Dr. Lyudmila I Rachek is an Assistant Professor at the University of South Alabama. She received her MSc in Molecular Biology at the Kiev State University, her PhD from the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Kiev, Ukraine, and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in Molecular Biology and Microbiology at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine. The main interest of her research is to explore the different aspects of the role of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) damage and repair for the mitochondrial function and thus for overall cell function and survival. Her research topics mainly include: mitochondria, obesity, insulin resistance, inflammation, DNA damage, and aging.