Al Yergey Mass Spectrometry Scientist Award Honors Two

Mark Kushnir and Arapad Somogyi will each be presented with the Al Yergey Mass Spectrometry Scientist Award at the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) Conference taking place from October 31–November 4 in Philadelphia.

Mark Kushnir

Kushnir is the scientific director for mass spectrometry (MS) research and development at the Associated Regional and University Pathologists (ARUP) Institute for Clinical and Experimental Pathology (Salt Lake City, Utah). He led the adoption of tandem MS by ARUP Laboratories, and developed MS-based clinical assays for use in patient care. This work included desalting columns to purify unbound molecules from plasma samples, leading to a clinical assay for 25-hydroxyvitamin D. He has published more than 100 papers and has been involved with discovery projects and scientific collaborations with many researchers; he has mentored myriad people, including R&D colleagues, clinical chemistry fellows, and pathology residents; he is an editorial board member for many publications and a regular reviewer for clinical chemistry and analytical chemistry journals and organizations.

Arpad Somogyi

Somogyi, an associate director of the master of science in project management (MS&P) facility at the Ohio State University (OSU), has been involved in key research areas including instrument design related to surface-induced dissociation (SID), small-molecule analysis by Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR), the study of fragmentation mechanisms of protonated peptides, and the structural investigation of proteins and protein substrate interactions. He has mentored numerous graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. A contributor to multiple OSU credit courses, Somogyi also is a regular reviewer for journals in areas of fundamental topics.

The Al Yergey Mass Spectrometry Scientist Award is sponsored by ASMS to recognize dedication and significant contributions to mass spectrometry–based science by “unsung heroes.” The award is named in memory of Al Yergey, a well-respected scientist who was known as a dedicated mentor.