Department of Biological Sciences

Our students learn by doing

3/19/18

Our curriculum provides students broad and deep training at the cutting edge of modern biology through a learn-by-doing philosophy. Our approach to teaching cross-disciplinary life sciences prepares students for today's accelerating pace of discovery in biological sciences.

2/23/21 We invite you to apply to the program

Our faculty 'lead with the lab'

5/4/18

The instructional philosophy, 'lead with the lab', allows our students to develop critical thinking skills while providing broad, deep, state-of-the art training in all life science disciplines.

Our faculty are global leaders in FoxG1 research

11/2/20

Two UB scientists work to find a cure for daughter's rare disease. These neurobiologists and parents are now global leaders in FoxG1 research.

WGRZ-TV News Broadcast

We cultivate an active community of inquiry

5/4/18

Faculty teaching and research connects academic programs and experiential labs to cultivate an active community of results-oriented inquiry.

10/4/19 Learn more about our research

WGRZ-TV news story on winterizing "U-B Bees"

11/2/20

WGRZ-TV news features an interview with Dr. David Hoekstra, Director of the "U-B Bees" project, about preparing beehives for winter. Also see the visual story about winterizing the beehives in the Buffalo News.

WGRZ-TV News Broadcast

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APPLY TO ONE OF OUR UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS

APPLY TO ONE OF OUR GRADUATE PROGRAMS

COVID-19 Dashboard — UB Planning and Response

2021 Online Events

Spring Seminar Series Thursdays, 4:00 p.m.

ACCESS THE SEMINARS:
Members of the UB community can log-in to access the Zoom link.
For people outside UB, please contact Laura Rusche (lrusche@buffalo.edu) to access the online seminars.

March 4: Shraddha Sharma, Translate Bio, "Transforming mRNA Science into healthy expression".

March 11: Frederic (Freddy) Chain, UMass Lowell, Evolution of young genes across stickleback populations and their impacts on ecological and genomic differentiation.

March 18: UB BIO Research Showcase, Guolei Zhao & Matthew Vandermeulen, "Sirtuin deacetylases are essential for morphological transitions of Candida albicans" and Gene by Environment Interactions Reveal New Aspects of Signaling Network Plasticity.

March 25: Andrew Yoo, Washington University, Modeling late-onset neurodegenerative disorders through neuronal reprogramming.

April 8: Angels Almanar, UCSD

April 15: Khalid Alam, Stemloop, Inc., Controlling the Central Dogma to Build Point-of-use Biosensors.

April 29: Derek Taylor, UB Biological Sciences, RNA virus-host interactions: insights from paleovirology.

May 6: David Moore, Baylor College of Medicine, Regulation of liver energy balance by nutrient sensing nuclear receptors.

Spotlight

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Lindqvist lab uses ancient DNA to trace prehistoric dogs
2/24/21
“This all started out with our interest in how Ice Age climatic changes impacted animals’ survival and movements in this region,” Lindqvist explains. “Southeast Alaska might have served as an ice-free stopping point of sorts, and now — with our dog — we think that early human migration through the region might be much more important than some previously suspected.” Read the news story by Charlotte Hsu.
Vincent Lynch publishes a study to show that elephants possess extra copies of genes associated with tumor suppression
2/8/21
The journal eLife, published a study by biologists Vincent Lynch at the University at Buffalo and Juan Manuel Vazquez at the University of California, Berkeley. “We explored how elephants and their living and extinct relatives evolved to be cancer-resistant,” Lynch says. Read the news story by Charlotte Hsu.
Krabbenhoft publishes study on variants in rhodopsin gene that impact fish vision
2/1/21
The journal Genome Biology and Evolution has published a study on restoring fish to North America's Great Lakes, led by Trevor Krabbenhoft, who observes, “Knowledge of a species’ adaptations can help us restore them in environments that are better suited to their biology.” Read the article by Charlotte Hsu. Related post on WBFO NPR.
Jae W. Lee co-authors research that suggests MLL4 could be a great epigenetic target molecule to treat various symptoms of Kabuki syndrome
1/13/21
“Given our findings, inactivation of MLL4 is presumed to lead to a loss of GHRH-neurons, resulting in lack of typical growth in Kabuki patients,” says Jae Lee, PhD, professor of biological sciences in the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences. “We also researched the epigenetic activity of MLL4, and our studies suggest that MLL4 could be a great epigenetic target molecule to treat various symptoms of Kabuki syndrome.” For patients, parents and caregivers, new knowledge about the biology of rare diseases provides hope, laying a foundation for the development of treatments, says Jae Lee, who is the parent of a child with a different rare genetic disorder, FOXG1 syndrome. Read the news story by Charlotte Hsu.
Two of 2020's top twenty research stories feature the work of our faculty
1/7/21
In a difficult year, UB faculty, staff and students continued to break ground in fields that ranged from biology and climate science to history and design. Through discoveries large and small, UB’s physicians, chemists, geologists, writers, historians, sociologists and engineers engaged in a vital, shared mission: to learn about the world around us, and to make it better. These research findings are just a few examples of the knowledge that UB scholars contributed to the world in 2020. In a wrap-up of 2020's top research news, reporters Charlotte Hsu and Cory Nealon selected research by Vincent Lynch and Kathryn Medler, as two of the year's top twenty research stories.
Gokcumen’s research traces the source of salivary proteins
11/18/20
“Saliva is important for tasting, for digesting, for swallowing, for defending us from the pathogens that we are constantly inhaling and consuming,” says Omer Gokcumen, associate professor of biological sciences, College of Arts and Sciences. “The proteins in our mouth form an army, if you will, that’s working constantly to protect us. Before this, scientists had an idea of the proteins that are found in the mouth, but we didn’t have a complete picture of where they were coming from. We’re addressing this gap.” Read the news article by Charlotte Hsu.
Safety is our primary focus.
10/21/20
The Department of Biological Sciences has bolstered its remote learning materials to supplement — or in some cases replace — in-person education normally conducted in labs. For example, the Genetics Laboratory, which has nearly 170 enrolled students, moved all quizzes, assessments and lab reports online. We have reformatted courses to support remote learning with new videos on lab procedures. We are refining the process to submit homework online and improving techniques for vurtual interaction. Nearly 1,300 biology students have the option to learn in-person or fully complete the lab online. “It was clear early on that we had to be prepared for what would happen if someone got COVID or the campus shut down for two weeks or longer,” says Jessica Poulin, clinical associate professor of biological sciences. “We worked really hard on the online plan knowing we would likely have to convert to fully online at any time. We knew we needed to be flexible for students who could not come back to campus.” Read more from UBNow.
Gunawardena's research devoted to understanding HTT’s role in cell biology and health
7/17/20
“When it comes to finding therapies for neurological diseases, a lot of the research focuses on the pathology and aggregation of proteins, but that may not be the actual cause,” says Shermali Gunawardena, PhD, associate professor of biological sciences in the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences. “We want to try to figure out what might be going on earlier. We want to come in from a different angle and say, ‘OK, are huntingtin and Rab4 normally present together in healthy neurons? And then, what are they doing in the context of a disease state?’ ” Read the news article by Charlotte Hsu

Department News

Student & Alumni Highlights

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Aliaya Williams wins SUNY award
1/5/21
Congratulations to Aliaya Williams. The senior biological sciences student has won the SUNY-wide Norman R. McConney Jr. Award. The award honors a student who demonstrates determination, success, perseverance and leadership. UB Campus News features Williams' remarkable achievement.
Kathleen Ohman wins ASA Award for Undergraduate Student Research in Acoustics
11/8/19
The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) has named Kathleen Ohman the winner of the Robert W. Young Award for Undergraduate Research in Acoustics. The ASA is the premiere international scientific society in acoustics, dedicated to increasing and diffusing the knowledge of acoustics and promoting its practical application. Ohman, a Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors student, studies the effects of blast-induced traumatic brain injury on mouse vocalizations.
Biological Sciences majors win 2020 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence
1/5/21
Congratulations to Megan Dwyer, Katherine Eaton, and Kathleen Ohma. Our Biological Sciences majors are among the winners of the 2020 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, the highest honor the State University of New York bestows upon its students. The annual award recognizes and honors students who have best demonstrated and been recognized for integrating academic excellence with accomplishments in the areas of leadership, athletics, community service, creative and performing arts, campus involvement or career achievement.
Nicole Wong wins UB Graduate School’s Excellence in Teaching Award
5/18/20
The Department of Biological Sciences is pleased to announce that Nicole Wong has won the University at Buffalo Graduate School's 2020 Excellence in Teaching Award for Graduate Teaching Assistants. Wong is currently a PhD candidate based in the lab of Dr. Matthew Xu-Friedman, who serves as her mentor. Wong was sponsored for the award by Dr. Lara D. Hutson, Clinical Associate Professor Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Long Shen, PhD (2003), works on tools to increase COVID-19 testing capacity and afford better patient management, and yield critical data to aid in the recovery from the pandemic
1/5/21
UB Biological Sciences Alum Long Shen, PhD (2003), is a founding partner of KSL Biomedical. Drawing upon scientific and medical training in Xiamen University, China and the University at Buffalo, USA, he has performed as translational biomedical research innovative scientific program leader for over 15 years in academic programs and private industry. Dr. Shen has made significant contributions to the identification of novel biomarkers for the early diagnosis of autoimmune disease and associated B-cell lymphomas. Dr. Shen has authored more than 25 peer-reviewed publications in high impact research journals and is co-inventor on a number patents in this field. Read the research news article by Charlotte Hsu.

Research Areas

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Animal Models
6/6/18
Faculty study essential biological processes with particular relevance to the understanding of animal life.
Microbiology
6/6/18
Microbiology faculty study microorganisms including viruses, bacteria, and protozoans.
Genomics
5/4/18
Faculty study evolutionary change using a variety of techniques capitalizing on recent advances in genomics methodology and the evolution of viruses, plants, fish, and humans.
Neuroscience
5/4/18
Our faculty study a variety of model systems using electrophysiology and imaging techniques to understand sensory signalling and the cellular processes underlying important neuronal disorders.
Genetics
5/4/18
Geneticists investigate biological processes by examining the phenotypic consequences of altering genes. Our faculty study how information encoded in DNA is interpreted to produce functional proteins.
Cell and Molecular
5/4/18
Cell and Molecular faculty study the regulation of protein expression, from transcription to translation to post-translational modification.
Signaling
5/4/18
Signaling faculty study cellular communication and the intracellular pathways that regulate activity. These faculty use a wide range of model organisms and techniques to examine a diverse array of signalling pathways involved in hormonal regulation, sensory transduction, and cell growth and metabolism.
Plant Science
5/4/18
Faculty research focuses on photosynthesis, plant evolution, plant genomics, gene regulation, environmental remediation, and the metabolic engineering of pharmaceutical compounds.
Ecology and Evolution
5/4/18
Our research concerns plant evolutionary biology; molecular phylogenetics and population genomics; chromatin and gene expression; genome stability; and the genetics of aquatic invertebrates.
Fungal Biology
5/4/18
Our faculty study cell biology and signalling pathways that are used by filamentous fungi and budding yeast to adapt to their environments. Our research uses yeast as a model organism to study the mechanisms of gene expression.

See All

2021 Online Events

Spotlight

Student & Alumni Highlights

Research Areas

UB Biological Sciences In-the-News

Department of Biological Sciences