Prof. Syed Salman Ashraf is a Professor of biology at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He received his BSc and MSc degrees in biochemistry from Iowa State University and a doctorate from North Carolina State University. He has worked in biotechnology companies in Toronto (Canada) and North Carolina (United States) for more than 6 years in drug discovery, molecular biology, protein purification, and high-throughput screening. His current research interests lie in the areas of applied microbiology and algal biotechnology