BIOLOGY@UALBANY
In This Issue
New Biology Faculty
New Grad Students
What’s happening:
Biology Department
Events, Spring 2017
New Courses
“IBASS” Initiative
Research Image, Kara DeSantis and Mindy Larsen
Message from the Chair I am very happy to introduce the inaugural edition of the Department of Biological Sciences Newsletter. The Department is
very involved in research, undergraduate education and graduate education. The Newsletter gives us an opportunity to share
with you news of the many activities in which our students and faculty members participate. We have welcomed seven new
faculty members over the past three years and three this past year who are featured in New
Biology Faculty. These new faculty members bring us expertise in new areas of biology and in
several cases new approaches to undergraduate education. Our faculty members have been
successful in garnering grants and other awards as reported in “Biology Faculty Highlights.”
We continue to emphasize undergraduate research for our Biology majors. The culmination of
the Undergraduate Research experience is our Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium
held in April. This year we had over 30 undergraduates who presented their research findings
to their peers as well as the graduate students and the faculty of the Department. To facilitate
the transition from high school to college biology, we have created IBASS (Introductory Biology
Academic Support Service) to provide academic support for incoming freshmen. This new
program will commence in Fall 2017 and we are excited for the benefits that it will provide for
our new students. In response to student interest, we have created new courses, “Forensic Science” and “Principles of
Human Disease.” Fourteen new graduate students joined the Department for the 2016-2017 academic year. A number of our
graduate students have been recognized for their excellence in research and teaching.
Highlights of the past year were the inaugural Life at the Interface of Science and Engineering lectures presented by Nobel
Prize winner Dr. Tom Cech. The lectures were endowed by Dr. Marlene Belfort of our Department and Dr. Georges Belfort of
the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at RPI. Dr. Cech presented two fascinating lectures, one at UAlbany
and one at RPI. We look forward to future lectures by Dr. Keith Deisseroth of Stanford University in Fall 2017 and Dr. Frances
Arnold of CalTech in 2018.
We are deeply appreciative of our friends and alumni who have supported the Department and I look forward to updating you
on news of our activities over the next year. Enjoy reading the newsletter.
Newsletter of the Biology Department at the University at Albany July 2017 Vol. 1
People
New Faculty 2
Biology Faculty Highlights 3
Faculty Retirements 6
Undergraduate Spotlight:
Erik Augspurger
8
New Graduate Students 9
Morgan Sammons Interview 13
Events
New Lecture Series: “Life
at the Interface of Science
and Engineering”
10
Undergraduate Research
Symposium
11
Department Highlights
New Microscopy Facility 5
Student Awards 9
New Courses 12
“IBASS” Initiative 12
Donations
Donor Honor Roll 14
Donating to the Biology
Department
15
Inside this issue:
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 2
Dr. Gervais received her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences
from the University at Albany in 2015 where she
studied salivary gland development and disease. She
has been teaching in the department since 2015.
Dr. Gervais offers the second semester of General
Biology, Human Physiology lecture and lab and a new
course, Principles of Human Disease.
Elise Gervais
New Biology Faculty Fall, 2016
The Department of Biological Sciences welcomed three new faculty members in
Fall 2016: two new teaching faculty members (Drs. Linda Mayerhofer and Elise
Gervais) and one assistant professor (Dr. Morgan Sammons).
Linda Meyerhofer
Dr. Mayerhofer received her Ph.D. in 1994 from the
School of Public Health at the University at Albany and
has twenty years of teaching experience.
She is teaching the first semester of General Biology,
Nutrition and Immunology.
Morgan Sammons
Dr. Sammons received his Ph.D. in 2014 from
Vanderbilt University. His research focuses on
chromatin biology and transcriptional enhancers, and he
discusses his work in more detail in a “Question and
Answer” section on page 13.
Biology was first taught at the University at Albany in 1845 (when modern-day SUNY Albany was called
the “New York State Normal College”) under the rubric “Natural Science.”
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 3
Biology Faculty Highlights, 2016-2017
Paul Agris
Professor Agris received a Presidential Innovation Fund for Research and Scholarship award for his
project “Unique Drug resistant Target and Chemical Entity against MRSA and other Drug-resistant Gram
Positive Pathogens.” This grant complements his Department of Defense award on the development of a
novel antibiotic against Gram-positive pathogens. He has also published two research articles, a review
paper and book chapter and has another research article in press.
Marlene Belfort
Professor Belfort received 4-year renewals for two grants from the
NIH. Her project “Self-Splicing Inteins: Function, Evolution,
Application” is now funded through years 27-30 and “Intron Dy-
namics in Bacteria” for years 29-32. Along with Pan Li and Gaby
Fuchs, she received an administrative supplement from NIH to the
grant, “Intron Dynamics in Bacteria”, for purchase of a TIRF
microscope for single-molecule analysis. Her group published two research articles
and four review papers.
Dr. Belfort also served on NIH Council of Councils and on the Academic Research
Enhancement Award in genetics and molecular mechanisms Review Panel.
Several Belfort lab members have also received recognition for their
accomplishments this year: Christopher Lennon was awarded a 2-year NRSA Post-
doctoral Fellowship from the NIH. Cathleen Green, a Ph.D. student, was the recipient of the Great Dane Award, the
President's Award for Leadership. Finally, undergraduate researcher David Bunn was selected to the Outstanding Senior
Award, a President’s Award for Leadership and the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence.
Mindy Larsen
Associate Professor Larsen’s group published three research articles and one book chapter this past aca-
demic year. In a paper that was published in Development, former Ph.D. student Hae Ryong Kwon
demonstrated that endothelial cells in the vasculature participate in elaboration of salivary gland structure
during embryonic development. Her senior Ph.D. student, Kara DeSantis, received an award for Best
Poster at the 2017 Gordon Research Conference: Salivary Glands and Exocrine Secretion for her work
on retinoid signaling in progenitor cells during embryonic development.
Belfort Lab members receiving
recognition for their
accomplishments this year:
Christopher Lennon: Awarded 2-
year NRSA Postdoctoral
Fellowship from the NIH
Cathleen Green: Recipient of the
Great Dane Award, the
President's Award for Leadership
David Bunn: Outstanding Senior
Award, a President’s Award for
Leadership and the Chancellor’s
Award for Excellence.
Greg Lnenicka
Professor Lnenicka has published two research articles, the first in
Pfluegers Archiv and the second is the cover article in the May 2017
issue of the journal Synapse (shown at right).
Lnenicka graphic illustration, cover of
the Journal Synapse, May 2017
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 4
Biology Faculty Highlights, 2016-2017 (cont’d)
Cara Pager
Assistant Professor Cara Pager’s group had two publications this past year. Jason Biegel, a post-doctoral
researcher in the Pager lab, was lead author on a research article in Virology. Dr. Pager’s group also pub-
lished a review article about Hepatitis C virus in the Journal of Virology.
Annalisa Scimemi
Assistant Professor Scimemi received an NSF grant for her
project “Glutamate Transporter Control of Excitation and Inhibition
in the Striatum.” Animals are able to learn new motor skills and
convert them into motor habits, so the goal of this project is to
determine how transporters for glutamate, the main excitatory
neurotransmitter in the brain, ensure proper execution of habitual actions.
Her group also published a research article in Scientific Reports entitled “PAR1 Acti-
vation Induces Rapid Changes in Glutamate uptake and astrocyte morphology.”
Ben Szaro
Professor Szaro received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities for
2016-17. He was invited to speak at the Gordon Conference on Intermediate Filaments this past year to
give a talk on the work he published last Spring with Ph.D. student Chen Wang in the Journal of Cell Sci-
ence describing a novel role for intron splicing in the post-transcriptional regulation of neurofilament gene
expression.
He published another paper with two other Ph.D. students, Erica Hutchins and Jamie Belrose, describing a novel role for the
nuclear localization signal in regulating trafficking and stability of hnRNP K mRNP complexes in vivo in the journal Biochemi-
cal and Biophysical Research Communications, 2016.
His lab also received two seed money grants from the New York State Department of Health, Spinal Cord Injury Research
Board to carry out pilot studies on the genetic and epigenetic underpinnings of successful CNS axon regeneration in
Xenopus.
Prashanth Rangan
Assistant Professor Rangan’s group published a research article
in Nature Communications and a book chapter in
Signaling-mediated Control of Cell Division.
Several of his graduate students were recognized for their work
(listed at right).
Rangan Graduate Students
recognized for their work:
Maitreyi Upadhyay: Received
Glenn/AFAR Scholarship for
Research in Biology of Aging;
won Best Oral Presentation at
the 2016 UAlbany Life Sciences
Research Symposium.
Pooja Flora: Received David
Shub Award for Excellence in
RNA; won Best Oral Presentation
at Life Sciences Research
Symposium and 2017 RNA
Symposium.
Alicia McCarthy: Featured in
WAMC radio “Academic Minute”
segment, “Fruit Flies offer
Fertility Clues.”
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July, 2017
Page 5
Biological Imaging: New Microscopy Facility
In a blackened room in the Biological Sciences Imaging Facility in the basement of the Biology building stands a new micro-
scope. Red and green laser beams cut through the air, projecting strange shadows on the wall. Unlike typical microscopes,
the over $10,000 laser lines touch the surface of a slide and bounce off without entering, giving this microscope its name:
total internal reflection fluorescence
(TIRF) microscope.
Samples are illuminated by an evanes-
cent wave, a fast decaying field that verti-
cally enters the slide. The wave is weak
and penetrates only 100-200 nm from
surface, rendering very little fluorescence
and even less background. With a photon
counting detector or better yet, a high
end camera named Ultra 888 (part of our
setup), single fluorophores can be pin-
pointed by only a few hundred photons,
each from a nearly ideal “dark” back-
ground.
One can take advantage of this super
high resolution to watch photobleaching
of a single fluorophore or Förster Reso-
nance Energy Transfer (FRET) between
a pair of dyes in proximity.
Since the 1980s, there are a plethora of reports that show how scientists apply this technique to watch molecular motions
with nanometer precision in real time on a slide and inside cells. Thanks to an NIH supplementary grant to Professor Marlene
Belfort, the Department of Biological Sciences now has a TIRF microscope. For those who are interested in using this micro-
scope for their research, Assistant Professor Gaby Fuchs is available for consulting and instrument training.
You can find out more information about the Biology Department’s imaging facilities at
http://www.albany.edu/biology/research/biological_imaging/main.shtml
Biology Faculty Highlights, 2016-2017 (cont’d)
Ing-Nang Wang
Associate Professor Ing-Nang Wang published a research article “Phylogeography and Coevolution of
Bamboo Mosaic Virus and Its Associated Satellite RNA” in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology.
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 6
Faculty Retirements, 2017
The past year was marked with the retirement of several UAlbany Biology Department professors. All were (and are)
recognized experts in their respective fields with distinguished research and teaching careers in biology, and each contribut-
ed in important ways to the growth and development of our department.
Thomas Caraco
Dr. Caraco joined the Biology Department faculty in 1984 and focused on the application of statistical
modeling to population biology. Using this research he became the university’s faculty expert on spatially
-detailed population dynamics as it would be used to understand the economic impacts of invasive
species.
Gary Kleppel
Dr. Kleppel joined the Biology Department faculty in 2000 and focused on conservation policy, land use
patterns and their effect on ecosystems, and agricultural ecology and sustainable agriculture (as detailed
in his most recent book, “The Emergent Agriculture”).
George Robinson
Dr. Robinson joined the Biology Department in 1993 and taught courses in biodiversity, conservation,
restoration ecology, plant ecology, and biogeography. He also served outside of the university as an
environmental expert and advocate.
Richard Zitomer
Dr. Zitomer joined the Biology Department in 1975 and served as a teacher, researcher, and department
chair. He would be internationally recognized as one of the leading experts in genetics studies and
would chair the department during an exciting period of growth and development.
Faculty Obituary
Albert Millis
Dr. Albert Millis died in Kajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India on April 20, 2016. He was 74. Dr. Millis was a
Professor of Biological Sciences and the Scientific Director of Life Sciences at SUNY Albany. He was a
deeply committed father, grandfather, and mentor of graduate students.
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 7
Professor John Mackiewicz’s Retirement
Fifty-Six Years of Service: 1961 - 2017
Dr. Mackiewicz joined the faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences in
1961. In 1973 he was awarded the rank of Distinguished Teaching Professor and
holds the distinction of being the first professor at the University at Albany to have
“Distinguished” added to his rank.
During his career he taught 15 separate courses. While he formally retired in
2002, for over a decade he has served the department as an emeritus faculty
member and continued to teach a course on “Parasitic Diseases and Human
Welfare.”
Throughout his career Professor
Mackiewicz continued to investi-
gate the morphology, systemat-
ics, zoogeography, host-parasite
relationships, biology and evolu-
tion of the Caryophylidea, intesti-
nal non-segmented cestode par-
asites of freshwater fish.
For many years he has been the
world authority on Caryophylid tapeworms, having written numerous papers on
the topic (including two basic taxonomic keys of the species and two extensive
reviews of the group). He has described new taxa of Caryophylid tapeworms —
one new family, eleven new genera, and twenty-one new species. In recognition
of this level of expertise, five species of Cestodes and two species of Nematoda
have been named after him.
He has actively collaborated with
colleagues in Russia, Poland, the
Czech Republic, and the Slovak Re-
public on systematics, chromosomes
and ultrastructure, chiefly vitellogene-
sis, and segmented and non-
segmented tapeworms.
He has authored over 80 scientific
publications in parasitology, in addition
to several opinion pieces related to his
avocation, fly fishing.
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 8
Biology Undergraduate Spotlight, Class of 2017
Erik Augspurger
A Capital Region native, Erik Augsberger (2017) is one of the
Biology Department's most accomplished undergraduate
students, maintaining a 4.00 GPA in Biology and a 3.97 cu-
mulative GPA and appearing on the Dean's List throughout
his college career.
Erik received the
2017 President
Award for Leader-
ship—Outstanding
Senior Award and is
a member of Phi
Beta Kappa, the
Presidential Honors
Society, Omicron
Delta Kappa—The National Leadership Honor Society and Tri Beta—The National
Biological Honor Society. Community is very important to Erik; during his under-
graduate career he served his Niskayuna community as a volunteer firefighter and
EMT and was a Volunteer Patient’s Aide at St. Peter’s Hospital.
Erik's successful undergraduate experience exemplifies the Biology Department's balanced program of classroom learning
with hands-on involvement in ongoing Life Sciences research.
"Becoming a Research Assistant on campus as an undergraduate has been an im-
mensely rewarding experience and I am extremely grateful for the comprehensive
and state-of-the-art research program that the Biology Department offers, not the
least of which is the research faculty, staff and students that I have had the pleasure
of working with on a collaborative and regular basis," Erik wrote in describing his
UAlbany Biology experience.
Working one-on-one with research faculty in the department has given him the
chance to develop and exercise his analytical skills, while at the same time he has
taken advantage of the opportunities to present his research at the multiple research
conferences hosted by the University to gain experience in developing his written and
oral communication skills.
He writes “I’ve been fortunate to be given the opportunity to present my research to both technical and nontechnical audi-
ences at multiple research conferences offered by UAlbany, which has enhanced my public speaking and oral communica-
tion skills.”
Following graduation, Erik will continue his volunteer activities while taking a gap year. He plans to apply to medical school
next year with the goal of practicing in the field of Sports Medicine.
“I have worked on assay
development for biomedical
and environmental research
using DNA nanotechnology,
and recently I’ve had the
pleasure to work with a team
on research projects to design
systems that detect toxic metal
ions and cancer and disease
biomarkers.”
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 9
David A. Shub Award for Excellence in RNA Science Pooja Flora
Peter S. Marfey Book Award Justin Waldern
Donald LaFrancois Teaching Award Rachel Netzband
Dustin Trufanoff
Biology Department Graduate Travel Awards, Fall 2016 Zeinab Farajallah Hosseini
Elizabeth Peterson
Andrew Powers
Biology Department Graduate Travel Awards, Spring 2016 Patrick Blatt
Rupa Choudhary
Jennifer Lin
Ankana Naik
Rachel Netzband
Amber Altrieth, MCDN
New Graduate Students, 2016-2017
Shane Breznak, MCDN
Emily Caboot, BCP
Izaac Cooper, BCP
Brian Dagley, BCP
Modhurika De, MCDN
Alan Eapen, BCP
Thomas Hart, EEB
Yen-Hua Huang, EEB
Ethan LaFontaine,
MCDN
John McCauley, MCDN
Ayanna Roper, Forensic Biology
Nicole Smith, BCP
Michelle Vedder-Drew,
BCP
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 10
New Lecture Series: “Life at the Interface of Science
and Engineering”
The first female Biology teacher at the University at Albany was Miss E. Helen Hannas, appointed in
1890. Ms. Hannas was an 1884 graduate of UAlbany (then called the “New York State Normal
School”) and would teach courses in “Natural Sciences” in the department of “Natural Philosophy.”
The inaugural speaker
for this lecture series
was Nobel Laureate
Thomas Cech,
Distinguished Professor,
University of Colorado
Boulder; Director,
University of Colorado
BioFrontiers Institute;
and Investigator,
Howard Hughes Medical
Institute, who presented
seminars over two days
to the UAlbany and RPI
communities.
Dr. Cech’s seminar at the University at Albany on October 25, 2016 was titled, “Long Noncoding RNAs and Epigenetic Gene
Silencing”. His talk “CRISPR Genome Engineering Gives New Insights about Telomerase and its Role in Cancer” was pre-
sented at RPI on October 26, 2017. Both seminars were standing room only and were very well received.
This past Fall, the Department of Biological Sciences
launched the “Life at the Interface of Science and Engi-
neering” lecture series. The collaborative seminar series
was generously endowed by Dr. Marlene Belfort, Distin-
guished Professor from the Department of Biological Sci-
ences at the University at Albany and Dr. Georges Belfort,
Institute Professor from the Department of Chemical and
Biological Engineering at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Insti-
tute. The Belforts’ idea was to bring world-renowned ex-
perts to the University at Albany and RPI communities to
address questions that bridge the Life Sciences and Engi-
neering fields and inspire future collaborations.
Events: The 34th Annual Undergraduate
Research Symposium
April 28, 2017
On April 28th, the University at Albany's Biology Department held its
34th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium where
undergraduates get the opportunity to experience presenting their
research in the types of competitive poster sessions and oral
presentations common in the scientific community. The annual
spring research symposia for undergraduates represent one of the
department's academic traditions going back for over three
decades. Undergraduate researchers presented posters in the lobby of the D'Ambra Auditorium and interacted one-on-one
with faculty, staff, graduate students and fellow undergraduates to describe their research, methodologies, and findings;
there were also opportunities to present their research in a typical seminar setting to faculty, staff, and students in the
auditorium itself.
Brittany Egnot “Novel Technologies for Tracking Cell Migration”
Tyler Pocchiair “RNA Helicases Involved In Ribosome Biogenesis Are Necessary For Germline Maintenance
Adam Stabell Salivary Gland Regeneration by Manipulation of Retinoic Acid Receptor Function”
Winners of the Oral Presentation Awards
Oluwatomi Alade “Infection with Poliovirus Induces Modification of RPS25”
Elizabet Genis “Studying GnRH-I Neuronal Migration in Disrupted SHH Signaling Path-way in Gli3xt/xt mutants”
Oksana Levchenko “DNA Nanoswitches: Towards Low-Cost Detection of Viral RNA”
Q. Wilson “Postsynaptic Regulation ofSynaptic Transmission at the Drosophila Neuromuscular Junction”
Winners of the Poster Presentation Awards
Chibuokem Ikwuazom “Transcription Regulation of the dksA P3 promoter”
Winner of the Glenn L. Bumpus Award
Undergraduate students find that participating in the Research Symposium represents one of the
most challenging but ultimately useful parts of their education in UAlbany’s Biology program, and
this year’s Symposium met with an enthusiastic reception.
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 11
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 12
Coming Fall 2017: IBASS
We are very excited to announce that in the Fall 2017 semester, the Biology department will be opening the doors of a new
program and center called the “Introductory Biology Academic Support Service” or IBASS. IBASS will provide academic sup-
port in many forms (tutoring, workshops, space for peer study groups, additional office hours with staff, and open use of sev-
eral computer stations and textbooks) to our introductory biology students. The room on the second floor (BIO253) is under
‘construction’ this summer as we accumulate the materials and furniture needed for the space, set up computer work sta-
tions, and decorate with some upper-level student posters. Stop in when the door is open to see our progress!
Over the summer, Ms. Erin Allen (a graduate student working with Dr. George Robinson) will be working with Dr. Linda May-
erhofer and Dr. Elise Gervais (both instructors of the introductory biology classes, ABIO 130 and ABIO 131 respectively) to
develop workshops on time management, study skills for biology courses, and note taking skills. Ms. Allen has a master’s in
education along with a strong science background and passion for biology; she will be an excellent resource for the introduc-
tory biology students and we are excited to welcome her to the Biology Department!
Starting the first week of classes, Ms. Allen will offer these workshops on a regular basis, as well as hosting walk-in hours for
help with content or homework and offer several regularly scheduled small group tutoring sessions. The open IBASS center
will have a small group meeting table and ample white board space for groups of students to come study together as well as
textbooks and computer stations available for student use anytime the center is open. We look forward to seeing a busy
study center where students can congregate or just stop in to ask for help with some difficult content. Our hope is that the
IBASS center will supplement faculty office hours and help students that are struggling with the material feel comfortable
asking for help! See you in the fall!
“ABIO175: Forensic Science Investigation” is a non-majors course that fulfills
the University’s Natural Sciences General Education requirement. This
course introduces students to forensic science with a focus on the services
provided by today’s multidisciplinary crime laboratories. Students learn about
the general history of forensic science, ethics, law, quality assurance, crime scene processing, analysis of physical evidence,
chemistry, trace evidence, DNA analysis, patterned evidence, mass disasters and digital forensics. The course will be of-
fered again in Fall 2017.
New Undergraduate Courses
ABIO175: Forensic Science Investigation
“ABIO 397: Topics in Biology: Principles of Human Disease” is taught by one
of our new lecturers, Dr. Elise Gervais. In this course, students investigate
common and some not-so-common diseases that we hear about frequently.
They delve into causes, symptoms and treatments, but most importantly, the pathophysiology of each disease – what is
going on at the cellular level to cause the disease state and symptoms. At the end of the semester, the students take over in
a series of poster sessions and each present on a disease they have been researching. This course will be offered each
Spring semester.
ABIO397: Topics in Biology: Principles of
Human Disease
(The Introductory Biology Academic Support Service)
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 13
The Department of Biological Sciences welcomes its newest Assistant Professor, Dr. Morgan Sammons. Morgan received his Ph.D. in Biology from Vanderbilt University and then went on to a postdoctoral position the laboratory of Dr. Shelley Berger in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. His postdoctoral work explored the primary mechanisms used by healthy cells to prevent cancer development and how these processes are subverted during tumorigenesis.
Dr. Sammons was hired in our Systems Biology search and his research group uses molecular, genomic and computational
approaches to investigate the tumor suppressor protein p53. He already has a very active research group here in the Life Sciences Research Building with a postdoctoral associate, a Ph.D. student, rotation students and several undergraduate researchers. We sat down with Morgan to ask him about his research, teaching and life.
Interview: Morgan Sammons
I am very interested in understanding how the master tumor suppressor, p53, works to protect us from cancer. As a lab, we are specifically investigating how genetic and epigenetic variation across species and between individuals affects the ability to prevent tumors. We also investigate why certain tissues are more likely than others to become cancerous. The lab bridges traditional molecular and genetic approaches with cutting-edge genomics and computational biology approaches to try to tackle these interesting questions.
“Overall, I believe
our work will help
the larger
community
understand how to
better treat
cancer.”
Please tell us about your research program.
What are the applications (or implications) of your research findings?
Overall, I believe our work will help the larger community understand how to better treat cancer based on the patient’s
own genome and epigenome.
What advice would you give to new graduate students?
Join my lab! But really, graduate school is difficult and can occasionally be overwhelming, so take the time to take
care of yourself. There is nothing wrong with planning time away from the lab to travel or just unwind. In the long run,
time away from lab and classes (either physically or mentally) will help you be a better scientist.
What do you look for in an undergraduate student who wants to work in your lab?
I’m looking for undergraduate researchers that are genuinely interested in learning how to be a scientist. Success in
the classroom is not a great predictor of success in the lab. A good work ethic, attention to detail, and a willingness to
fail (and persist) are key indicators of success in the lab.
Tell us about the course you will be teaching in the fall.
I will be teaching ABIO329: Genetics of Human Disease, which I hope will be a great course for all biology majors and
those interested in the medical professions. The class will focus on how simple and complex genetic differences can
have profound effects on human health. We will also try to understand how technology helps us diagnose and treat
human genetic disorders, like cancer. I’m also acting as a faculty mentor for World of Biology, a really exciting program
for first-year students.
The Department of Biology thanks all of its donors for their generous support. The following donors have contributed to the
University at Albany’s Department of Biology from 2016 to 2017.
Honor Roll of Donors
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 14
In 1965 a Ph.D. was offered in Biology for the first time at UAlbany. The first Ph.D. was granted to Joseph T.
Tupper in 1970 with his dissertation “Microelectrode Studies on the Electrical Properties of Isolated Mito-
chondrial Membranes.”
Mrs. Kris A. Albrecht ('82) Mr. Craig L. Frank ('84) Dr. Joseph R. Lapinski ('87) Mr. Albert S. Shumskis ('79)
Mr. Jason M. Altman ('09) Mr. Gary B. Freeman ('69) Ms. Brandi M. Lewis ('15) Ms. Annamaria Shutts ('76)
Ms. Rheem F. Anvery ('07) Dr. Margaret S. Friar ('94) Ms. Laura Liebeck-Smith Mr. Jonathan T. Simon ('94)
Mrs. Maria Ashley Ms. Janet Goodrich ('45) Mr. Kenneth C. Meese ('13) Ms. Linda L. Stevens ('69)
Mr. Drew R. Barber ('12) Dr. Donald J. Gruol ('64) Dr. Neal A. Mesnick ('91) Dr. Alan W. Streigold ('79)
Ms. Daryl C. Bart ('89) Dr. Donna Gruol ('65) Dr. Rina Mishra Dr. Ben G. Szaro
Mr. Michael I. Belenko ('75) Ms. Megan A. Gura ('15) Dr. Marian J. Mudar ('73) Mrs. Alina M. Tamburello
Mr. Carl Billhardt Ms. Jane A. Harkinson ('71) Ms. Marie Nersesian ('65) Mr. Ed Zandro M. Taroc ('15)
Ms. Barbara Billhardt ('64) Mr. Brian R. Harris ('82) Mr. Thomas Nevins Ms. Bonnie Taylor
Dr. Jeremy M. Boss ('77) Mr. Erik M. Harris ('90) Ms. Soyang K. Olivier ('17) Ms. Olda Thomas
Dr. Valerie C. Boss ('78) Ms. Ruth Heidi ('87) Dr. Steven Ostrove ('69) Dr. David Tieman
Mr. Chad M. Boulrice Dr. Steven Hoover ('60) Ms. Itohan N. Otasowie ('09) Dr. John J. Toole ('75)
Mr. James V. Callahan ('00) Dr. Gary D. Josephson ('86) Ms. Jacqueline Padilla-DiMirco Mr. William J. Volk
Ms. Sally A. D'Agostino ('73) Dr. Warren S. Kaggen ('79) Dr. Saroj Pani Mrs. Janice Volk
Mrs. Kathryn A. Davino ('79) Mr. Christopher Kapetanos Ms. Diane Peek ('67) Mr. William W. Vollmer ('11)
Dr. William L. Davis ('85) Ms. Manjit Kaur Dr. Vincent E. Pierce ('74) Ms. Amy L. Wilsey ('89)
Dr. Mark S. DeNunzio ('75) Mr. David B. Kay ('77) Mr. Scott A. Quiceno ('11) Mrs. Joyce I. Witting ('85)
Mr. Michael DiMirco Mrs. Patricia Kellie ('65) Ms. Barbara A. Ramsbottom ('78) Dr. Cynthia F. Wright ('84)
Mr. Dale Fanning Dr. Lynn G. Kleina ('81) Dr. Margaret G. Redinbaugh ('77) Ms. Princia H. Wu ('77)
Ms. Helen Fanning Ms. Kay E. Klem ('84) Ms. Ruth Scheuermann-Rau ('87) Dr. Daniel L. Wulff
Ms. Wendy R. Fast Ms. Susan Kormanik ('75) Dr. John T. Schmidt Ms. Patricia Zelazny ('61)
Mr. Phil Francis Dr. Gerald B. Koudelka ('79) Ms. Amy E. Shimberg ('78) Mr. Vladimir S. Zinsou ('16)
Mrs. Donna Francis Mr. Robert D. Kuryluk ('73) Dr. Michael Shimberg
Donate to the Biology Department
BIOLOGY@UALBANY NEWSLETTER
July 2017
Page 15
By giving to the Biology Department, you can help us:
Attract and Recruit Distinguished Faculty
Provide Scholarships for Deserving Students
Enhance our Seminar Series
Increase Undergraduate Research Participation
Enrich Student Experiences
Support Major New Initiatives
Purchase or Enhance Teaching and Research Technology
In the ever-more-rapidly moving field of science, the Biology Program at SUNY Albany is continually evolving to meet the needs of our society.
Contact Us
Interested in a career in
Biology? Give us a call for
more information or visit
our website.
Department of
Biological Sciences
University at Albany
1400 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12222
(518) 442-4300
Visit us on the web at
www.ualbany.edu/biology
UAlbany Biology In The News UAlbany Biology faculty and students are continuously in the forefront of all as-
pects of the life sciences, and life science professionals, researchers, alumni, cur-
rent students and prospective students can keep up to date on the department
through our website, our Facebook page, and our Twitter feed:
Biology Department
University at Albany
1400 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12222
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student with news or information that would be of interest to the UAlbany Biology
community?
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