Known nationally for her research into single-cell organisms that affect oral health, Millicent "Mimi" Goldschmidt, Ph.D., a professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), has been selected to receive the 2011 American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Founders Distinguished Service Award. The award will be presented at the ASM General Meeting Awards Banquet and Dinner in New Orleans on May 22.
"Dr. Goldschmidt has furthered the understanding of the basic microbiology of the mouth," said Larry R. Kaiser, M.D., president of UTHealth. "She has done an exemplary job of serving her professional community, her scientific community and her teaching community." Microbiology is the study of cells that are invisible to the naked eye. These tiny cells include bacteria, viruses and fungi. Goldschmidt studies microbes involved with dental decay, gum disease and oral cancer, as well as rapid methods of detection (biosensors, microarrays and nanoparticles).
Before joining the UTHealth faculty in the early 1970s, Goldschmidt was the coordinator of the protocol to plan the biological tests that would be employed in the lunar receiving laboratory on the first returned moon rocks. She was also instrumental in developing isolation protocols for Apollo astronauts returning from the moon, which ensured that infectious organisms would be detected and contained.
When she started her professional career in Texas five decades ago, Goldschmidt said there were really no rapid methods to detect microorganisms. Her research contributed to the development of rapid immunological and biosensor types of detection methods to pinpoint salmonellae, E. coli and oral microbes. She consults and lectures nationally and internationally on biosensors, microarrays and nanoparticles.