Ilona Petrikovics

Department of Chemistry,
Sam Houston State University,
Huntsville,
TX, 77341,
USA

Ilona Petrikovics, associate professor of chemistry, whose student-assisted work on antidotes for toxins in biological warfare will save lives in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. She is investigating a better way to deliver life-saving antidotes to those exposed to cyanide—important work that, if successful, could save the lives of military personnel and civilians alike. Petrikovics, who moved to the United States from Hungary 20 years ago, began her toxicology-related research at Texas A&M University. She received a call from SHSU as she was preparing to return to a prestigious job in Maryland as a National Research Council senior fellow to research cyanide antidotes through the Army Research Institute of Chemical Defense. Anxious to return to Texas—which she calls her “home”—she accepted the job. She’s seen her students go on to doctoral programs at institutions like Rice University. Another advantage they have: because she vigorously publishes in scientific journals, her students are included for their contributions.

Chemical Defense, Nanotechnology, and Enzymes in Drug Antagonism