Dr. Allyn Ontko Associate Professor of Chemistry Office: LSW 548 Phone: 870-972-3472 E-mail: aontko@astate.edu

Education

Ph.D., Iowa State University (Chemistry)
M.S., University of Wyoming (Chemistry)
B.Chem, University of Minnesota (Chemistry)

Postdoctoral work at UNC - Chapel Hill and the University of Iowa

Teaching Specialties

Organic chemistry
Inorganic Chemistry
Biochemistry
Pharmacology
Toxicology

Research Interests

Rational drug design
Structure-Activity Relationships
Cellular uptake and toxicology of transition metals
Biosensor development

Affiliations

American Chemical Society
American Cancer Society

Biography

Dr. Ontko came to Arkansas State University in 2008 from the University of Wyoming - School of Pharmacy. There his research focused on the anticancer activity of gold-containing coordination complexes in a variety of ovarian cancer cell lines. Specifically, his group examined the effects of a) the oxidation state of the central gold atom, b) variations in the ligand environment, and c) gold induced apoptosis on cellular signaling processes. While at Wyoming, Dr. Ontko was also the recipient of college, university, and national level recognition for teaching excellence in the PharmD curriculum.