BioNews Newsletter
BioNews is the department's newsletter. It features the year's news, events, and story highlights for faculty, students, alums, and friends. On this page you can download each edition of BioNews, published since 2011.
We want to hear from you. Send your news, updates and photos to Joe Helfer, BioNews Editor, for inclusion in our next edition of BioNews.
Joseph Helfer, BioNews Editor
Biological Sciences
109 Cooke Hall
Buffalo, NY 14260-4610
Telephone: 716-645-4903
Email: helfer@buffalo.edu
Past News Highlights
- Study by the Rusche lab explores how protein function evolves Ashleigh Hanner, a biology PhD student in Laura Rusche’s lab, published a paper in Genetics that reveals how gene duplication enables proteins to optimize their functions.
- An interview with Dr. Jessica Poulin: Polling for student engagement.
- Erica Xu, a biology PhD student in Omer Gokcumen’s lab, published a paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution that finds evidence for another lineage of ancient humans.
- The Department of Biological Sciences welcomes Ms. Rebecca Leach as our newest Undergraduate Advisor. Ms. Leach joins Ms. Brandi McKnight to help Biological Sciences majors.
- Jessica Poulin receives prestigious Teaching Innovation Award; The UB Teaching Innovation Awards recognizes outstanding faculty achievement in teaching innovation. Dr. Poulin made exceptional contributions to the teaching mission of the department.
- Carnivorous plants in New York Times Victor Albert, Empire Innovation Professor of Biological Sciences, led a study where the researchers constructed a state-of-the-art genome using emerging long-read sequencing technologies.
- Birch genome sequenced Victor Albert, Empire Innovation Professor of Biological Sciences, participated in a study of the iconic birch tree, which uncovers genetic secrets of its value.
- Potatoes in space Dr. James Berry and Dr. Mary Bisson, professors in the department, have been helping local school kids with a space experiment, looking at germination.
- Study sheds light on how carnivorous plants acquired taste for meat Learn more about the work of Empire Innovation Professor Victor Albertes.
- Congratulations to the winners at the 12th Annual Biological Sciences Research Symposium.
- Ferkey co-authors article: Using Aversive Behavior in the Nematode C. elegans Is Modulated by cGMP and a Neuronal Gap Junction Network
- Dr. Katharina Dittmar has been awarded the SUNY Chancellors Award for Excellence in Teaching. The Chancellors Award for Excellence in Teaching is the highest award.
- Oluwatosin (Tosin) Oniyide, an undergraduate student in the Department of Biological Sciences, received an Undergraduate Award for Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creativity at the Celebration.
- Sampurna Chakrabarti, a senior undergraduate student in the Department of Biological Sciences, has been awarded a Gates Cambridge Scholarship. Considered as one of the most prestigious international.
- Dr. Paul Gollnick elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology based on his excellent record of research, research originality, and leadership in the microbiological sciences.
- Kenneth Minorczyk named the 2016 Dean’s Outstanding Senior in the Department of Biological Sciences.
- Eight UB Biological Sciences graduate students were honored with a Darrell Doyle Travel Award for their presentations of their work at the 11th Annual Biological Sciences.
- Graduate student Neah Likhite wins first place for her talk at the Genetics, Genomics and Bioinformatics Research Symposium.
- Drs. Denise Ferkey and Michael Yu discover new mechanism of dopamine receptor regulation; A new study published in Science Signaling by the laboratories of Ferkey and Yu provides the first direct evidence that G protein-coupled.
- Huntington's disease protein controls movement of precious cargo inside cells: A new study published in the journal Human Molecular Genetics by the laboratory of Dr. Shermali Gunawardena shows that Huntington’s disease protein (Htt) controls movement.
- Paper by Omer Gokcumen wins Human Biology Lasker Award.
- How a mutant worm’s reaction to a foul smell could lead to new treatment avenues for disease.