Towson enters unique partnership with Port Deposit
Basking Northern Map Turtle on the Susquehanna River are not that common of a site. This state endangered turtle has been the subject of field studies by TU Biology undergraduate and graduate students since 2008. Towson has entered into a unique partnership with the town of Port Deposit to help protect this species. Funding partners include the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the Maryland State Highway Administration, and Exelon Corporation. Creation of an education center, protected nesting beaches, and increased public awareness are all part of the recovery efforts.
Dr. Meghan May Named 6th Fisher Endowed Chair
The Jess and Mildred Fisher Endowment provides support for the Fisher Endowed Chairs. Typically there are two active chairs and appointments last two years. Dr. May joins Dr. Hemm as the third Fisher Endowed Chair from the Department of Biological Sciences. The chair provides funds to support Dr. May's research on the evolution of virulence, not only to determine how new diseases appear and where they come from but also how to predict what new disease might arise next - pathogen forecasting. Her current research uses the microbial parasite, Mycoplasma synoviae, as a model system to study mechanisms of pathogen attachment to host cells: the first step in how a pathogen causes disease in a host organism.
Dr. Hemm Awarded Career Grantfrom NSF
(from the Office of Sponsored Projects & Research)
Matthew R. Hemm, assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, has successfully secured a substantial grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which will provide funding for his proposal titled “Role of Small Transmembrane Proteins in Cytochrome bd Oxidase Activity.” This proposal focuses on the role and function of specific proteins crucial to cellular respiration and to the processes of infection and colonization by several bacterial species. Understanding the activities of these proteins may have significant implications for the public health industry in terms of infection control.
This award has many benefits in store for Towson University. With the funds provided, both undergraduate and graduate students will have greater opportunities to participate in laboratory research, thereby fostering their talents for hands-on experimentation and information analysis. With the additional resources, there will be more room for trial and error in these experiments; this is especially important, as students will be able to correct procedural mistakes and therefore learn via repetition and review. The increase in the amount of time allotted for lengthier periods of problem solving is a luxury that can never be valued too highly in a scientific setting. Also, having additional funds available can accommodate further experiments suggested by discoveries in a current line of research. As Hemm will attest, every answer leads to another question for which one may need another experiment. It must be kept in mind that scientific discovery does little good if it is not shared with the research community at large. External funding is a prerequisite to the publication of experimental results. In terms of the material benefits for TU, the grant money will allow for the purchase of crucial supplies not previously available due to monetary restraints.
Department of Biological Sciences
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