Dear Prospective Student:

    Thank you for your inquiry concerning graduate study in Biology at New Mexico State University. I am pleased that you are considering our department as a place to continue your education and am looking forward to reviewing your application. The selection of a graduate program that meets your specific needs and career objectives is an important decision and one that I know you are giving careful consideration. The department offers research training leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, as well as a one-year non-thesis M.S. degree for students seeking biotechnology careers. Along with the necessary application materials, I have enclosed information about our programs, faculty, and the university that should help you reach an informed decision. We also have a web site you can visit (http://biology-web.nmsu.edu).
    For students who wish to do research for their graduate degrees, probably the most important element in ensuring that your graduate study meets your personal needs and desires is the selection of a research mentor whose area of expertise is compatible with your interests. For this reason, please carefully consider the research interests of our faculty and list up to three, any one of whom you feel would be a suitable research mentor for your studies. You will find among our faculty, leading scientists in many areas of biology and I hope several with research interests compatible with your own. You are especially encouraged to directly contact any of the faculty to find out what opportunities exist in their individual labs.
    I realize that, as for most applicants for graduate study, the possibilities for financial support are also an important consideration in your decision. Almost all of our approximately 85 graduate students have some type of financial support. This support includes teaching assistantships and fellowships funded by the university, and research assistantships funded by research grants to our faculty from many of the federal and state research funding agencies. You will also wish to investigate fellowship programs such as the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. To ensure that your application for admission and NMSU financial aid are given the most complete consideration, please apply as early as possible. If you wish to be considered for support through the Department of Biology, applications should be complete by October 4 for Spring and by January 15 for Fall.
    Your application will travel most quickly through the inevitable "red tape" if you proceed as follows:

ALL APPLICANTS SHOULD:
    A. Send to the Graduate Coordinator, Biology Department, Box 30001/MSC 3AF:
        1) a statement of your educational objectives and research interests.
        2) the Graduate Advisor form (enclosed).
                You will not be admitted into the Biology Program until you have been accepted by a Biology Department Faculty member.
        3) the Application for Financial Support (enclosed), if you wish to be considered for a graduate assistantship)
        4) an unofficial transcript from all the colleges or universities you have attended.
        5) unofficial scores on the Graduate Record Examination, if you have taken them.
                The Biology Department does not require GRE scores for admission; however, individual professors may require GRE scores                     prior to acceptance. Check with your proposed mentors about providing GRE scores.
        6) three personal references (forms enclosed), each with a supporting letter attached.

IF YOU ARE A U.S. CITIZEN OR PERMANENT RESIDENT, APPLICATIONS ARE THROUGH THE GRADUATE SCHOOL:

The NMSU Graduate Schools handles admission for prospective graduate students. For more information, contact the NMSU Graduate School at (575) 646-2736, web site http://prospective.nmsu.edu/graduate/programs.html e-mail at gradinfo@nmsu.edu or in writing at:
        Graduate School
        MSC 3G
        New Mexico State University
        Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001

IF YOU ARE NOT A U.S. CITIZEN, APPLICATION SHOULD BE MADE THROUGH INTERANATIONAL STUDENT & SCHOLAR SERVICES:
For more information, contact the International Student & Scholar Services at (575) 646-3199, e-mail cip@nmsu.edu visit web site http://prospective.nmsu.edu/international/index.html or in writing at:

       International Student & Scholar Services
        MSC 3567
        New Mexico State University
        PO Box 30001
        Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001

Again, I am pleased that you are considering graduate study in biology at New Mexico State University. If I can provide you with more information about our university, our department, or its faculty, please let me know. I wish you great success in your graduate studies and in your future career, and hope that you will decide that New Mexico State University offers the place and the people that will best meet your needs.

Sincerely,

Marvin H. Bernstein, Ph.D.

Regents Professor and Interim Dept. Head

DONOVAN BAILEY

Plant Systematics
As a systematic botanist, I am particularly interested in addressing questions regarding the evolutionary relationships of plant taxa and the evolution of specific traits. Research in the lab primarily addresses these questions on Mexican members of the mustard and legume plant families (Brassicaceae and Fabaceae, respectively). These families are well represented in the Southwestern US and Mexican floras and they include numberous important crop species as well as threatened/endangered species. The molecular biology techniques employed in the lab include PCR, DNA sequencing, gene cloning, southern analyses, RAPDs, and SCARS. Data assembled from theses methodologies are analyzed in a phylogenetic context and the results are used to discussion the implications of the inferred evolutionary relationships and to develop new classifications. As curator of the NMSU herbarium (a permanent repository for historical and contemporary plant collections) I am also very interested in projects associated with the development of plant fields guides (particularly in electronic formats), revisions of plant groups, as well as the data basing of herbarium material.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Bailey, C. D., and J. J. Doyle (1999) Potential phylogenetic utility of the low-copy nuclear gene pistillata in dicotyledonous plants: comparison to nrDNA ITS and trnL intron in Sphaerocardamum and other Brassicaceae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 13:20-30.
• Doyle, J. J., J. A. Chappill, C. D. Bailey, and T. Kajita. 2000. Towards a comprehensive phylogeny of Legumes: evidence from rbcL sequences and non-moleculalr data. In P.S. Herendeen and A. BRUNEAU [eds.], Advances in Legume Systematics, 1-20. The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, London.
• Simmons, M. P., C. D. Bailey, and K. C. Nixon (2000) Phylogeny reconstruction using duplicate genes. Molecular Biology and Evolution 17:469-473.
• Kajita, T., H. Ohashi, Y. Tateishi, C. D. Bailey, and J. J. Doyle (2001) rbcL and legume phylogeny, with particular reference to phaseoleae, millettieae, and allies. Systematic Botany 26:515-536.
• Price, R. A., C. D. Bailey, and I. A. AL-Shehbaz (2001) Transfer of the cupulate-flowered Arabis microsperma and A. tricornuta (Brassicaceae) to Pennellia. Novon 337-340: 337-340.
• Bailey, C. D., R. A. Price, and J. J. Doyle (2002) Systematics of the Halimolobine Brasicaceae: evidence from three loci and morphology. Systematic Botany 27:318-332.
• Hughes, C. E., C. D. Bailey, and S. A. Harris (2002) Divergent and reticulate species relationships in Leucaena (Fabaceae) inferred from multiple data sources: insights into polyploid origins and nrDNA polymorphism. American Journal of Botany 89:1057-1073.
• Scotland, R., C. E. Hughes, C. D. Bailey, and A. Wortley (in press) The Big Machine and the Much-Maligned Taxonomist. Systematics and Biodiversity.
• Bailey, C. D., T. G. Carr, S. A. Harris, and C. E. Hughes (in press) Characterization of angiosperm nrDNA polymorphism, paralogy, and pseudogenes. Molecular Biology and Evolution.
• Bailey, C. D., C. E. Hughes, and s. A. Harris (in press) Using RAPDs to identify DNA sequence loci for species level phylogeny reconstruction: an example from Leucaena (Fabaceae). Systematic Botany.

MARVIN H. BERNSTEIN

Animal Physiology
Oxygen deprivation (hypoxia) is a frequent fact of life for many animals, such as those that live at or visit high altitudes. Some champion bird species fly at altitudes where the oxygen supply is only one-fourth as high as at sea level and where daytime temperatures are often 50 degrees below freezing. The enormous oxygen requirement for flight (20 to 40 times higher than for resting) makes the feats of high-flying birds even more remarkable. For comparison, mammals including humans come down with mountain sickness at much lower altitudes, especially if they try to exercise. To understand physiological adaptations for flight and high-altitude tolerance in birds, my students and I study temperature regulation, energetics, cardiac and respiratory mechanics, oxygen and carbon-dioxide transport, and body-fluid volume regulation. We also investigate adaptations to hypoxia at the tissue and cell levels, especially in skeletal muscle, eye, and brain. For example, we have recently discovered a mechanism for supplementing the oxygen supply to the brain and retina of birds exposed to hypoxia. As part of an experiment on tissue hypoxia, we have found that the body tissues store huge quantities of body fluids, and birds therefore never suffer from shock. We do experiments on animals at rest, during flight in a wind tunnel, or during exposure to cold and artificial high altitude. To investigate why mammals do not tolerate hypoxia as well as birds, we also study the effects of hypoxia on the brains of rats, using changes in learning ability and memory, as well as histological and biochemical changes, as indicators. The long-term goal is to understand both the mechanism and the evolution of hypoxia tolerance. I welcome opportunities to work with students interested in animal adaptations to environmental stresses at the systems, tissue, and cell levels.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Bernstein, M.H. (1991). Respiration in birds at high altitude. In: S. Lahiri and N.S. Cherniack (eds.), Response and Adaptation to Hypoxia: Organ to Organelle, Oxford, University Press, New York, Chapter 22.
• Carmi, N., B. Pinshow, M. Horowitz, and M. H. Bernstein (1993) Birds conserve plasma volume during thermal and flight incurred dehydration. Physiological Zoology 66:829-846.
• Mathieu-Costello, O., P. J. Agey, R. B. Logeman, M. Florez-Duquet, and M. H. Bernstein (1994) Effect of flying activity on capillary-fiber geometry in pigeon flight muscle. Tissue and Cell 26:57-73.
• Furilla, R. A. and M. H. Bernstein (1995) Intrapulmonary CO2-rise time and ventilation in ducks. Journal of Applied Physiology.
• Maginniss, L. A., M. H. Bernstein, M. A. Deitch, and B. Pinshow (1997) Effects of chronic hypobaric hypoxia on blood oxygen binding in pigeons. Journal of Experimental Zoology 277:293-300.

WILLIAM J. BOECKLEN

Population and Community Ecology, Biogeography and Conservation Biology
My primary research interests are in ecological and evolutionary aspects of insect-plant interactions. In particular, I am interested in patterns of herbivory in dioecious plants and in the effects of host plant hybridization on the structure and dynamics of herbivore communities.
Sex-biased herbivory has been largely overlooked in the development of contemporary theories of insect-plant interactions. I have demonstrated previously that plant sex is a significant source of variation in densities of sawflies that attack arroyo willow (Salix lasiolepis). Male willows typically support higher densities of sawflies than do female plants. Currently, I am examining sex-biased herbivory in the desert shrub, Ephedra trifurca. These data will contribute to a general theory of herbivory in dioecious plants by relating intersexual variation in insect attack to sexual dimorphism of host plants in habitat utilization and resource allocation.
Evolutionary biologists have long recognized that hybrid zones can provide unparalleled insights into evolutionary processes, yet plant-insect ecologists have been slow to use plant hybrid zones to investigate evolutionary mechanisms thought to underlie plant-parasite interactions. I am investigating patterns of density and species diversity of gall-forming wasps (Hymenoptera:Cynipidae) and leaf-mining moths (lepidoptera:Gracilariidae and Nepticulidae) in oak hybrid zones. I am testing the null hypothesis of no differences among host taxa against three mutually exclusive and evolutionarily consistent alternative hypotheses: 1) hybrid oaks support greater numbers of individuals and species than do parental oak; 2) hybrids support fewer parasite species and individuals; and 3) hybrids are intermediate to parental hosts.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Aguilar, J.M. and W.J. Boecklen (1992) Patterns of herbivory in the Quercus grisea x Quercus gambelii species complex. Oikos 64: 498-504.
• McClellan, Y. and W.J. Boecklen (1993) Plant mediation of ant-herbivore associations: the role of sticky rings formed by Boerhavia spicata. Coenoses 8: 15-20.
• Boecklen, W.J. and M.T. Hoffman (1993) Sex-biased herbivory in Ephedra trifurca: the importance of sex-by-environment interactions. Oecologia 96:49-55.
• Boecklen, W.J. and G.J. Niemi (1994) Multivariate association of graph-theoretic variables and physicochemical properties. SAR and QSAR in Environmental Research 2:79-87.
• Boecklen, W.J. and K.C. Larson (1994) Gall-forming wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) in an oak hybrid zone: testing hypotheses about hybrid susceptibility to herbivores. In: P.W. Price, W.D. Mattson, and Y.N. Baranchikov (eds.), The ecology and evolution of gall-forming insects, General Technical Report NC-174, Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station, pp. 110-120.
• Boecklen, W.J., S. Mopper, and P.W. Price (1994) Sex-biased herbivory in arroyo willow: are there general patterns among herbivores? Oikos 71: 267-272.
• Preszler, R.W. and W.J. Boecklen (1994) A three-trophic-level analysis of the effects of plant hybridization on a leaf-mining moth. Oecologia 100: 66-73.
• Preszler, R.W. and W.J. Boecklen (1996) The influence of elevation on tri-trophic interactions: opposing gradients of top-down and bottom-up effects on a leaf-mining moth. Ecoscience 3: 75-80.
• Skaggs, R. and W.J. Boecklen (1996) Extinctions of montane mammals reconsidered: putting a global-warming scenario on ice. Biodiversity and Conservation 5: 759-778.
• Gaylord, E.S., R.W. Preszler, and W.J. Boecklen (1996) Interactions between host plants, endophytic fungi, and a phytophagous insect in an oak (Quercus grisea x Quercus gambelii) hybrid zone. Oecologia 105: 336-342.
• Preszler, R.W., E.S. Gaylord, and W.J. Boecklen (1996) Reduced parasitism of a leaf-mining moth on trees with high infection frequencies of an endophytic fungus. Oecologia 108: 159-166.
• Boecklen, W.J. (1997) Nestedness, biogeographic theory, and the design of nature reserves. Oecologia 112: 123-142.
• Howard, D.J., R.W. Preszler, J. Williams, S. Fenchel, and W.J. Boecklen (1997) How discrete are oak species? Insights from a hybrid zone between Quercus grisea and Q. gambelii. Evolution 51: 747-755.
• Boecklen, W.J. and D.J. Howard (1997) Genetic analysis of hybrid zones: numbers of markers and power of resolution. Ecology: (in press).
• Boecklen, W.J. and S. Mopper (1997) Local adaptation in monophagous herbivores: theory and evidence. In: S. Mopper and S. Strauss (eds.), Genetic Structure in Natural Insect Populations: Effects of Host Plants and Life History, Chapman & Hall (in press).
• Boecklen, W.J. and R. Spellenberg (1997) Tests of hypotheses regarding hybrid resistance in the Quercus coccolifolia x Q. viminea species complex. In: G. Csoka, P.W. Price, and W.D. Mattson (eds.), United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station. (in press).

MARIA CASTILLO

Cell and Developmental Biology
        Our laboratory focuses on the study of the immunological aspects of the relationship between the Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes and its beneficial partner, the luminous bacteria Vibrio fischeri (1).  The interaction between these two organisms is very specific and limited to a specialized light organ located in the ventral cavity of the squid.  The bacteria find within the host shelter and nutrients, while the squid utilizes the light produced by the bacteria as counterillumination to avoid predation during its nocturnal activities (2).
    Our research investigates the presence, diversity, and function of complement-like proteins in the squid E. scolopes and their potential role in beneficial symbiosis.  The complement system consists of a group of proteins that play an important role in immune processes such as cytolysis, opsonization, inflammation, and linking the innate and adaptive immune systems.  Orthologs of several vertebrate complement components were recently identified in deuterostomes, ecdysozoans, and lophotrochozoans including tunicates, horseshoe crab, and squid respectively.  The finding of complement molecules in invertebrates suggests a more primitive origin of these immune components than previously thought and presents an opportunity to study the changes of the immune system through evolution.
In addition, the specific association between E. scolopes and V. fischeri is a unique model system that allows us to study various aspects of immune interactions between organisms of different species in a context that differs from pathogenesis.
    References:     (1 )Nyholm S. V. and McFall-Ngai, 2004.      (2) Jones B. W. and Nishiguchi M. K., 2004). 

Publications:

• M. G. Castillo, M. S. Goodson, and M. J. McFall-Ngai. 2008. Identification and molecular characterization of a complement C3 molecule in a lophotrochozoan, the Hawaiian bobtail squid Euprymna scolopes. Developemental and Comparative Immunology. In print.
• M. G. Castillo, X. J. Wu, N. Dinguirard, and T. P. Yoshino. 2008. HSP60 expressed on the surface membrane of B. glabrata embryonic cells is involved in binding to Schistosoma mansoni primary sporocysts tegumental molecules. In preparation
• M. G. Castillo, X. J. Wu, N. Dinguirard, A. K Nyame, R. D. Cummings, and T. P. Yoshino. 2007. Surface membrane proteins of Biomphalaria glabrata embryonic cells bind fucosyl determinants on the tegumental surface of Schistosoma mansoni primary sporocysts. Journal of Parasitology, 93:832-40.
• M. G. Castillo and T. P. Yoshino. 2003. Carbohydrate inhibition of Biomphalaria glabrata embryonic (Bge) cell adhesion to primary sporocysts of Schistosoma mansoni. Parasitology, 125: 513-525.
• T. P. Yoshino, C. Coustau, S. Modat, and M. G. Castillo. 1999. The Biomphalaria glabrata embryonic (Bge) molluscan cell line: Establishment of an in vitro cellular model for the study of snail host-parasite interactions. Malacologia, 41(2): 331-343.
• T. P. Yoshino, B. J. Davids, M. G. Castillo and L. A. Johnston. 1998. Invertebrate cellular adhesion receptors: their structure and function as primordial recognition molecules in the immune system. Trends in Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Vol 5:49-65.

JENNIFER CURTISS

Cell and Developmental Biology
During development, the cells of a multicellular organism differentiate into thousands of distinct cell types. For instance humans develop skin heart and brain cells, among others. There are two essential aspects to this process that are of particular interest to my work:
1) Cells must be specified so that they know what tissue and organ type to become. In part, specification is controlled by “selector genes,” which encode transcription factors that regulate tissue-specific gene expression.
2) Different organs must develop in a regulated manner so that each organ’s size and position fits into the context of the entire organism. This requires that cells in different tissues and organs communicate with one another via signal transduction pathways, in order to integrate growth and pattern.
Remarkably, both selector genes and signaling genes are well conserved in all metazoans. For instance, a selector gene called Pax6 is of critical importance for human eye development: mutations in Pax6 cause a birth defect called aniridia, in which the iris of the eye fails to form, resulting in blindness. Homologs of the Pax6 gene are present in all metazoans, from jellyfish to insects to mammals, and seem to specify eye fate in all of them. Because of this, we can use organisms besides humans to study how selectgor genes are signaling pathways cooperate in development. My approach utilizes the powerful genetic and molecular tools available in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster.
In the Drosophila head the eye and antenna develop right next to one another. One focus in the lab is to understand how the eye and antennal selector genes are controlled. For instance, the eye selector genes must be expressed only in the eye precursors. If eye selector genes are expressed in antennal precursors they change their fate and develop into an eye instead. Likewise, the antennal selector genes must be expressed only in the antennal precursors, because they will cause eye precursors to change their fate and develop into an antenna. We know that cell communication through some kind of signaling pathway ensures that eye and antennal selector gene expression is kept separate. We are using genetics and histological techniques to find out what these signaling genes are and how they work.
The other focus in the lab involves two genes called dan and danr, which act like eye selector genes in that they are required to make an eye and are able to convert antennal precursors to an eye fate. Surprisingly however, they are also required for antennal development, and are able to convert leg precursors to an antennal fate. Thus, these two genes appear to “select” both eye and antennal fate. We are using genetics and molecular biology to explore how these genes function, and how they interact with other eye and antennal selector genes to control both eye and antennal development.
I welcome students who are interested in how an eye gets made, and how different cell types become different from one another. We will work together to design a project that utilizes both genetic and molecular techniques to address current and relevant questions about cell specification.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Seo, H.-C., Curtiss, J., Mlodzik, M., and Fjose, A. Six class homeobox genes in Drosophila belong to three distinct families and are involved in head development. Mech Dev, 83, 127-139, 1999.
• Curtiss, J., and Mlodzik, M. Morphogenetic furrow initiation and progression during eye development in Drosophila: the roles of decapentaplegic, hedgehog, and eyes absent. Development, 127, 1325-1336, 2000.
• Curtiss, J., Halder, G., and Mlodzik, M. Selector and signalling molecules cooperate in organ patterning. Nat Cell Biol., 4, E48-E52, 2002. Emerald, B.S., Curtiss, J., Mlodzik, M. and Cohen, S.M. distal antenna and distal antenna related encode nuclear proteins containing pipsqueak motifs involved in antenna development in Drosophila. Development, 130, 1171-1180, 2003.
• Kenyon, K.L., Ranade, S.S., Curtiss, J., Mlodzik, M., and Pignoni, F. Coordinating proliferation and tissue specification to promote regional identity in the Drosophila head. Dev Cell, 5, 403-414, 2003.
• Curtiss, J., and Mlodzik, M. Drosophila EGF receptor signaling affects Wingless diffusion and selector gene expression during patterning of the eye-antenna imaginal disc. Manuscript submitted, Development.
• Curtiss, J., Emerald, B.S., Cohen, S.M. and Mlodzik, M. distal antenna and distal antenna-related induce ectopic eyes and are required for eye development in Drosophila. Manuscript in preparation (to be submitted October, 2005).

ANGUS DAWE

Molecular Mycology

My lab is interested in the molecular biology of fungi, and in particular, a fungus called Cryphonectria parasitica. This organism is a plant pathogen and is responsible for a disease called chestnut blight. Back when the eastern parts of the United States were first settled by European eolonists, the American chestnut tree was the dominant species of hardwood throughout the Appalachian region from Georgia to Maine. The tree was highly prized for its wood (very tough, great for building) and the annual crop of nuts (great for feedin’ the hogs). However, during the late 1800s species of chest nut were imported into the US from Asia and they brought with them the chestnut blight. By the 1950s, the disease had spread throughout the natural range of the American chestnut trees, effectively wiping out a vst natural resource and altering forever the makeup of the eastern woodlands. So… why do we care now? Well, it turns out the C. parasitica is a very interesting organism. In the laboratory it can be easily cultured and manipulated which allows us to ask genetic questions about its behavior and development. Also, C. parasitica can itself be infected by an RNA virus. An infected strain exhitits a number of changes from an uninfected one, the most striking of which is a loss of ability to cause significant damage to chestnut. Because of the reduction in fungal virulence, we call this virus a “hypovirus”. Since we can genetically modify both the hypovirus and the fungus, we have a system that permits us to explore the interactions of an RNA virus and its host. Also, the hypovirus provides a tool to investigate molecular mechanisms of plant pathogenesis as well as other behavior and developmental pathways in C. parasitica. Research opportunities in my laboratory are wide open: there are projects available that range from investigating the function of specific gene products, to generating and analyzing genomic sequences. These will enable students to get training in molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, genomics and potentially microarray technology. Using this system as a model we hope to be able to contribute to the understanding of the way fungi interact with plants, leading to advances in the treatment of fungal plant diseases that affect crops worldwide.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Dawe AL, Nuss DL (2001). Hypoviruses and chestnut blight.: exploiting virsues to understand and modulate fungal pathogenesis. Annual Review of Genetics. 35:1-29.
• Parsley TB, Segers GC, Nuss DL and Dawe AL (2003). Analysis of altered G-protein subunit accumulation in Cryphonectria parasitica reveals a third G homologue. Current Genetics. 43:24-33.
• Dawe AL, McMains VC, Panglao M, Kasahara S, Chen B and Nuss DL (2003). An ordered collection of genomic microsynteny with Neurospora crassa and Magnaporthe grisea. Microbiology, 149:2a737-2384.
• Allen TD, Dawe AL and Nuss DL (2003). Use of cDNA microarrays to monitor transcriptional responses of the chestnut blight fungus Cryphonectria parasitica to infection by virulence-attenuating hypoviruses. Eukaryotic Cell. 2: 1253-65.
• Dawe AL, Segers GC, Allen TD, McMains VC and Nuss DL (2004). Microarray analysis of Cryphonectria parasitica G and G signaling pathways reveals extensive modulation by hypovirus infections. Microbiolgoy (In press).

JOHN E. GUSTAFSON

Microbiology

The bacterium that my laboratory presently investigates is Staphylococcus aureus, or "golden staph" which causes a large percentage of infections that arise in hospital as well as excessive morbidity and mortality. As a population, S. aureus possesses a wide variety of genes and mechanisms to express resistance to antibiotics. The drug of choice for the treatment of serious infections caused by methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA), which are normally resistant to multiple antibiotics, remains vancomycin. However, the recent discovery of MRSA with elevated resistance to vancomycin leads many scientists/physicians to believe a public health disaster is looming on the horizon. My primary research goals are to identify mechanisms that bacterial pathogens use to survive in the presence of antibiotic stress. By understanding the basic biology of antibiotic stress, it is hoped that novel bacterial targets for antibiotic development can be identified. It is also hoped that genes induced by antibiotics can be used in the identification of novel antibiotics within natural and synthetic extracts/preparations. Thus far my colleagues, students and I, have worked on the mechanisms of methicillin, vancomycin, ciprofloxacin, disinfectant and fusidic acid resistance in S. aureus. We are presently investigating the mechanism by which common over-the-counter nonsteroidal antiinflammatories such as aspirin, induce a multiple antibiotic/drug resistance mechanism in S. aureus. We are also demonstrating that common household disinfectants can select for bacteria with elevated levels of resistance to various antibiotics. Students/colleagues entering my laboratory are free to develop independent projects related to bacterial antibiotic resistance and are encouraged to use novel molecular approaches in such investigations. In addition, the laboratory work "in progress", provides more than enough options/interests required to accomplish the research component of an Undergraduate, Masters, or Ph.D. research project.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Gustafson, J. E. , Y. Liew, S. Chew, J. Markham, S. G. Wyllie, H. C. Bell and J. R. Warmington. 1998. Effects of tea tree oil-induced cell death on Escherichia coli. Letters in Applied Microbiology 26:194-198.
• Glanzmann, P. J., J. E. Gustafson, Hithoshi Komatsuzawa, Kouji Ohta and B. Berger-Bächi. 1999. glmM operon and methicillin-resistant glmM suppressor mutants in Staphylococcus aureus. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 43:240-245.
• Gustafson J. E., P. Candelaria, S. A. Fisher, J. P. Goodridge, T. M. Lichocik, T. McWilliams, C. Price, F. G. O’Brien, and W. B. Grubb. 1999. The effects of salicylate and related compounds on expression of flouroquinolone resistance in Staphylococcus aureus. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 43:990-992.
• O’Brien, F., C. Price, B. Shelton, W. B. Grubb, J. R. Warmington and J. E. Gustafson. 1999. The effect of salicylate and related compounds on intrinsic fusidic acid resistance in Staphylococcus aureus. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 44:57-64.
• Price, C. T. D., I. R. Lee, and J. E. Gustafson. 2000. (Invited review) The effects of salicylate on bacteria. International Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology 32:1029-1043.
• Price, C. T. D. and J. E. Gustafson. 2001. Increases in the mutation frequency at which fusidic acid-resistant Staphylococcus aureus arise with salicylate. Journal of Medical Microbiology 50:104-106.
• Gustafson J. E., Y. Liew, S. Cox, S. G. Wyllie, and J. R. Warmington. 2001. The bacterial multiple antibiotic resistance (Mar) phenotype leads to increased tolerance to tea tree oil. Pathology 33:211-215.
• Price, C. T. D., G. W. Kaatz, F. G. O'Brien, W. B. Grubb, and John E. Gustafson. Submitted 2002. The Multidrug Efflux Pump, NorA, is not Required for Salicylate-Induced Reduction in Drug Accumulation in Staphylococcus aureus.
• O'Brien, F. G., C. T. D. Price, W. B. Grubb and John E. Gustafson. Submitted 2002. Cloning of fusidic acid and cadmium resistance determinants from unique Staphylococcus aureus b-lactamase-fusidic acid resistance plasmid, pUB101.

KATHYRN A. HANLEY

Biology Arthropod-Borne Viruses; Evolutionary Ecology of Host-Pathogen Interactions

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) constitute one of the most significant emerging disease challenges to global public health. The escalating pandemic of dengue virus, the recent invasion of West Nile virus into the Americas, and the persistence of yellow fever virus in the tropics all attest to the threat posed by arboviruses. Yet relatively little is known about the ecological and evolutionary factors that drive arbovirus introduction and spread. My laboratory investigates the evolution, ecology, genetics and control of arboviruses in the genus Flavivirus, focusing on the mosquito-borne dengue virus, the causative agent of dengue fever and of its more severe manifestation, dengue hemorrhagic fever.

Dengue virus is comprised of four serotypes (Denguel1-Dengue4), each of which encompasses multiple genotypes. In recent decades the range of all four serotypes has expanded across the tropical and subtropical has expanded across the tropical and subtropical regions of the world, leading to extensive geographic overlap among the serotypes. One topic under study in the laboratory is how different serotypes and genotypes interact during co-infection of the mosquito vector. Characterizing these interactions is important because competition for vector transmission may also affect the evolution of dengue virus replication, and consequently virulence, in humans.

As the geographic range of dengue virus has expanded, the serverity of dengue disease has also increased dramatically. Consequently dengue virus has been listed as a target for control by the World Health Organization. However, effective control efforts require a more detailed understanding of the forces that affect dengue evolution than is currently available. Identification of genomic regions that affect the specificity and efficiency with which the virus infects its mosquito vector is particularly important, since changes in rates of transmission may affect epidemic potential. A second area of research in the lab is to identify potential targets of vector-driven selection in the dengue virus genome using phylogenetic inference and then to experimentally evaluate the effect of targeted mutations in these regions on the ability of the virus to infect and be transmitted by its mosquito vectors.

Finally, the dengue virus serotypes circulating in humans are closely related to sylvatic dengue viruses isolated in the forest canopy in Asia and Africa. At present, these sylvatic strains do not appear to circulate in humans. The third focus of investigation in the lab is to identify what barriers, if any, prevent sylvatic dengue viruses from infecting humans and to determine the genetic basis and stability of such barriers.

Together these studies will identify some of the targets of vector-driven selection in dengue virus and the impact of vector-driven selection on dengue virus emergence. This research will enhance our understanding of dengue virus evolutionary ecology and will guide the refinement of existing strategies and the development of new technologies to control the dengue virus pandemic.

I encourage students with an interest in the evolutionary ecology of pathogen-host interaction to consider joining the lab.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Hanley, K.S. L.B. Goddard, L.E. Gilmore, T.W. Scott, J. Speicher, B.R. Murphy, A.G. Pletnev. 2004, in press. Infectivity of West Nile/Dengue chimeric viruses for West Nile and Dengue mosquito vectors. Vector-Borane and Zoonotic Diseases.
• Hanley, K.A., L.R. Manlucu, G.G. Manipon, C.T. Hanson, S.S. Whitehead, B.R. Murphy, J.E. Blaney Jr. 2004, in press. Introduction of mutations into the nonstructural genes or 3’ untranslated region of an attenuated dengue virus type 4 vaccine candidate further decreases replication in rhesus monkeys while retaining protective immunity. Vaccine.
• Burch, C.L., P.E. Turner, and K.A. Hanley. 2003. Patterns of epistasis in RNA viruses: a review of the evidence from vaccine design. Journal of Evolutionary Biology 16:1223-1235.
• Hanley, K.A., L.R. Manlucu, L.E. Gilmore, J.E. Blaney Jr., C.T. Hanson, B.R. Murphy and S.S. Whitehead. 2003. A trade-off in replication in mosquito versus mammalian systems conferred by a point mutation in the NS4B protein of dengue virus type 4. Virology 312:222-232.
• Hanley, K.A., J.J. Lee, J.E. Blaney Jr., B.R. Murphy, and S.S. Whitehead. 2002. Paired charge-to-alanine mutagensis of dengue virus type 4 NS5 confers temperature-sensitive, host-range and mouse attenuation phenotypes. Journal of Virology 76: 525-531.
• Troyer, J.M., K.A. Hanley, S.S. Whitehead, D. Strickman, R.A. Karron, A.P. Durbin, and B.R. Murphy. 2001. A live attenuated recombinant dengue-4 virus vaccine candidate with restricted capacity for dissemination in mosquitoes and lack of transmission from vaccines to mosquitoes. The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 65: 414-419.
• Pletnev, A.G., M. Bray, K.A. Hanley, J.Speicher and R. E.kins. 2001. Tick-borne Langat/mosquito-borne Dengue flavivirus chimera, a candidate live-attenuated vaccine for protection against disease caused by members of the tick-borne encephalitis virus complex: evaluation in rhesus monkeys and mosquitoes. Journal of Virology 75: 8259-8267.
• Chao, L., K.A. Hanley, C.L. Burch, C. Dahlberg, and P.E. Turner. 2000. Kin selection and the evolution of virulence in parasites: Making hard and soft choices. Quarterly Review of Biology 75:261-275.

IMMO ALEX HANSEN

Vector Molecular Biology

        Mosquito females are effective disease vectors for a blood meal from a vertebrate host is requisite for the promotion of egg development. Repeated cycles of blood feeding followed by egg development enable the transmission of pathogens like Plasmodium parasites and viruses from one host to another. Thus, the reproductive biology of mosquitoes is tightly linked to their ability to transmit disease pathogens. Research in my laboratory  focuses on the characterization of the molecular basis of nutrient signaling and its signal transduction in the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti and the analysis of the relationship between mosquito nutrition and parasite development. In my lab we combine vector biology with molecular cell biology, and biochemistry to develop novel approaches to fight mosquito-borne diseases.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Shiao, S., Hansen, I.A., Raikhel, A.S., Effect of Larval Nutrition and Juvenile Hormone on the Target of Rapamycin Signaling and Multiple Blood Meals in Aedes aegypti. J.Insect Physiol. 54(1), 231-9 (2008)
• Roy, S.G., Hansen, I.A., Raikhel, A.S., Effect of insulin and 20-hydroxyecdysone in the fat body of the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti. Insect Biochem. Mol. Biol. (2007)
• Hansen, I.A., Sieglaff, D.H., Munro, J.B., Shiao, S., Lee, I.W., Heraty, J.M., Raikhel, A.S., Forkhead transcription factors regulate mosquito reproduction. Insect Biochem. Mol. Biol. 37, 985-97 (2007)
• Attardo, G.M., Hansen, I.A., Shiao, S.H., and Raikhel, A.S. Identification of Two Cationic Amino Acid Transporters required for Nutritional Signaling during Mosquito Reproduction. J. Experimental Biol.
• 209, 3071-8 (2006)
• Park, J.H., Attardo, G.M., Hansen, I.A., and Raikhel A.S. GATA factor translation is the final downstream step in the amino acid/TOR-mediated vitellogenin gene expression in the anautogenous mosquito Aedes aegypti. J. Biol. Chem. 281, 11167-76 (2006)
• Hansen, I.A., Attardo, G.M., Roy, S.G. & Raikhel, A.S. Target of rapamycin (TOR)-dependent activation of S6 kinase is a central step in the transduction of nutritional signals during egg development in a mosquito. J. Biol. Chem. 280, 20565-72 (2005)
• Hansen, I.A., Attardo, G.M., Park, J.H., Peng, Q. & Raikhel, A.S. Target of rapamycin-mediated amino acid signaling in mosquito anautogeny. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A 101, 10626-10631 (2004)

PETER HOUDE

Avian Systematics

My interests lie in the very broad areas of the evolutionary biology of birds, and of other vertebrates to a lesser degree. My research covers several areas. (1) Phylogeny reconstruction -the genealogical relationships of organisms to one another. I concentrate on deciphering interfamilial and interordinal relationships. (2) Biogeography -the correlation of patterns of phyletic divergence and the origins of new taxa to the geographic distribution of species and the formation of geophysical barriers through time. (3) Macroevolution - the plasticity and polarity of morphological evolution within lineages. This is best understood by exploring pattern in the distribution of morphological characters that are superimposed onto a phylogenetic "tree" inferred independently from molecular genetic analysis. (4) Evolutionary rate - how rates of genetic and morphological evolution differ within and between taxa. I address these diverse problems through the combined study of fossil vertebrates, comparative anatomy (particularly osteology), DNA sequencing, and DNA hybridization.

I welcome inquiries from prospective graduate students who are interested in integrating diverse classical and modern disciplines to address the systematics and macroevolution of any taxonomic group of organisms. I have separate laboratories devoted to paleontological and molecular studies. Among our department's natural history museums are comparative vertebrate collections for use in research and education.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Houde, P., and M.J. Braun (1988) Museum collections as a source of DNA for studies of avian phylogeny. Auk 105:773-776.
• Houde, P. (1988) Paleognathous birds from the early Tertiary of the Northern Hemisphere. R.P. Paynter, Jr. (ed), Publications of the Nutall Ornithological Club No. 22, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 148 pp.
• Kay, R.R., R.W. Thorington, Jr., and P. Houde (1990) Eocene plesiadapiform shows affinities with flying lemurs not primates. Nature 345:342-344.
• Houde, P., and S. L. Olson (1992) A radiation of coly-like birds from the Eocene of North America (Aves:Sandcoleiformes, new order). Natural History of Museum of Los Angeles County, Science Series, No. 36:137-160.
• Rose, K. D., K. C. Beard, and P. Houde (1993) Exceptional new dentitions of the diminutive plesiadapiforms Tinimomys and Niptomomys (Mammalia), with comments on the upper incisors of Plesiadapiformes. Annals of the Carnegie Museum 62:351-361.
• Houde, P. (1994) Evolution of the Heliornithidae: reciprocal illumination by morphology, biogeography, and DNA hybridization. Cladistics 10:1-19.
• Houde, P., F. H. Sheldon, and M. Kreitman (1995) A comparison of solution and membrane-bound DNA X DNA hybridization, as used to infer phylogeny. Journal of Molecular Evolution 40:678-688
• Houde, P., A. Cooper, E. Leslie, A. E. Strand, and G. A. Montano (1997) Phylogeny and evolution of 12S rDNA in Gruiformes (Aves). In: D. P. Mindell (ed.), Avian Molecular Evolution and Systematics, Academic Press, pp. 117-154.

BROOK MILLIGAN

Evolutionary genetics and Conservation Biology

Research in my laboratory focuses on the interface between population genetics, ecology, and evolutionary biology. Specifically, we are interested in quantifying the rates at which evolution proceeds and in elucidating the rules governing evolutionary change of ecological and molecular traits. Ongoing population studies address such questions as 1) at what rate does neutral evolutionary change proceed and how does that determine the balances between genetic drift, migration, and natural selection, and 2) how do population size, mating system, and the demographic characteristics of populations interact to determine the rate of evolution? At a larger evolutionary scale we are concerned with such questions as 1) at what rate do large-scale evolutionary changes occur, and 2) are changes in one trait influenced by changes in others? One common theme in our research is the interest in quantifying the demographic properties of natural populations-population size, mating system, and migration rate, for example-that determine the rate of evolutionary change. A second major theme is the interest in using quantitative models of evolution to test alternative evolutionary or biogeographic hypotheses. Finally, we are interested in applying our research to practical concerns such as those arising in conservation biology.

Our approach to answering these questions combines both empirical and theoretical aspects. Genetic information from both nuclear and chloroplast DNA is collected from natural populations using modern molecular techniques including DNA sequencing and the polymerase chain reaction. Concurrently, we de­velop enhanced means of analyzing the genetic data, often relying on genealogical information for genes in natural populations. The genealogical approach to studying demographic properties of populations articu­lates directly with our studies of broader scale evolutionary patterns using phylogenies. Models of genetics, mating systems, and evolution coupled with demographic ecological models are central to our analysis of populations, while at broader evolutionary scales explicit models of character evolution play a central role. Finally, we are using populations of bacteriophage to simulate the processes we study in natural populations as a means of testing empirically the models used in our data analysis.

While much of our research is directed toward developing a fundamental understanding of the processes occurring in natural populations, we are specifically interested in the role our genetic data and models can play in conservation biology. As a result, we are currently studying a group of plants in the genus Aquilegia that occur in small, isolated populations and therefore model the situation encountered with many rare plants. We are also expanding our research focus to apply the techniques developed for Aquilegia to other rare plant species. In this way we hope to integrate our studies of basic evolutionary and ecological processes with the immediate need for information concerning the demographic properties of rare or endangered populations.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Milligan, B.G. (1994). Estimating evolutionary rates for discrete characters. In: R.W. Scotland, D. J. Siebert, and D.M. Williams, (eds.), Models in Phylogeny Reconstruction, Chapter 16, . Clarendon Press, Oxford, England, pp. 299-311.
• Lynch, M. and B.G. Milligan (1994). Analysis of population genetic structure with RAPD markers.
• Molecular Ecology 3:91-99.
• Milligan, B.G., J. Leebens-Mack, and A.E. Strand (1994). Conservation genetics: beyond the mainte­nance of marker diversity. Molecular Ecology 3:423-435.
• Milligan, B.G. (1996) Estimating long-term mating systems using DNA sequences. Genetics 142:619-627.
• Strand, A.E. and B.G. Milligan (1996). Genetics and conservation biology: assessing historical gene flow in Aquilegia populations of the southwest. In: J. Machinsky, (ed), Southwestern Rare and Endangered Plants, Flagstaff, Arizona. Arboretum at Flagstaff. (In press).
• Milligan, B.G. and A.E. Strand (1996) Genetics and conservation biology: assessing historical trends in the demography of populations. In: J. Machinsky, (ed), Southwestern Rare and Endangered Plants, Flagstaff, Arizona. Arboretum at Flagstaff. (In press).
• Strand, A.E., B. G. Milligan, and C.M. Pruitt (1996) Are populations islands? Analysis of chloroplast DNA variation in Aquilegia. Evolution. (In press).

MICHELE K. NISHIGUCHI

Evolutionary Biology

My research interests are mainly focused on the evolution and molecular specificity between marine organisms and their bacterial symbionts. Presently, I am working on a system that encompasses the interactions between a sepiolid squid host (Family Sepiolidae) and their bioluminescent bacterial symbionts (Genus Vibrio). This association is an ideal model system because unlike other marine symbiotic associations, both host and symbiont can be cultured separately, allowing the study of molecular signaling and physiological responses in a mutualistic nteraction. In the sepiolid/Vibrio system, both squid and bacteria have been studied extensively, allowing the manipulation of different strains of symbiotic bacteria in different host squid.

I am presently investigating the molecular basis for the speciation of several species of sepiolid hosts and their respective bioluminescent symbionts. Specifically, I am interested in comparing the molecular and biochemical adaptations that each strain of bacterial symbiont has with different squid hosts. In order to complete these investigations, I use several molecular and biochemical techniques that allow me to study the following processes: genetic signaling between host and symbiont (genes that are regulated solely by the symbiosis), molecular phylogeny, in situ fluorescence using GFP (green fluorescence protein) between various strains of symbiotic bacteria, adaptation of biochemical markers specific for the speciation of native bacteria, and changes in protein receptors that allow the recognition and specificity of closely related symbiont strains.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Nishiguchi, M. K., E. G. Ruby, and M. J. McFall_Ngai. Competitive dominance during colonization is an indicator of coevolution in an animal_bacterial symbiosis (in review to Proc. Roy. Soc. B.).
• Nishiguchi, M. K., E. G. Ruby, and M. J. McFall_Ngai (1997) Phenotypic bioluminescence as an indicator of competitive dominance in the Euprymna_Vibrio symbiosis in Proceedings of the 9th International Symposium on Bioluminescence and Chemiluminescence (in press).
• Nishiguchi, M. K., E. G. Ruby, and M. J. McFall_Ngai (1996) Coevolutionary relationships between sepiolid squid and their bioluminescent bacterial symbionts AM. Zool. 36: 121A.
• Nishiguchi, M. K., L. Lamarcq, E. G. Ruby, and M. J. McFall_Ngai (1996) Competitive dominance of native strain symbiotic bacteria measured by colonization and in situ hybridization Am. Zool. 36: 41A.
• Nishiguchi, M.K., (1994) The Role of Dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) in Marine Macroalgae of the Monterey Bay University of California at Santa Cruz, 232 pp. (Ph.d. dissertation)

RALPH W. PRESZLER

Curriculum Design & Biological Literacy

The primary goal of my research is to develop educational theory and applications which promote the development of students' biological literacy. Such literacy is characterized by the ability to access, critically evaluate, and apply biological literacy to personal and societal issues. This goal has led me to interdisciplinary projects aimed at improving students' understanding of scientific process; as well as developing their more general critical thinking, language, and quantitative reasoning skills. I am interested in the development and assessment of a wide variety of tools which students can use to improve their biological literacy. These tools include inquiry-based laboratory exercises, creative modification of lecture courses to incorporate activities which promote active student learning, and the development of a biology learning center to supplement and enhance laboratory and lecture courses with cooperative, student-centered learning activities.

The successful implementation of theories and applications immerging from science education projects will require a dramatic shift in methods used by instructors at colleges and universities. This paradigm shift will involve a change in perspective from instructors simply disseminating information to instructors facilitating student discovery of the relavance of biological information. A major branch of my teaching and research responsibilities is the development of instructor-training programs which promote and catalyze this revision of approaches used by people teaching at the college level. A major thrust of my effort in this field is the development of training programs which encourage instructors to develop an approach to the scholarship of science teaching which will enable them to develop novel teaching methods, effectively asses the utility of these methods at both formative and summative levels, and disseminate their knowledge of teaching to the academic community.

Lastly, I am involved in projects which aim to integrate K-12 science instructors, and their students, into the university community. Hopefully, these K-12 science education projects will produce students who have a more developed understanding of the nature of science, and who have realized that they are welcome to participate and contribute to science. Currently, these projects are primarily focused on the development of inquiry-based environmental science tools which can be used by K-12 teachers. However, my interest in this area is not limited to environmental science.

I am interested in working with graduate students who would like to make theoretical and practical contributions to the advancement of science education in the development of student-centered, active-learning projects, instructor training programs, and outreach programs between the university and surrounding schools.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Preszler, R.W. 2002 (in press). Comparitive Demographic Study of Human Populations in Tested Studies for Laboratory Teaching, Volume 24, (M. O'Donnell, Editor). Proceedings of the 24th workshop/conference of the association for biology laboratory education (ABLE).
• Preszler, R.W. 2002. Human Biology and Society. Outernet Publishing, Edina MN
• Preszler, R.W., L.L. Haas, and A.L. Marion. 2002. Cellular and organismal biology: student investigations, 6th-5th Edition Outernet Publishing, Edina MN; 4th Edition. EMC / Paradigm Press, St. Paul, MN.; 2nd & 3rd Editions, Forbes NY; 1st Edition Burgess, Edina, MN
• Preszler, R.W. and L.L. Haas. 2001. Individuals, populations, and communities: student investigations, 5th Edition Outernet Publishing, Edina MN; 4th Edition. EMC / Paradigm Press, St. Paul, MN.; 2nd & 3rd Editions, Forbes NY; 1st Edition Burgess, Edina, MN
• Preszler, R.W. and L.L. Haas. 2001. Contributed approximately 40 exercises and instructor guides to Labs on Demand, a web-based database of laboratory exercises. These exercises have subsequently been incorporated into custom published lab manuals for community colleges, colleges, and universities. Outernet Publishing, Edina, MN.
• Preszler, R.W. and L.L. Haas. 2000. Laboratory Manual for Discover Biology. EMC / Paradigm Press, St. Paul, MN.
• Preszler, R.W. 1999. The use of writing in investigative biology laboratories. Pages 492-496, in Tested Studies for Laboratory Teaching, Volume 21, (S.J. Karcher, Editor). Proceedings of the 21st workshop/conference of the association for biology laboratory education (ABLE).

ELBA SERRANO

Cell, Molecular, Developmental Neurobiology

My research centers on the development of the auditory and vestibular systems of the inner ear and central nervous system. As part of this effort we are studying the formation of the sensory cells of the inner ear, termed hair cells that are responsible for the senses of hearing and balance. The investigations in my laboratory use an organism that is a classical system for developmental studies: Xenopus laevis, an aquatic amphibian. We use a multidisciplinary approach that integrates techniques from the areas of biophysics, anatomy, cell biology, bioinformatics, and molecular biology. Our research has biomedical significance because hearing impairment affects about 28 million Americans, including 1 in 1000 newborn children. Hearing loss is believed to have a strong genetic component, as half of the children born with hearing impairments suffer from genetic disorders of hereditary deafness. In recent years, there has been much progress in the mapping and cloning of human deafness genes. Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common form of hearing impariment, and is the result of damage to hair cels of the inner ear's cochlea. Therefore, an identification of the genes that are involved in autditory transduction by hair cells should prove useful in the deveopment of treatments for sensorineural deafness that is due to hair cell dysfunction. The research in my laboratory is intended to contribute to understanding of the genetic basis of hair cell function and structure. As part of this research we are identifying genes for important proteins, such as actin and ion channels, that are expressed in the inner ear. These proteins may be candidates for hereditary or traumatic hearing and vestibular disorders.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Diaz de Lodron, M.E., A.Varela, and E.E. Serrano, (1995) Quantity, bundle types and distribution of hair cells in the sacculus of Xenopus laevis during development. Hearing Research 91:33-42.
• Lopez-Anaya, V. L., D. Lopez-Maldonado, and E. E. Serrano (1997) Development of the Xenopus laevis eighth cranial nerve: Increase in number and area of axons of the saccular and papillar branches. Journal of Morphology 234:263-276.
• Varela-Ramirez, A., C. Trujillo-Provencio, and E. E. Serrano. Detection of transcripts for delayed rectifier potassium channels in the Xenopus laevis inner ear. Hearing Research (submitted)
• Williams, C., C. Trujillo-Provencio, J. N. Gladden, and E. E. Serrano. RT-PCR analysis of actin expression in the Xenopus laevis inner ear. (in preparation)

CHARLES BRADLEY SHUSTER

Cell and Developmental Biology

My research interests focus on cell cycle regulation of the cytoskeleton during early development. In particular, I am focused on understanding the spatial and temporal regulation of cytokinesis, the final phase of cell division. Successful timing and execution of cytokinesis is an absolute requirement for the maintenance of chromosomal ploidy and thus proper development and survival of the organism. And while great progress has been made into our understanding of cell cycle regulation and mitotic spindle assembly, we still know little regarding how cells coordinate sister chromatid segregation (nuclear division) with cytokinesis (cytoplasmic division). Toward these ends, I have undertaken a multidisciplinary approach that uses molecular, biochemical, and live cell analyses to examine contractile ring formation in the sea urchin early embryo.

Cells contain molecular gatekeepers or checkpoints that halt cell cycle progression in response to DNA damage or improper mitotic spindle assembly, and recent data suggest that the mitotic spindle checkpoint also regulates cytokinesis. However, it is unclear in animal cells whether the initiation of cytokinesis is directly under checkpoint control, or whether cytokinesis simply occurs by default once the cell initiates the exit from mitosis. Current efforts are focused on identifying sea urchin homologues of a pathway identified in fission yeast that controls the initiation of cytokinesis, and is responsive to the spindle checkpoint.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Shuster, C.B., and D.R. Burgess. 2002. Targeted new membrane addition in the cleavage furrow is a late, separate event in cytokinesis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In Press.
• Shuster, C.B. and D.R. Burgess. 1999. Parameters that specify the timing of cytokinesis. Journal of Cell Biology 146: 981-992.
• Shuster, C.B. and I.M. Herman. 1998. The mechanics of vascular cell motility. Microcirculation. 5: 239-57.
• Walker, G.R., C. B. Shuster, and D.R. Burgess. 1997. Microtubule-entrained kinase activities associated with the cortical cytoskeleton during cytokinesis. Journal of Cell Science. 110:1373-1386.
• Allen, P.G., C.B. Shuster, J. Kas, C. Chaponnier, P.A. Janmey, and I.M. Herman. 1996. Phalloidin binding and rheological differences among actin isoforms. Biochemistry. 35: 14062-14069.
• Shuster, C.B., A.Y. Lin, R. Nayak, and I.M. Herman. 1996. bcap73: a novel b actin- specific binding protein. Cell Motility and the Cytoskeleton. 35:175-187.
• Shuster, C. B. and I. M. Herman. 1995. Ezrin interactions with F-actin: isoform specificity and calcium sensitivity. Journal of Cell Biology. 128: 837-848.

MICHÈLE SHUSTER

Science Education and Genetics

My background is in molecular genetics. My Ph.D. was with Dean Dawson at Tufts Sackler School of Biomedical Sciences (Dean is now at the OMRF). I generated and characterized yeast mutants that were defective in accurate meiotic chromosome segregation. I became very interested in chromosome structure, particularly chromosomal rearrangements in oral cancer. As a post-doc in Susanne Gollin’s lab in the Dept. of Human Genetics at the Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh I had the opportunity to use new molecular cytogenetics techniques to assess consistent chromosomal rearrangements in oral squamous cell carcinomas.

Since then I have focused on undergraduate education in the biomedical sciences, including intro bio, allied-health micro and cancer bio. I have made an effort to seek funding for SoTL projects in these curses, and to publish the results of collaborative research assessing the impact of educational strategies on student learning in target courses.

Publications that represent the work I do:

Peer-Reviewed Papers (note that several papers have been published under Michèle Shuster’s maiden name, Michèle Flatters)

• Preszler, RW., A. Dawe, C.B. Shuster and M.Shuster. (2007) Assessment of the effects of student response systems on student learning and attitudes over a broad range of biology courses. CBE-Life Sciences Education. Vol 6 (4):29-41.
• White, JS, Weissfeld JL, Ragin CC, Rossie KM, Martin CL, Shuster, M, Ishwad CS, Law JC, Myers EN, Johnson JT, Gollin SM. (2006) The influence of clinical and demographic risk factors on the establishment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cell lines. Oral Onco. 2006 Nov 15 (Epub ahead of print)
• Shuster, M, Han L, LeBearu MM, Davis E, Sawicki M, Lese CM, Park NH, Colicelli J, Gollin SM (2000) A consistent pattern of RIN1 rearrangements in oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines supports a breakage-fusion-bridge cycle model for 11q13 amplification. Genes Chromosomes Cancer 28:153-163.
• Saunders WS, Shuster M, Huang X, Gharaibeh B, Enyenihi AH, Petersen I, Gollin SM (2000) Chromosomal instability and cytoskeletal defects in oral cancer cells. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 97:303-308.
• Ishwad CS, Shuster M, Bockmuhl U, Thakker N, Shah P, Toomes C, Dixon M, Ferrell RE, Gollin, SM (1999) Frequent allelic loss and homozygous deletion in chromosome band 8p23 in oral cancer. Int. J. Cancer 80:25-31.
• Shuster M, Dhar MS, Olins AL, Olins DE, Howell CY, Gollin SM, Chaillet JR (1998) Parental alleles of an imprinted mouse transgene replicate synchronously. Developmental Genetics 23:275-284.
• Shuster M, Bockmuhl U and Gollin, SM (1997)
• Early experience with SKY: A primer for the practicing cytogenetic technologist. Applied Cytogenetics 23:33-37.
• Virgilio L, Shuster M, Gollin SM, Veronese ML, Ohta M, Huebner K and Croce CM (1996) FHIT gene alterations in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 93:9770-9775.
• Ross LO, Rankin S, Shuster M and Dawson DS (1997) Effects of homology, size and exchange on the meiotic segregation of model chromosomes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetics 142:79-89.
• Flatters M, Maxfield R, and Dawson D (1995) The effects of a ring chromosome on the meiotic segregation of other chromosomes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Gen Genet 249:309-316.

Peer-Reviewed Curriculum Activities

• Shuster, M. and K. Peterson, 2007. Breast Cancer Risk: Using Real Medical Histories to Rank Genetic and Environmental influences. National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science. (http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/case.html)
• Cook, B.A. and Shuster, M. A Case of Poisoned Firefighters. Cellular Respiration Instructional Packet. Learning Object #1484 at the American Physiological Society (http://www.apsarchive.org/Main/ugradhome.asp)
• (http://www.apsarchive.org/search/FactSheet.asp?ID=1484&RetTo=)

Study Guides

• Daniels, L, L. Roberts and M. Shuster. Biology: A guide to the Natural World, Study Guide. 2000. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. A study guide to accompany a non-majors Biology text by David Krogh.

Peer-Reviewed Abstracts/Posters (note that several abstracts have been submitted under Dr. Shuster’s maiden name, Michèle Flatters)

• Shuster, M, C. Shuster and R.W. Preszler. Do Students Acquire and/or Transfer Content Knowledge Better Through the Use of Case Studies or Interactive Lectures? Peer-Reviewed Abstract accepted for poster presentation at the 2007 American Society for Microbiology Conference Educators. Buffalo, NY.
• Shuster, M, C. Shuster and R.W. Preszler. Do Students Acquire and/or Transfer Content Knowledge Better Through the Use of Case Studies or Interactive Lectures? Peer-Reviewed Abstract accepted for poster presentation at the 2007 American Society for Microbiology General Meeting. Toronto, ON, Canada.
• Shuster, M., A. Marion and R. Preszler. Impact of a Pilot Intervention in an Introductory Biology Course for Science Majors. National Academies of Sciences Leadership Summit, Oct. 3-5, 2006. Poster presentation.
• Shuster, M. Student Response to the Use of Intergrated Content Modules in a Pre-Nursing Microbiology Course. American Society of Microbiology Conference for Undergraduate Educatiors. Orlando, FA, May 2006. Peer-Reviewed Abstract accepted for Poster prestentation.
• Shuster, M. Use of Instant Wireless Response Systems in Large General Microbiology Lecture Classes. American Society for Microbiology Conference for Undergraduate Educators. Atlanta, GA. Juen 3-5, 2005, Peer-Reviewed Abstract accepted for Poster presentation.
• Gollin SM and Shuster M (1998) Karyotypic instability in oral carcinomas: implications for metastasis. British Journal of Cancer 77 Supplement 1: 1.7(2).
• Shuster M, Comsa S, Reddy J, Johnson JT, Myers EN, Rossie KM, Tiffee JC, Olopade Ol and Gollin SM (1997) Genomic CDKN2 alterations in oral squamous cell carcinomas, adjacent oral mucosa, and cell lines: A window on tumor heterogeneity. Am J Hum Genet 61: A82 (449).
• Shuster, M, Comsa S, Reddy JK, Rossie KM, Johnson JT and Gollin SM (1997) FISH analysis of the CDKN2/p16 gene in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Seventh International Workshop on Chromosomes in Solid Tumors, Tucson, AZ.
• Shuster, M, Virgilio L. Ohta M, Croce CM, Huebner K, Lese CM, Comsa S, Reddy JK, Rossie KM, Johnson JT, Myers EN and Gollin SM (1996) Fishing for FHIT: Genomic loss of the FHIT tumor suppressor gene in OSCC. Univeristy of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute Scientific Retreat.
• Shuster M, Virgilio L, Ohta M, Croce CM, Huebner K, Lese CM, Comsa S, Reddy JK, Rossie KM, Johnson JT, Myers EN and Gollin SM (1996) Enumeration of the FHIT tumor suppressor gene by FISH in oral carcinoma cell lines. Am J Hum Genet 59: A82 (437).
• Gollin Sm, Lese CM, Shuster M, Virgilio L, Law JC, Ishwad CS, Comsa S, Reddy JK, Rossie KM, Ferrell RE, Croce CM, Ohta M, Huebner K, Myers EN and Johnson JT (1997) Hierarchical evidence of genetic alterations of 3p14, 9p21, and 11q13 in oral cancer. Am J Hum Genet 5(4): A69 (361).
• Flatters M and Dawson D. 1993. SID 1-1: A mutation affecting meiotic sister-chromatid association in yeast. Yeast Genetics Meeting, Madison WI.
• Flatters M and Dawson D. 1992. Meiotic segregation mutants in S. cerevisiae. FASEB Summer Conference on Chromosome Structure, Replication and Segregation, Snowmass, CO.
• Flatters M and Dawson D. 1992. Meiotic chromosome segregation mutants in S. cerevisiae. Boston Area Graduate Student Symposium. Boston, MA.

Oral Presentations and Seminars

• 2007 Michèle Shuster Content Integration in Introductory Biology: Approcaches to Enhance Student Learning. Invited speaker at the “Improving Biology Education: Theory and Practice” Symposium in Columbus, OH, sponsored by WH Freeman and Sinauer Associates. November 9, 2007.
• 2007 Michèle Shuster, Angus Dawe, Charles Shuster and Ralph Preszler. Use of Clickers to Enhance Student Learning in Biology. Talk at the 18th

GEOFFREY B. SMITH

Environmental Microbiology, Molecular Probe Techniques

Contamination of the United States' groundwater with industrial wastes is a serious problem, particularly considering that the nation's ground water provides drinking water to an estimated 56% of U.S. households. New Mexico obtains 90% of its drinking water from groundwater sources. I am researching the bacteria, enzymes and genes involved in the microbial biodegradation of environmental contaminants such as benzene, the chlorofluoro carbons (CFCs) and the trihalomethane compounds such as chloroform. The environments that I am interested in carrying out these studies are in the groundwater of contaminated aquifers and in wastewaters. Biodegradation activity (as monitored by gas chromatography) is being studied under anaerobic conditions.

I am using DNA and RNA nucleic acid probes of interest in natural samples such as aquifers. I have developed a gene probe specific for the bacteria which reduce nitrate to nitrogen gas (denitrifying bacteria); the gene codes for the heme-type nitrite reductase enzyme. Other genes specific for pollutant biodegradation pathways such as those of the toluene-degradation (TOL) plasmid have been obtained for use in this work. The gene probes are used to analyze the genetic potential for biodegradation in samples such as the aquifer columns mentioned above. Additionally, the probes can be used to indicate the changes in microbial populations due to experimental perturbations such as the imposition of anaerobic conditions. A major advantage of DNA probe use is that the technique does not rely on the microorganism's ability to grow in laboratory media, and thus the technique has access to microbes previously undetected by other methods. A related research interest is the improvement of techniques to extract high-purity DNA from natural samples such as aquifers and soils.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Smith, G.B. and J.M. Tiedje (1992) Isolation and characterization of a nitrite reductase gene and its use as a probe for denitrifying bacteria. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 58:376-384.
• Smith, G.B. and A.G. Wollum (1993) Physicochemical and D-galactose-mediated interactions in the attachment Bradyrhizobium japonicum to roots of Glycine max. Canadian Journal of Microbiology 39:245-251.
• Sonier, D. N., N. L. Duran and G. B. Smith (1994) Dechlorination of CFC-11 by sulfate-reducing bacteria from an aquifer contaminated with halogenated aliphatic compounds. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 60:4567-4572.
• Yu, Z. and G. B. Smith (1995) Chloroform dechlorination by a biological activated carbon microbial consortium from a denitrification tank. Applied and Environmental Microbiology

HEATHER THROOP

Ecosystem Ecology

I am broadly interested in understanding how plants respond to environmental variability and influence ecosystem processes. In particular, my research explores the patterns by which plants respond to environmental variation and the patterns and mechanisms by which individual plants affect ecoststem-level processes. I am especially interested in understanding how these organism-ecosystem links are affected by abiotic and biotic perturbations (e.g. changes in nutrient availability, herbivory, and land management). I address these questions through research that integrates manipulative field experiments with modeling techniques. My experimental approach spans a broad a range of techniques, from the physiological level to the ecosystem level, allowing me to explore links among different levels of ecological organization.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Throop, H.L. and S. Archer. 2007. Interrelationships among shrub encroachment, land management and leaf litter decomposition in a semi-desert grassland. Ecological Applications in press.
• Throop, H.L. 2005. Nitrogen deposition and herbivory affect biomass production and allocation in annual plant. Oikos 111:91-100.
• Fay, P.A. and H.L. Throop. 2005. Branching in Silphium integrifolium (Asteraceae) with meristem damage and competition. American Journal of Botany 92:954-959.
• Funk, J.L., C.G. Jones, D.W. Gray, H.L. Throop, L.A. Hyatt, and M. T. Lerdau. 2005. Variation in isoprene emission from Quercus rubra: sources, causes, and consequences for estimating fluxes. Journal of Geophysical Research 110(D4), D04301.
• Throop, H.L., E.A. Holland, W.J. Parton, D.S. Ojima, and C.A. Keough. 2004. Effects of nitrogen deposition and herbivory on ecosystem-level carbon and nitrogen dynamics: results from the CENTURY model. Globval Change Biology 10:1092-1105.
• Throop, H.L. and M.T. Lerdau. 2004. Effects of nitrogen deposition on insect herbivory: implications for community and ecosystem processes. Ecosystems 7:109-133. PDF Lerdau, M. and H.L. Throop. 2000. Sources of variability in isoprene emission and photosynthesis in tropical tree species. Biotropica 32:670-676.
• Lerdau, M. and H.L. Throop. 1999. Isoprene emission and photosynthesis in a tropical wet forest canopy: implications for model development. Ecological Applications 9:1109-1117.
• Throop, H.L. and P.A. Fay. 1999. Effects of fire, browsers, and gallers on New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus herbaceous) growth and reproduction. American Midland Naturalist 141:51-58.
• Hinman, K.E., H.L. Throop, K.L. Adams, A.J. Dake, K. McLauchlan, and M.J. McKone. 1997. Predation by free-ranging birds on partial coral snake mimics: the importance of ring width and color. Evolution 51:1011-1014.

Book Reviews:

• Throop, H.L. 2005. Review of: The Nature of Plants: Habitats, Challenges, and Adaptations (J.Dawson and R. Lucas). Quarterly Review of Biology 80:480.
• Throop, H.L. 2003. Review of: The Ecology of Trees in the Tropicl Rainforest (I. Turner). Quarterly Review of Biology 78(1):112-113.
• Throop, H.L. 2003. Review of: Plants (I. Ridge, ed.). Quarterly Review of Biology 78(2):237.

GRACIELA UNGUEZ

Developmental Neurobiology/Muscle Physiology

A fundamental question in developmental biology is how intrinsic and extrinsic factors influence the phenotype expressed by individual cells. This issue is particularly pertinent to excitable cells like muscle fibers which express an extreme diversity of biochemical, morphological, and physiological characteristics.

Currently, I am working on the electromotor system of electric fish. In all electric fish, some skeletal muscle fibers lose their contractile apparatus and convert their phenotype into non-contractile electrocytes, i.e., electrogenic cells of the electric organ (EO). How the genes coding for a select number of muscle-specific proteins are down-regulated while others are maintained and novel genes are up-regulated, is an intriguing problem in the control of muscle and EO phenotype. Interestingly, EOs are formed from a large variety of skeletal muscles including extraocular, brachial, pectoral, axial, and tail muscles in fish representing at least six independently evolved groups. The mechanisms by which only certain skeletal muscles undergo such phenotypic conversion remain to be determined. Furthermore, electrocytes are innervated by specialized electromotoneurons (EMNs) that derive from spinal and cranial motoneurons. How electrocytes and EMNs have evolved from their precursor cells to form a functional electromotor system is unknown.

Ultimately, my goal is to understand the mechanisms underlying the differentiation and maintenance of phenotypic fates among muscle-derived cells and motoneuronal cell types of the electromotor system in a variety of distantly related species. I plan to use a multi-disciplinary approach that combines a range of molecular, anatomical, microscopical, and in vitro techniques to address these research goals. Together, this research will: 1) reveal new insights on the mechanisms regulating the expression of genes coding for a select number of muscle-specific proteins; 2) determine the molecular and cellular interactions between muscles and their nerves; 3) have broad relevance including identification of mechanisms of tissue transdifferentiation, and clinical importance to pathological conditions caused by disease or injury where muscle development or maintenance is compromised; and 4) shed light on an evolutionary process: how neurons and their targets co-evolve.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Unguez, G.A., Bodine-Fowler, S., Roy, R.R., Pierotti, D.J.. and Edgerton, V.R. (1993). Evidence of incomplete neural control of motor unit properties in cat tibialis anterior after self-reinnervation. Journal of Physiology (London), 472: 103-25.
• Unguez, G.A., Roy, R.R., Pierotti, D.J., Bodine-Fowler, S. and Edgerton, V.R. (1994). Further evidence of incomplete neural control of motor unit properties after reinnervation. American Journal of Physiology (Cell Phys.), 268: 527-534.
• Unguez, G.A., Roy, R.R. and Edgerton, V.R. (1996). Absence of a redistribution of fiber types following reinnervation of adult muscle. Muscle and Nerve, 19: 1320-1327.
• Unguez, G.A. and Zakon, H.H. (1998). Phenotypic conversion of distinct muscle fiber populations to electrocytes in a weakly electric fish. Journal of Comparative Neurology 399: 20-34.
• Unguez, G.A. and Zakon, H.H. (1998) Re-expression of myogenic proteins in mature electric organ following removal of neural input. Journal of Neuroscience 18: 9924-9935.
• Zakon, H.H. and Unguez, G.A. (1998). Invited Review: Development and regeneration of the electric organ. Journal of Experimental Biology. Manuscript in press.

TIMOTHY WRIGHT

Animal Behavior and Evolution

        My research focuses on the function and evolution of vocal communication in parrots. Across the animal kingdom, the ability to learn vocal signals is restricted to a few evolutionarily distinct groups (songbirds, hummingbirds and parrots among birds; humans, bats and whales among mammals). Parrots are renowned for their vocal mimicry abilities in captivity, but less is known about how learning is used in the wild. Thus they present opportunities for understanding how learning shapes communication behavior, how the use of learned vocalizations differs between species, and why this ability evolved in the first place. These core interests have expanded through the years to a variety of related questions regarding the systematics of parrots, the evolution of their impressive longevity, and how best to conserve endangered parrot species that I approach collaboratively with other researchers and organizations.
We tackle these questions through a broad range of approaches including field observations, sound analysis, telemetry, captive studies, playback experiments, psychoacoustics and molecular population genetics and phylogenetics.  Students in my lab make use of these techniques or invent new ones as appropriate to investigate their own questions in behavior and evolution.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Guerra, J. E., J. Cruz-Nieto, S.G. Ortiz-Maciel & T.F. Wright. 2008. Geographic variation in the contact calls of the thick-billed parrot. Condor. 110:639-647.
• Wright, T.F., E.E. Schirtzinger, T. Matsumoto, J.R. Eberhard, G. Graves, J.J. Sanchez, S. Capelli, H. Müller, J. Scharpegge , G.K. Chambers and R.C. Fleischer. 2008. A multi-locus molecular phylogeny of the parrots (Psittaciformes): Support for a Gondwanan origin during the Cretaceous. Molecular Biology and Evolution. in press. [Preprint], [Suppl. Table 1], [Suppl. Figures 1 & 2]
• Russello, M.A., M.L. Avery, & T.F. Wright. 2008. Genetic evidence links invasive monk parakeet populations in the United States to the international pet trade. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 8:217.
• Wright, T.F., C.R. Dahlin, A. Salinas-Melgoza. 2008. Stability and change in vocal dialects of the yellow-naped amazon. Animal Behaviour. 76:1017-1027.
• Wright, T.F.  & C.R. Dahlin. 2007. Pair duets in the yellow-naped amazon (Amazona auropalliata): phonology and syntax. Behaviour 144:207-228.
• Wright, T.F. A. Rodriguez & R.C. Fleischer. 2005. Vocal dialects, sex-biased dispersal and microsatellite population structure in the parrot Amazona auropalliata. Molecular Ecology 14:1197-1205.

JIANNONG XU

Functional genomics of mosquito-malaria interactions, and population genetics of mosquito innate immune system

Malaria is a mosquito-borne parasitic disease. Malaria infects 350-500 million people each year, killing more than one million, most are children under the age of 5 in Africa. Malaria involves the complex interplay of three involved genomes: human, Plasmodium parasite and vector mosquito. Vector control is one of the key measures of integrated malaria control program. Biological control of vector mosquitoes is based on the deep and thorough understanding of the mosquito-Plasmodium interactions. In terms of epidemiology, mosquitoes play role as vectors for the malaria transmission. In terms of parasitism mosquitoes suffer from hosting the parasite. Throughout coevolution, mosquito’s germline encoded defense architecture has been shaped by the reciprocal interactions of the three organisms. Anopheles gambiae, the most competent vector mosquitoes, is genetically capable of limiting malaria infection. The anti-malaria defense involves a complex immune network that consists of recognition, signal transduction and an array of mechanisms killing the Plasmodium. However, this system is genetically heterogeneous among individual mosquitoes in nature. Consequentially, some mosquitoes are able to eliminate all invaded Plasmodium after infection, others aren’t. Because of the failure the vector mosquito species become malaria delivers. At the present, little has been known that how much genetic variation in the anti-malaria network is out there in the natural vector mosquito species.

Basically, the question that threads my research is “what genetic variants make the resistance fail?” The areas of work in my laboratory are (1) comparative and functional genomics on identifying immune pathways and involved genes that are required for fighting malaria; (2) population genomics studies on genetic diversity of immune genes in the natural populations; (3) identification of genetic variants that influence the mosquito susceptibility /resistance to malaria by immune gene targeted candidate gene association study.

Publications that represent the work I do:

• Wild Anopheles funestus are highly permissive for infection with rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium berghei Malaria J (submitted).
• Riehle MM, Markianos K, Niare O, Xu J, Li J, Toure AM, Podiougou B, Oduol F, Diawara S, Diallo M, Coulibaly B, Ouatara A, Kruglyak L, Traore SF, Vernick KD (2006) Natural malaria infection in Anopheles gambiaeis regulated by a single genomic control region. Science 312-577
• Ma, J., Li, S. & Xu, J (2006) Molecular identification and phylogeny of the Maculatus Group of Anopheles mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences. Acta Tropica 99:272
• Li J, Riehle MM, Zhang Y, Xu J, Oduol F, Gomez SM, Eiglmeier K, Uegerheide BM, Shabanowitz J, Hunt DF, Ribeiro JM, Vernick KD (2006) Anopheles gambiae genome reannotation through synthesis of ab initio and comparative gene prediction algorithms. Genome Biol. 7(3):R24
• Ma, J. & Xu, J (2005) The Hyrcanus Group of Anopheles (Anopheles) in China (Diptera: Culicidae): species discrimination and phylogeny inferred by rDNA ITS2 sequencs. J. Med. Entomol; 42:610
• Vernick Kd, Oduol F, Lazzaro BP, Glazebrook J, Xu J, Riehle M, Li J. (2005) Molecular genetics of mosquito resistance to malaria parasites. Curr Top Microbiol Immunol. 295:383
• Christophides GK, Evgeny C, Barillas-Mury C, Birney E, Blandin S, Blass C, Bray PT, Collins FH, Danielli A, Dimopoulus G, Hetru C, Hoa NT, Hoffmann JA, Kanzok SM, Letunic I, Levashina E, Loukeris TG, Lycett, G, Meister S, Michel K, Noita LF, Mueller H-M, Osta MA, Paskewitz SM, Reichhart J, Rzhetsky A, Troxler L, Vernick KD, Vlachou D, Volz J, von Mering C, Xu J, Zheng L, Bork P, Kafatos FC. (2002) Immunity-related genes and gene families in Anopheles gambiae: A comparative genomic analysis. Science; 298:159
• Ma, J., Qu, F., Xu J & Zhen Z. (2001) The molecular polymorphism revealed by RAPD markers in Anopheles sinensis populations in China. Acta Entomol Sinica; 44:33-37
• Oduol, F., Xu, J., Niare, O., Natarajan, R & Vernick, K.D. (2000) Genes identified by an expression screen in the vector mosquito, Anopheles gambiae,display differential molecular immune response to malaria parasites and bacteria. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 97:11397
• Ma, Y., Qu F., Xu, J., Li, X, & Song, G. (2000) Differences in sequences of ribosomal DNA second internal transcribed spacer among three members of Anopheles hyrcanus complex from the Republic of Korea. Entomol Sinica; 7:36
• Xu, X, Xu, J & Qu, F (1998) A diagnostic polymerase chain reaction assay for species A and D of the Anoheles dirus (Diptera: Culicidae) species complex based on ribosomal DNA second internal transcribed space sequence. J Am Mosq Control Assoc; 14:385
• Xu, J & Qu, F (1997) Ribosomal DNA difference between species A and D of the Anopheles dirus complex of mosquitoes from China. Med Vet Entomol; 11:134