s best country for scientific research,” he says. “I knew it was going to be completely different because they have different equipment and more experience and money for research.
“It turned out even better than I expected,” notes De Albuquerque, who continued trying to synthesize an alkaloid that has been isolated from an herb, Codonopsis dematidae; the alkaloid has demonstrated antibiotic and hypotensive (blood-pressure lowering) properties. “I learned a lot in the laboratory from my lab mates, such as dealing with different chemical reactions, from discussions during group meetings and by meeting with Dr. Andrade.”
Says Andrade, who was born in Rio de Janeiro and raised in the United States, “It was a pleasure having João in our lab. He made great progress on his target.”
Temple University also hosts other Brazilian students as part of the Brazil Science Mobility Program, a program funded by the Brazilian government that is sending 100,000 students—primarily science, technology, engineering and mathematics majors—to study abroad, including 25,000 students at American colleges and universities.
De Albuquerque’s advice to other Brazilian students considering studying at Temple University: “Do not hesitate to come. It will be a wonderful experience. Temple welcomed me very well and will welcome you too. It’s a great place to learn and meet new people.”
