In this episode, podcast co-hosts Dr. Dwight Stoll and Dr. James Grinias talk with Professor Kelly Hines. Dr. Hines is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Georgia in Athens. She received her B.S. degree in Chemistry from the University of Florida, and then completed the Ph.D. in Chemistry at Vanderbilt University. Her doctoral studies focused on monitoring biomolecular signatures of disease via ion mobility and mass spectrometry techniques, and then she moved on to post-doctoral experiences at two different institutions. The first stop was at the metabolomics resource core at the Mayo Clinic, and the second stop was in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Washington School of Pharmacy. Kelly has won several awards in the field of chemical analysis, including recognition as a Female Role Model in Analytical Chemistry by Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, as an Emerging Investigator by the Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry, an ASMS Research Award (which is one of the top honors that young investigators in MS can receive), and very recently was named as the Chemist of the Year by the Northeast Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society.

In a wide-ranging conversation, we discuss the early origins of Kelly’s interest in science rooted in her opportunity to explore the plant nursery managed by her father, and then her turn from civil engineering to analytical chemistry inspired by an early undergraduate course “Chemistry for Engineers”. We discuss Hines’ recent and ongoing work involving the use of ion mobility mass spectrometry (IMS-MS), with pre-separation using chromatography when appropriate, for multi-omics studies, aimed at deeper understanding of the biochemistry of organisms at the metabolite level. We also discuss Kelly’s positive experiences developing peer networks through regular attendance at conferences, particularly the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) annual meeting, experiences in her second post-doctoral position that inspired her to pursue an academic position, and her approach to mentoring graduate students who show up in her laboratory with diverse backgrounds, interests, and abilities.