An Update for the Jupiter Life Science Community   |  Sept 25, 2018

This newsletter will highlight activities of the Jupiter Life Science Initiative (JLSI), which unites scientists in research and training programs from FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt Colleges of Science and Medicine, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, FAU Brain Institute, The Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (MPFI) and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI). We plan to cover the local and national contributions of FAU Jupiter faculty and JLSI partners from collaborative institutions as the stories emerge. Dr. Rod Murphey, Director

News

Dr. Gregg Fields Named 2018 Distinguished Researcher The FAU Research Park has named Dr. Gregg Fields , Professor and Chair of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department and Director of the Center for Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (CMBB), 2018 Distinguished Researcher. He is also a member of the FAU Brain Institute with a research laboratory located on the Jupiter campus. Fields applies chemistry in novel ways to answer important biological questions, many of which assist in the diagnosis and treatment of major diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, arthritis and cancer. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and holds six U.S. patents. The technology developed by Fields has resulted in three commercial products, currently sold by five different companies. He has authored or co-authored more than 260 scientific publications and has presented more than 190 invited lectures. Read more here .

IBNS-IMPRS Alumnus Publishes in Nature

Dr. Daniel Wilson , alum of the Integrative Biology-Neuroscience (IBNS) and International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS) for Brain and Behavior programs, recently published in the high impact Scientific Journal Nature . Wilson worked under the direction of Dr. David Fitzpatrick , CEO and Scientific Director of the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience. This publication emphasizes the flexible ways in which neural circuits can integrate excitatory and inhibitory inputs to build the variety of selective response properties critical for neural coding. Read the full article  here .

IBNS PhD Candidate Publishes in Neuron

Ke Zhang , IBNS PhD candidate working under the direction of Dr. Jason Christie at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, co-authored a paper that explores how Purkinje cells can alter neuronal plasticity and instruct adaptive behavior within the cerebellum. T he author list also includes Dr. Matt Rowan, IB PhD alumnus who did his dissertation research under the direction of Dr. Wen Shen, and also worked as a postdoc in the Christie lab. Zhang began the PhD program in the fall of 2016 and she is also a student in the IMPRS for Brain and Behavior program.  Read more here .

New FAU - Max Planck Undergraduate Honors Course The FAU-Max Planck Honors Program (MPHP) in neuroscience commenced this semester and incoming students registered for the new Introduction to Neuroscience Research course team taught by Dr. Ken Dawson-Scully (Biology), Dr. Laura Vernon (JLSI and Honors College), Dr. McLean Bolton (MPFI), and Dr. Paul Evans (MPFI). This course was designed as part of a unique collaborative effort between the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, the Wilkes Honors College, and the Max Planck Institute for Neuroscience. It offers students an exclusive and enriching opportunity to learn, formulate questions, and communicate their research via oral and written deliveries while engaging with a community of cutting-edge research scholars and Nobel laureates. Read more here .

New Faculty Join the Brain Institute and FAU Jupiter Community

Dr. Henriette van Praag Dr. Henriette van Praag  was recently hired as an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Science in the College of Medicine. Dr. van Praag is a member of the FAU Brain Institute with a laboratory located on the Jupiter campus within the Jupiter Life Science Initiative (JLSI) research space. " It is very exciting to be part of the FAU Brain Institute," van Praag said. I look forward to new research opportunities and to training students that are interested in understanding how the nervous system works." Read more here . Dr. Qi Zhang Dr. Qi Zhang will serve as the Scientific Director of the Brain Institute Cell Imaging Core located on the FAU Jupiter campus. He is a specialist in neuronal and synaptic imaging and recently moved from Vanderbilt University. He has received a NARSAD Young Investigator Award, an NIH New Innovator Award and an NSF GOLI award. His current research interests include the trafficking and function of b-amyloid at synapses and the impact of modified surfaces on neuronal differentiation.

Brain Institute Hosts First ASCEND Program Postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and undergraduates from FAU and Scripps organized the ASCEND (Advancing Stem-Community Interactions through Neuroscience Discovery) program’s third Brain Sparks event for middle schoolers at the South Florida Science Center & Aquarium’s STEM Studio. The ASCEND program is directed by Nicole Baganz, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor in the College of Medicine and Brain Institute Director of Community Engagement and Programming. FAU trainees participating in ASCEND include FAU Associate Scientist Dr. Jana Boerner (Murphey lab), FAU postdoctoral fellow Dr. Paula Gajewski-Kurdziel (Blakely lab), Scripps postdoctoral fellow Dr. Melissa Borgen (Grill lab) and graduate students Peter Rodriguez (Blakely lab), David Cinalli (Stackman lab), and Serena Sossi (Carvelli lab).

Recent Funding

Dr. Gregg Fields , Professor and Chair of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department and Director of the CMBB), has received a three-year grant of $708,044 from the Florida Department of Health James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program. Fields has been working to identify what contributes to the ability of tumor cells to move through the body and find other places to “set up shop.” He has identified a number of enzymes that he believes are responsible for this process and is working to develop novel compounds to slow down this spreading aspect of cancer. Read more here .

Student Spotlight

Anders Yuiska , a junior at the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, received a John Nambu Memorial Summer REU Program scholarship to continue his research project in the laboratories of Dr. Alex Keene  and Dr. Erik Duboue , members of the Jupiter Life Science Initiative research faculty. His collaborative project entitled " Establishing the Starlet Sea Anemone Nematostella vectensis  as a novel model to investigate the evolution of sleep" aimed to establish a new protocol to study the neurological circuitry that controls sleep. Yuiska is still undecided about whether he will attend medical or graduate school in the future but believes that the amount of skills that he's gained from the REU program is amazing. "If I continue with research I feel very confident in being able to set up behavioral experiments. I gained a huge respect for the scientific process. Also, I learned not to get discouraged by a lack of result and to trust myself as a scientist." Read more about the REU program here .

Meet the Jupiter Life Science Staff

Silvana Jaramillo , Budget Coordinator for the Jupiter Life Science Initiative. Please contact Silvana if you have questions about contracts, grants,or need budget support on the Jupiter campus.  Marjorie Cazeau , Program Assistant for the Jupiter Life Science Initiative. Please contact Marjorie if you need secretarial or general support on the Jupiter campus.

Glenn Malone , Biology Student Services and Advising. Please contact Glenn if you have questions about Biology or Psychology coursework and academic advising on the Jupiter campus.  Jana Boerner, Ph.D., Imaging Core Manager. Please contact Jana if you have questions about the Nikon Center of Excellence Core Facility on the Jupiter campus.

The Jupiter Life Science Initiative staff is here to serve students, faculty, and staff. We are always happy to assist as well as answer questions and provide general support during your visit to the FAU John D. MacArthur Campus. For general information, contact Marjorie at 561 - 799 - 8060 or mcazeau@fau.edu.

To feature exciting news and accomplishments in this newsletter, please contact  Dr. Stacee Caplan at scaplan4@fau.edu.