breast cancer research • mcb as pre-med - The School of Molecular ...

mcb ISSUE 

4: SPRING 2010 

A Magazine » the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 

breast cancer research • mcb as pre-med 

SCHOOL OF MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BIOLOGY . 1

Dr. Stephen G. Sligar 

letter 

from the director 

It is again a pleasure to update our alumni and friends with an introduction to the 

2010 MCB Newsletter. This has been an eventful year for the University of Illinois, the 

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology. 

Each of our four departments and the two research programs and centers that we 

administer have enjoyed numerous successes, despite the fiscal challenges presented 

by the state. Most discussions “around the water cooler” have centered on budget and 

leadership issues. Initially, there was some fear related to manning the ship’s helm (following 

the resignation of both the university president and chancellor, and the departure 

of the provost) as we sailed into an unprecedented state budget maelstrom. These 

concerns have proven unfounded due to the outstanding interim leadership provided 

by President Ikenberry, Chancellor/Provost Easter, and Vice Chancellor for Academic 

Affairs Wheeler. A new permanent president, Dr. Michael Hogan, comes on board July 

1, 2010, and there is rapid movement for long-term appointments to the other higher 

administrative positions. In the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, we have 

weathered the immediate financial challenges. Roughly 94% of the operating costs for 

the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences comes from tuition income. Hence there is a 

smaller percentage dependent on the troubled state financial position. Thanks to the 

size of the MCB undergraduate educational mission, and the outstanding productivity 

of our research faculty, we are in an excellent position to continue to grow as the center 

of biological efforts on campus. Nevertheless, land-grant universities face a serious 

challenge in their mission to support and fund higher education in an environment 

of constantly declining state revenues. For many years, the shortfalls have been made 

up through increased tuition and fees. But we are now entering into the realm where 

university access threatens to take an unacceptable fraction of the average American’s 

wage. MCB is participating in campus-wide efforts to seek economies of scale and 

avoid duplication, while maintaining excellence in preparing our students for the great 

adventures that await. In this issue of the magazine, you will find numerous examples, 

from discussions of pre-medical tracts to the latest research advances and scholarship, 

where MCB continues to lead in providing solutions to critical societal challenges in 

curing disease, ensuring efficient delivery of health care, and the great need to understand 

the global environment and find means to ensure the supply of abundant energy, 

water, and natural resources. 

Stephen G. Sligar 

Director

table of contents 

Letter from the Director 

by Stephen Sligar 

Pre-Med at MCB | 2 

MCB is the University of Illinois’ most popular pre-med curriculum 

by William Gillespie 

Breast Cancer Research at MCB | 4 

MCB breast cancer researchers are focusing on the estrogen pathway 

by Deb Aronson 

Faculty Portrait: Maria Spies | 10 

A rising professor receives myriad accolades 

by Alex Crofts and William Gillespie 

Undergraduate Portrait: Angela Bizzarri | 11 

Athletic and academic achievement fuse in a star undergrad 

by William Gillespie 

Roger Adams Lab Renovations | 12 

An important phase of ongoing renovations of historic buildings is completed 

by Dan Ozier and William Gillespie 

Synthetic Biology of Cellular Systems | 13 

A new university center engineers biological machines 

by Martha Gillette 

Faculty News | 14 

Updates, promotions, awards, honors, retirements, and obituaries 

mcb is published by tHE SCHOOL OF MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BIOLOGY 

MCB DIRECtOR 

Dr. Stephen G. Sligar 

MANAGING EDItOR AND DESIGNER 

William Gillespie 

COVER PHOtO 

Milu Cherian is a 5th-year Ph.D. student 

in Molecular and Integrative Physiology 

working with Professor David Shapiro. 

She is shown with a tissue culture media 

used to grow cells. Photo by Nick Burchell. 

PHOtOGRAPHY 

Nick Burchell 

William Gillespie 

Biophysical Society 

James Galen 

MCB COMMUNICAtIONS OFFICE 

393 Morrill Hall, MC-119 

505 South Goodwin Avenue 

Urbana, IL 61801 

phone | 217.265.6594 

fax | 217.265.6595 

mcbcommunications@illinois.edu 

www.mcb.illinois.edu 

Produced by the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology Communcations Office. 

the University of Illinois is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution. 

Printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink. 08.062 


Follow the road... 

2 . mcb 

for a student planning to go to medical school, there are many possible paths... 

pre-Med 

in 

Mcb

to medical school 

and a degree in Molecular and cellular biology is one of the best roads to take. 

While the MCB undergraduate degree provides a strong academic foundation for a variety 

of careers in the health sciences — including academic and industrial research, dentistry, 

veterinary medicine, nursing, immunology, pharmaceuticals, forensics — preparation for the 

Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and medical school is built into the curriculum. 

In fact, of the students admitted to medical school from the University of Illinois at Urbana- 

Champaign in 2009, the majority graduated from the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology 

(majoring in MCB or biochemistry). The major with the next-largest number of matriculating 

medical school students (the collected majors in the College of Engineering) sent one 

fifth as many students to medical school as did MCB. The University of Illinois boasts a 49% 

acceptance rate for entering medical school students — three points above the national average. 

As articulated in last year’s report (see sidebar), the medical mind must do more than identify 

and treat disease: it must be multi-talented. The outstanding physician of the new millennium 

will be a well-rounded scholar with strengths in science, communication, technology, 

logic, and cultural sensitivity. 

According to Ronald Epstein and Ed Hundert, 1 “Competency is the habitual and judicious 

use of communication, knowledge, technical skills, clinical reasoning, emotions, values, and 

reflection in daily practice for the benefit of the individual and the community being served.” 

MCB courses teach both scientific content and competency in broader skills, for example 

writing, speaking, teamwork, research, and analysis. 

MCB — a 13-year-old school built on the University of Illinois’ long-standing tradition of 

distinguished life sciences research and education — delivers a strong foundational curriculum 

while remaining agile and able to adapt to the breakneck pace of scientific discovery. 

A cutting-edge undergraduate program in a fast-changing scientific field, MCB continually 

evolves to meet the needs of majors and their futures. 

In April 2010 the MCB Instructional Program unveiled a new two-semester lecture and lab 

course sequence in Human Anatomy & Physiology. These courses will integrate human anatomy 

and physiology with pathology and disease processes from the organismal to the subcellular 

level. The streamlined design will provide our majors and non-majors with a superior, 

meaningful, integrated, and comprehensive learning experience in anatomy and physiology. 

Another recent innovation is our expansion of the course “Genetics and Human Disease” 

under the leadership of Professor Mary Schuler, providing important background to inherited 

diseases and personalized medicine. 

With MCB’s opportunity for real laboratory training (see MCB issues 2 and 3), and newly 

redesigned anatomy, physiology, and genetics courses, the path to medical school has never 

been better paved. • 

1 Epstein, Ronald and Hundert, Ed. “Defining and Assessing Professional Competence.” JAMA. 2002;287:226-235. 

In MCB, we were pleased to see Scientific 

Foundations for Future Physicians, a 2009 

Report of the Howard Hughes Medical 

Institute and the Association of American 

Medical Colleges. We are in agreement with 

this report: our degree program fuses scientific 

rigor with a true liberal arts education. 

According to the report: “there is widespread 

agreement that it is important to: (1) educate 

future physicians to be inquisitive; (2) help 

them build a strong scientific foundation for 

future medical practice; and (3) equip them 

with the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind 

to integrate new scientific discovery into their 

medical practice throughout their professional 

lives and to share this knowledge with 

patients and other health care professionals.” 

the report concludes: “A competency-based 

approach should give...flexibility in the 

premedical curriculum to allow undergraduate 

institutions to develop more interdisciplinary 

and integrative courses that maintain 

scientific rigor, while providing a broad 

and strong liberal arts education. Entering 

medical students should be more evenly 

prepared for the study of medicine, allowing 

medical schools to spend less time teaching 

or reviewing the basic competencies and 

more time learning the growing scientific 

knowledge base needed to practice modern 

medicine.“ 


B R E A S T 

C A N C E R 

RESEARCH 

A T MCB 

fIVe Mcb scIentIsts WorK on PreVentIon and treatMent 

according to the national cancer Institute, one in eight women will be diagnosed 

with breast cancer during her lifetime. one in five of these cases will prove fatal. 

researchers in the school of Molecular and cellular biology are working to reduce 

those numbers. every year they gather more knowledge to use in prevention 

and treatment. Much of this research is focused on the estrogen pathway. 

As scientists gain a deeper understanding of the role of the estrogen pathway in cancer, they are better able to figure out ways to disrupt it and 

develop better diagnostic tools — allowing them to know for example how a certain tumor will respond to a certain therapeutic approach. 

Estrogen has many roles in the body. In a healthy breast tissue cell, estrogen enters the nucleus and binds to the estrogen receptor (ER), which 

then binds to specific sites in the DNA, activating certain genes. Estrogen acts in this way not only on tissues in the breast, but also the uterus, 

skeletal system, cardiovascular system, and even the brain. 

But in breast cancers, estrogen also ends up helping malignant cells. For example, in many ER-positive breast cancers — which account for 70% 

of breast cancers — once a tumor occurs, estrogen helps cancer cells proliferate. 

So, ultimately, the challenge is to disrupt estrogen’s activity in breast cancer without affecting its positive activities elsewhere in the body. 

MCB faculty are using a wide variety of techniques to solve the enormously complex puzzle of how to stop breast cancer. 

4 . mcb

enIta Katzenellenbogen 

“We now understand the underpinnings of cancer much more so than ever before,” says 

Benita Katzenellenbogen, Swanlund Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology and 

Swanlund Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology. 

Katzenellenbogen has worked for much of her career to understand the biology of the ER 

and how and why “selective estrogen receptor modulators” (SERMs) like tamoxifen and 

raloxifene work. 

SERMs, common and useful drugs for endocrine therapies, bind to the estrogen receptor, 

blocking estrogen. When estrogen cannot bind to the ER, breast cancer cells cannot proliferate 

as easily. 

Among the other findings from her lab, Katzenellenbogen’s group has shown that when 

SERMs bind to the ER, they put the ER into a different conformation. “As a consequence, 

they antagonize the stimulatory activities of the receptor and can quite effectively reduce 

proliferation and increase apoptosis,” she says. 

Katzenellenbogen also has found that ERs encode proteins for about 5% of genes in the 

breast cancer cell genome, meaning that 1,000 or more genes are regulated by this ER. It’s 

because the ER regulates these genes that it has such an important effect in breast cancer 

cells, says Katzenellenbogen. 

Related to understanding the cell biology of breast cancer tumors is the need to understand 

drug-resistant breast cancers. Her lab has identified a protein that is upregulated during 

treatment with tamoxifen. The presence of that protein is associated with a poor treatment 

outcome. Katzenellenbogen is confident that this protein is associated with breast cancer’s 

ability to resist tamoxifen. Her lab is now investigating whether reducing the level of this 

protein can lead to more successful treatment. 

Benita S. Katzenellenbogen is a Fellow of the 

American Academy of Arts and Sciences and 

recently served as president of the Endocrine 

Society. She has published more than 300 

research articles and co-edited a book on 

“Hormone-Dependent Cancer.” 

In 2009, Professor Katzenellenbogen received 

the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Brinker 

Award for Scientific Distinction in basic science 

and clinical research. this is the highest award 

of merit given by the nation’s leading breast 

cancer activism organization. 

Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, 

Susan G. Komen, she would do everything 

in her power to end breast cancer forever. 

In 1982, that promise became Susan G. 

Komen for the Cure, and launched the global 

movement to cure breast cancer. 


Herbert L. Carter Fellowship recipient Abhinav Luthra (Abhi), a 2nd year Ph.D. 

student in Biochemistry and member of the Sligar lab, uses a high performance 

liquid chromatography column to isolate individual proteins from a group. “The 

better you understand the properties of an enzyme that make it unique, the 

better you can manipulate its function specifically,” says Abhi about the diagnostic 

tools used to study one of the enzymes involved in estrogen reception. 


stePhen slIgar 

Director of MCB and I.C. Gunsalus Professor of Biochemistry Stephen 

Sligar’s lab is taking another approach. He is looking at ways to block 

the production of estrogen in the breast earlier in the chemical pathway 

by targeting aromatase, the enzyme that makes estrogen from testosterone 

and androstenedione. 

Aromatase is a key pharmaceutical drug target for estrogen responsive 

breast cancers. By understanding the mechanistic details of this important 

enzyme, Sligar’s lab hopes to develop a therapeutic that blocks 

aromatase’s estrogen-making activity in cancer cells without causing a 

systemic loss of estrogen. This would provide an improvement, in terms 

of efficacy and specificity, over current aromatase inhibitors in the market 

— letrozole, anastrozole and exemestane — thereby minimizing the 

side effects associated with the current generation of therapies. 

However, “studying this enzyme is very difficult because once you 

isolate it from the membrane, it’s usually dead,” says Sligar. In a major 

step forward, Sligar’s lab created an environment that keeps the enzyme 

functioning. This so-called Nanodisc technology is a nanoscale membrane 

environment that helps maintain full functionality of the protein. 

“If you understand how the enzyme works, and there are mechanistic 

details distinct from similar enzymes, you can design a better, more targeted, 

drug,” says Sligar. With graduate student Abhinav Luthra, Sligar 

has discovered that this appears to indeed be the case with aromatase. 

The Sligar lab is now using this knowledge to design the next generation 

of pharmaceuticals.

“...the most beneficial aspect of the MCB major was...the myriad of opportunities 

outside the classroom, particularly the research labs. My participation 

in Dr. Bagchi’s research helped me gain a better understanding of 

these lecture topics while developing critical thinking skills needed to 

help carry out some of his research.” —David Roh; former Bagchi Lab 

undergrad researcher; Rush University Medical College student, Chicago 

MIlan bagchI 

Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology Milan Bagchi has investigated the estrogen-regulated genes controlling the growth of 

breast cancer cells as well as normal mammary epithelial cells (epithelial cells are a common tissue found throughout the body). 

His lab has identified a gene, ERG1 (abbreviation for “estrogen regulated gene 1,” also known as cuzd1), that, when inactivated in the 

mouse genome, prevents the proliferation of mammary epithelial cells. This gene is turned on during puberty, when the mammary gland 

is developing rapidly in response to estrogen. In the absence of this gene, the mammary gland does not develop properly, and the females 

cannot lactate. 

“These findings suggest a mammary gland defect when this gene is lacking,” says Bagchi. His lab also found a link between ERG1 and the 

epidermal growth factor signaling pathways, which are crucial to the growth of cells and involved in many breast cancers. 

“We have a factor that controls estrogen mediated proliferation, and it serves as a novel connection between hormone regulation and the 

growth factor pathway,” he says. 

Bagchi then looked at human breast cancer cells to see if a homologue to the ERG1 gene was present. He found that the ERG1 gene expression 

correlated with ER status in breast cancer. Strikingly, he found that an over-expression of ERG1 in mammary epithelium results in 

stimulation of growth factor pathways and tumor formation in mice. 

Bagchi is now interested in whether this gene can be used as a biomarker of breast tumorigenesis, and is currently collaborating with 

clinical scientists to screen human breast tumor biopsies to see whether the expression of this gene is elevated in breast cancer. If there is a 

correlation, Bagchi hopes to use it as a diagnostic tool, and then to develop a therapeutic approach targeting the expression or function of 

ERG1. 

“We’ll see if we can intervene in the progression of the tumor,” he says. 


daVId shaPIro 

While it was known before that breast cancer cells have some way of dodging the immune system, it was Professor of Biochemistry in 

MCB and Professor of Basic Medical Sciences at the College of Medicine David Shapiro who showed that estrogen contributes to that 

process. 

In cells containing the ER, the complex of estrogen and ER protein binds to specific DNA sequences to stimulate the production of 

proteins involved in most breast cancers’ growth and evasion of the immune system. 

“Since there already are good pharmaceuticals, such as tamoxifen, that work by competing with estrogens for binding to the receptor, 

we wanted to target other binding sites on the ER,” Shapiro says. Using high-throughput screening techniques, Shapiro’s laboratory 

was able to identify a compound that slowed the production of proteins that promote the growth of ER-positive breast cancer cells. 

This compound works by triggering breast cancer cells to destroy ER protein, blocking the action of estrogen, and preventing the 

growth of cancer cells. This process stops the growth of breast cancer cells that contain ER — even those that are resistant to tamoxifen 

— and has little effect on other cell types. 

In an important cell culture test of the new compound in a system in which breast cancer cells form colonies that resemble minitumors, 

the compound completely blocked colony formation. The next steps are testing the compound in an animal model, and 

identifying how it triggers the cells to destroy ER protein. 

Drug development, a new direction for Shapiro’s lab, capitalizes on the recent establishment of a screening center by Shapiro and 

several faculty members. With its robotic instruments and library of 170,000 compounds, the screening facility plays a key role in the 

lab’s ability to rapidly test and identify new compounds with promising anti-cancer activity. 

Shapiro notes that MCB has a national and international reputation for its community of experts looking at breast cancer from a variety 

of directions. “We have lots of first-hand technical knowledge that we share, which makes doing experiments a lot easier,” he says. 


“Undergraduate pre-med students Kenneth Berg and Amanda 

Etheridge are working to identify the chemical structures that make 

a compound a specific inhibitor of estrogen receptor in breast cancer 

cells.”—David Shapiro on two of the students who work in his lab

“the thing I’ve come to value about the MCB curriculum is the emphasis on problem 

solving skills. I took away a great deal of knowledge about biology, but the ability 

to think through complex ideas has helped me succeed more...”— Dan thorngren, 

MCB graduate, former Nardulli Lab Research Specialist, medical school student 

ann nardullI 

In an effort to better understand just how the DNA-bound ER regulates gene expression, Professor of Molecular and Integrative 

Physiology Ann Nardulli isolated and identified proteins associated with that complex. 

Among the 200 proteins Nardulli identified, she found a group of oxidative stress response proteins, which are responsible for reducing 

the level of reactive oxygen species in cells. At normal levels, reactive oxygen species are useful for signaling and maintaining a cell’s 

normal environment, but too much can damage proteins, lipids, and DNA. 

Nardulli also found another group of proteins that repair DNA. If DNA is damaged and, for example, the DNA repair proteins are 

under-expressed, DNA might not be efficiently repaired. Nardulli began to think that the over- or under-expression of the oxidative 

stress response or DNA repair proteins might be involved in the development and/or progression of breast cancer. 

“We wondered, if we looked at normal mammary tissue, benign hyperplasia, ductal carcinoma in situ, and invasive breast cancer, 

would we see a difference in the expression of these proteins?” says Nardulli. 

Nardulli’s group looked at the expression of 12 different proteins in 96 breast biopsies to see if there was a pattern of over- or underexpression 

of any of the proteins. Nardulli has some very intriguing findings so far. For example, a DNA repair protein that is expressed 

in normal breast tissue is not expressed in invasive breast cancer tissue. 

“That seems to be a dangerous situation if a protein required for DNA repair is no longer present to repair damaged DNA,” she says. 

This also ties in with other observations Nardulli has made about how some of these proteins, which are normally found in the 

nucleus of normal cells, end up outside the nucleus in tumor cells. 

“If you change the location of proteins that normally reside in the nucleus so they no can no longer access DNA or reduce their expression, 

you can accumulate DNA damage. That is one way cancer might occur or progress.” • 

Photographs of Sligar, Shapiro, Nardulli, and Luthra by Nick Burchell 


facultY PortraIt 

M aria Spies 

Professor Spies accepting the Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award from Biophysical Society 

President Henry A. Lester. Image used with permission from the Biochemical Society. 


With a new award, Professor 

spies is recognized both for her 

accomplishments to date as well 

as exceptional promise of future 

ground-breaking discoveries. 

This year, the Biophysical Society granted Assistant Professor of 

Biochemistry and Biophysics Maria Spies the Margaret Oakley 

Dayhoff Award, a prestigious recognition given annually to 

one or two prominent female scientists beginning careers in 

biophysical research. 

Now in its fourth year, Professor Spies’ research team employs 

traditional and single-molecule biochemistry to discern the 

role the molecular motors known as DNA helicases play in 

identifying and repairing DNA damage. These are important 

players in maintaining the integrity of our genetic blueprint, 

which is continuously assaulted by UV radiation, toxic 

chemicals, and reactive oxygen species. 

“DNA helicases act as critical components in many molecular 

machineries orchestrating DNA repair in the cell,” Spies said. 

“Multiple diseases bearing hallmarks of cancer and aging are 

associated with malfunctions in these enzymes.” 

The Biophysical Society is not the only organization to have 

honored Professor Spies in the past year. 

In September, 2009, Professor Spies began her six-year appointment 

as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Early 

Career Scientist. The award aims to provide generous funding 

to the most promising early career scientists in the country. 

According to HHMI, “The new program is aimed at researchers 

who have run their own labs for two to six years and are now at 

a critical point in establishing their own vibrant, independent 

research programs.” 

HHMI President Thomas R. Cech says, “We decided to focus on 

scientists who have led their own laboratories for several years 

because many of these scientists are at a high point of their 

creativity just as they see their start-up funds and early-career 

awards ending... It is this period of career vulnerability that the 

HHMI Early Career Scientist Program aims to bridge.” 

Professor Spies says this funding will give her research not only 

stability during this period of economic uncertainty, but the 

ability to try more cutting-edge, potentially high-impact studies 

that might be difficult to get funded by more traditional agencies. 

Howard Hughes, she says, intended the award for basic 

biomedical research, and it is in that spirit that she intends to 

continue. 

Most research in her lab is currently funded by the HHMI and 

the American Cancer Society. She describes the HHMI Early 

Career Scientist Award as “a great honor.” • 

About the undergrads working alongside post-docs and graduate 

students in her lab, Spies says, “these are highly motivated 

students driven to scientific discovery. they eagerly take on 

research projects that last two or three years and expose 

them to all stages of scientific discovery from identifying a 

question and planning the experiments to writing a paper.”

Mcb major 

angela bizzarri’s 

achievements in 

the athletic arena 

are singular. 

undergraduate PortraIt 

Few students can claim both a 3.65 GPA and a 4:40 mile. Angela Bizzarri is one such student. 

In 2009, Bizzarri was honored for the second consecutive year with the Dike Eddleman Award as 

the University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year. Between 2008 and 2009, she broke five school 

records. In November, she won her third National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) title, 

finishing the 6-kilometer race in 19 minutes, 46.8 seconds. In 2010, she received the prestigious Big 

Ten Medal of Honor, an award given to senior student-athletes to recognize athletic and academic 

excellence. 

All the while, she continued as an undergraduate in the challenging curriculum of MCB. 

Bizzarri came to the University of Illinois from Ohio with an interest in math and science, attracted 

to the university for both its academic and athletic programs. With a desire to someday enter the 

health care profession, she started out in bioengineering. As biology proved to have more 

appeal for her than engineering, she gravitated toward MCB. 

In order to balance studying, practicing, and competing — and to maintain her superlative mental 

and physical performance — Bizzarri has become skilled at time management. “I don’t have a lot 

of down time,” she admits. She does not watch television, and tends to be studying or practicing 

from the time she gets up until she goes to bed. Because many competitions require air travel, 

she sometimes reads biology in airports or on planes. When jogging before an exam, Bizzarri 

will use the time to mentally recite lists of things she expects to be tested on. It’s not the ideal 

way to study, she admits, but she does what she has to do. She is earnest in her desire to succeed. 

A ngela Bizzarri 

Angela Bizzarri crosses the finish line to win the 

2009 NCAA Cross Country National Title. 

Photo by James Galen. 

There is some overlap between her two pursuits of academics and athletics. She enjoys classes in anatomy and physiology, which allow her 

to speak to her physical therapists in their own language, idenitfying specific muscles by name. She also has an interest in how cells 

utilize energy. 

After graduation she would like to continue to compete while completing a graduate degree. Being a physician’s assistant is one 

occupation that interests her, though she has not ruled out competing in the Olympics. • 

With a desire to someday enter 

the health care profession, she 

started out in bioengineering. As 

biology proved to have more 

appeal for her than engineering, 

she gravitated toward MCB. 


u P g r a d e s a n d 

renoVatIons 

uPdates 

As a premier biomedical research community, the School of Molecular and 

Cellular Biology requires state-of-the-art facilities to support research by 

current faculty, attract new faculty, and provide exemplary learning environments 

for undergraduates who aspire to careers in the biological sciences, 

medicine, and the health professions. 

The newest addition to the research facilities of MCB, the Chemical and Life 

Sciences Laboratory, was completed in the early 1990s, adding 50,000 square 

feet of high-quality laboratory research space and administrative spaces for 

two departments. Currently this space is divided between the Departments of 

Microbiology and Cell and Developmental Biology. 

This past year has produced significant steps forward in improvements to our 

historic molecular and cellular biology facilities. Projects have included the 

completion of an initial phase of laboratory upgrades in Roger Adams Lab (see 

sidebar), the renovation of space in Burrill Hall to support the hiring of two 

new faculty (Professors Bolton and Chung — see page 16) in the Department 

of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, as well as improved accessibility, 

energy efficiency, and safety features in Morrill Hall. 

In the next year, work will begin on improvements to the basic infrastructure 

in Burrill Hall in line with phase two of the master plan for that facility. The 

work done in this cycle will serve as the underpinning for later phases that 

will have a direct impact on faculty research. Funding for the upcoming Burrill 

Hall project originates from federal stimulus funds administered at the 

campus level. 

While these changes are exciting and demonstrate clear progress, much work 

remains. Future plans, for which funding has not yet been identified, include 

the next phases of both the Roger Adams Lab and Burrill Hall master plans, 

as well as the re-purposing and reconfiguration of spaces in Burrill Hall for 

enhanced instructional delivery. 

There are several paths forward. Opportunities abound for both focused, 

medium-scale remodeling (similar to the recent work done to prepare space 

for Drs. Bolton and Chung, averaging about $150 thousand per project) and 

large-scale renovation in keeping with the master plan for Roger Adams Lab 

(next phase estimated at $6.6 million). Though the cost of this effort can be 

daunting, the benefits to students 

interested in a medical or healthrelated 

career, to the state, and to the 

medical community and society at 

large are invaluable. 

With state support for higher education 

diminishing, the future of 

Molecular and Cellular Biology will 

depend increasingly on the participation 

and support of alumni and 

friends. We welcome participation 

from those who know best the value 

of our endeavors. • 


r o g e r a d a M s l a b 

rIbbon cuttIng cereMonY 

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held October 9th 

to celebrate the completion of phase one of the 

renovations of historic university building Roger 

Adams Laboratory. These upgrades, sponsored 

by the campus and the College of Liberal Arts 

and Sciences, took two years and $8 million to 

complete, and include massive infrastructure 

updates throughout two floors and the addition 

of new biomedical research laboratories. The 

ceremony, held at the beginning of Homecoming 

weekend, featured comments from Harry E. Preble 

Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences Ruth Watkins; I. 

C. Gunsalus Professor of Biochemistry and Director 

of the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology 

Stephen Sligar; Mrs. Mary Wraight — speaking on 

behalf of former Biochemistry Department Head 

Professor Colin Wraight — and Interim Head of 

the Department of Biochemistry Professor Susan 

Martinis. Also in attendance were honored alumni 

guests Keith Westcott, Janice Turner, and Mary Jane 

and Norman Beasley. 

Biochemistry professors Raven Huang and Satish 

Nair then gave a tour of a new facility built to 

house the department’s X-ray diffractometer, which 

is used to analyze the three-dimensional structure 

of biological macromolecules. 

As former Biochemistry Department Head Colin 

Wraight — instrumental in making the $8 million 

project a reality — observed in his speech, 

“…completion on this phase opens up further 

possibilities for restoring a true core to the department’s 

being. It is a signal moment for us, and 

bodes well for the future.”

s Y n t h e t I c 

b I o l o g Y o f 

cellular 

sYsteMs 

emergent behaviors of Integrated 

cellular systems center at Illinois 

While the behaviors of individual cells and the functions and properties 

of tissues and organs have been studied extensively, the complex 

interactions of cell clusters are not as well understood. School of Molecular 

& Cellular Biology (MCB) researchers are members of a team 

that will investigate the behaviors of interacting clusters of cells with 

different functionalities. 

The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded $25 million to establish 

the Emergent Behaviors of Integrated Cellular Systems (EBICS) 

Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the Massachusetts 

Institute of Technology, and the Georgia Institute of Technology. 

The EBICS Center is one of five Science & Technology Centers 

(STC) approved by NSF in a nationwide competition. 

The goal is to create biological modules — sensors, processors and actuators 

— that can be used to build working biological machines. This 

next step in synthetic biology will build upon the complexity and 

richness of biology — from regenerative medicine to developmental 

biology — to engineer new applications. 

University researchers from many different disciplines, including 

biology, engineering, and physical sciences, will contribute to the 

development of the knowledge, tools, and technologies necessary to 

create these highly sophisticated biological machines. 

The list of participants includes three MCB faculty. 

Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology Fei Wang will develop 

new technologies to induce efficient differentiation of embryonic 

stem cells into neurons, myocytes, and endothelial cells. Production 

of the differentiated cells is a critical first step towards the establishment 

of interactions of cell clusters and the creation of cellular machines. 

The Wang lab already developed conditions for efficient neural 

conversion from human embryonic stem cells to neural progenitors, 

and will continue to derive fully differentiated neurons. The Wang 

lab will also collaborate with other members of the STC to generate 

large-scale functional myocytes and endothelial cells from embryonic 

stem cells. 

Affiliate Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology YingXiao 

(Peter) Wang, will develop genetically encoded reporters based on fluorescent 

resonance energy transfer to visualize and quantify signaling 

transduction in live cells with high tempo-spatial resolution. These 

tools will be specifically designed and applied to monitor the intracellular 

molecular activities when cells interact with their neighbors 

and with the surrounding mechanical/physical/chemical environment. 

The results should provide spatio-temporal maps of molecular 

activities and hierarchies governing the cell-cell and cell-environment 

interactions. 

Alumni Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology Martha Gillette, 

co-director of research for the project, will study clusters of neurons 

with genetically engineered properties that control clusters of myocyte 

and endothelial cells in micro-environments. 

The Center aims to advance research in complex biological systems, 

create new educational programs based on this research, and demonstrate 

leadership in its involvement of groups traditionally underrepresented 

in biology, physical science, and engineering. • 

Neurons will serve as sensors in the biological machine, but they will also need to be able to control the muscle cells to pump chemicals through vessels. 

Image of neurons by Larry Millet and Janet Sinn-Hanlon, Visualization Laboratory of the Imaging Technology Group. 


FACULtY NEWS 


NeW fAculty 

retiremeNtS 

iN memoriAm 

iN memoriAm 

Eric Bolton and Hee Jung Chung were 

hired as assistant professors of molecular 

and integrative physiology. Bolton and 

Chung received their Ph.D.s in 2002 from 

Johns Hopkins University-SOM, Baltimore, 

MD, and completed post-docs at the University 

of California, San Francisco. 

Professor Bolton’s research is focused on 

regulation of development and homeostasis 

by hormonal signals. Professor Chung 

focuses on activity-dependent regulation of 

potassium channels in synaptic and intrinsic 

plasticity. 

Professor Eric Jakobsson retired in 

August, 2009, after thirty-eight years in the 

Department of Molecular and Integrative 

Physiology. He came to Illinois as a research 

associate and visiting assistant professor, 

before he joined the tenure track in 1972 

and progressed up to professor. 

Joan Dawson retired in December, 2008. 

She joined Molecular and Integrative 

Physiology as an associate professor in 

1985, and had additional appointments in 

the College of Medicine, the Department 

of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and 

Bioengineering. 

Richard Gumport (1937-2009) 

Richard I. Gumport (Ph.D. 1972), professor 

emeritus of biochemistry, retired associate dean of 

the College of Medicine, and a native of Pocatello, 

Idaho, died Oct. 13, 2009, at his home in Chicago. 

Professor Gumport had a particular interest in 

learning how enzymes and proteins interact 

with DNA sequences. As professor emeritus, he 

continued to publish articles and mentor undergraduates. 

Edwin Goldberg (1923-2009) 

Affectionately known as “Dr. Ed,” Professor Edwin 

Goldberg obtained his M.D. degree in 1949, 

and subsequently completed internal medicine 

residencies at North Cambridgeshire Hospital 

in Cambridge, England, and at Cook County 

Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Ed and his wife Jeanne 

endowed three separate professorial chairs: The 

Edwin E. and Jeanne Bullock Goldberg Endowed 

Chairs in Molecular and Cellular Biology and 

Molecular and Integrative Physiogy, and The 

Benjamin R. and Elinor W. Bullock and Edwin E. 

and Jeanne Bullock Goldberg Endowed Chair in 

Integrative Biology. 

Professor Eric Bolton 

Professor Hee Chung

Select receNt 

PuBlicAtioNS 

Book ANNouNcemeNtS 

A major new textbook, Tutorial on Neural 

Systems Modeling, by Professor Tom Anastasio 

on computational neuroscience has just been 

published by Sinauer Associates. The book of 

542 pages explains how to create computer 

models of systems of interacting neuron-like elements 

(or units). The theme that unifies all of 

the models is that the response properties of the 

units, which are compared with those of real 

neurons, emerge as a consequence of the computation 

being performed. The link between 

observable properties and useful computations 

provides insight into the ways in which real 

neural systems may actually work. 

Professor of Biochemistry Stephen Sligar 

and colleagues have successfully recreated 

integrin activation in vitro, resolving longstanding 

uncertainties about the cellular 

mechanisms behind the process. Their 

findings, “Recreation of the terminal events 

in physiological integrin activation,” are 

published and spot-lighted in the January 

4th issue of the Journal of Cell Biology. 

jcb.rupress.org/cgi/content/full/188/1/3 

In a new study published in Cell, and 

rated “exceptional” by the Faculty of 1000 

Biology, Professor of Biochemistry Jim 

Morrissey and colleagues have determined 

that polyphosphate, an inorganic polymer 

of phosphate secreted by human platelets, 

is an important link in thrombotic diseases 

and inflammation. 

www.cell.com/fulltext/S0092-8674(09)01374-9 

In a new study, Assistant Professor of Molecular 

and Integrative Physiology Kevin 

Xiang and colleagues report that betablockers 

can have a helpful, or harmful, 

effect on the heart, depending on their 

molecular activity. The study, which appears 

in the journal Circulation Research, 

found that beta-blockers that target both 

the alpha- and beta-receptors on the heart 

muscle offer the most benefit to cardiac 

patients, while those that target only the 

beta-receptors can actually undermine the 

structure and function of the heart. 

circres.ahajournals.org 

Associate Professor of Molecular and Integrative 

Physiology Jongsook Kim Kemper 

is the lead author on a paper published 

in Cell Metabolism: “FXR Acetylation Is 

Normally Dynamically Regulated by p300 

and SIRT1 but Constitutively Elevated in 

Metabolic Disease States.” 

In new papers appearing in October in 

Science and the Proceedings of the National 

Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Associate Professor 

of Biochemistry and Biophysics and 

Computational Biology Raven H. Huang 

and his colleagues describe the first RNA 

repair system to be discovered in bacteria. 

This is only the second RNA repair system 

discovered to date. 

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry 

and Biophysics and Computational Biology 

Maria Spies (see page 12) and Professor 

of Biophysics and Computational Biology 

Taekjip Ha are contributing authors of an 

article published in Molecular Cell: “Single- 

Molecule Analysis Reveals Differential 

Effect of ssDNA-Binding Proteins on DNA 

Translocation by XPD Helicase.” The issue 

includes a preview article that summarizes 

the findings using an elegant metaphor. 

Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology 

David Clayton and colleagues have 

discovered that the gene expression of a 

zebra finch is altered when the bird hears 

a new song by a bird of the same species. 

The findings were published in PNAS and 

reported in Science Daily and the Wall Street 

Journal. 

Sulfolobus islandicus, a microbe that can live 

in boiling acid, is offering up its secrets to 

researchers hardy enough to capture it from 

the volcanic hot springs where it thrives. In 

a new study, which has received international 

attention, a team of researchers led 

by Assistant Professor of Microbiology Rachel 

Whitaker report that populations of S. 

islandicus are more diverse than previously 

thought, and that their diversity is driven 

largely by geographic isolation. The study 

appeared in PNAS. 

Due for publication by Stipes Publishing Co. is 

a book entitled A History of Nerve, Muscle and 

Synapse Physiology that was started by the late 

Professor C. Ladd Prosser and completed with Professors 

Brian Curtis and Essie Meisami as coauthors 

and editors. In 600 pages and 24 chapters, 

the book traces the history of the development of 

the physiology and neurobiology of nerve, muscle 

and synapses from the seventeenth century to the 

late twentieth century. The focus is on the historical 

development of facts, techniques and ideas 

regarding nerve, muscle and synapses. Brief biographies 

of the major personalities are provided by 

Professor Meisami. 


hoNorS, AWArdS 

Professor of Microbiology William Metcalf 

has been elected to Fellowship in the American 

Academy of Microbiology. Academy 

Fellows are elected annually through a selective 

peer-review process, based on scientific 

achievement and original contributions to 

advanced microbiology. 

Professor of Molecular and Integrative 

Physiology Milan Bagchi was appointed a 

University Scholar by the chancellor. The 

University Scholars Program was initiated 

to honor outstanding faculty. The program 

targets mid-career faculty who are associate 

professors or who have held the rank of 

full professor for no more than four years. 

Awards of $10,000 per year may be used at 

the faculty member’s discretion to enhance 

their scholarly work. 

Swanlund Professor of Cell and Developmental 

Biology and Molecular and 

Integrative Physiology Benita Katzenellenbogen 

received the 2009 Brinker Award 

for Scientific Distinction in basic science 

and clinical research from the Susan G. Komen 

for the Cure foundation for her work 

investigating breast cancer treatments. 

This is the highest award of merit given by 

the nation’s leading breast cancer activism 

organization. Katzenellenbogen is being 

honored for pivotal laboratory work that 

led to a better understanding of how drugs 

like tamoxifen and raloxifene work on a 

molecular level to fight and prevent certain 

breast cancers. (See page 5.) 


Colin Wraight, former head of the Department 

of Biochemistry, is the recipient of 

the 2009 MCB Faculty Excellence Award. 

This award is made to recognize outstanding 

contribution to the instructional and 

research missions of the School of Molecular 

and Cellular Biology and the University 

of Illinois. In addition to a prominent 

plaque display, a reception will be held next 

year to celebrate his receipt of this award 

as well as to thank Colin for his service as 

Department Head in Biochemistry. 

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics 

Maria Spies was selected to receive 

a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) 

Early Career Scientist Award. The institute 

will fund her research for six years, totaling 

over one million dollars of support. Professor 

Spies also received the 2010 Margaret 

Oakley Dayhoff Award from the Biophysical 

Society. This prestigious award honors 

Spies’s impressive achievements in biophysical 

research at the early stages of her academic 

career. It also recognizes her promise 

as an emerging leader in the scientific community. 

According to the Biophysical Society, 

Spies was selected for “her exemplary 

research into the mechanisms of DNA repair 

and the cell cycle maintenance machinery.” 

Professor Spies and her work were featured 

at the Awards Symposium during the 54th 

Annual Meeting of the Biophysics Society in 

San Francisco. (See page 12.) 

Gutgsell Endowed Professor of Biochemistry 

John Gerlt has been selected by the 

American Chemical Society as an ACS 2010 

Award Winner. Professor Gerlt was one of 

ten national candidates to receive an Arthur 

C. Cope Scholar Award sponsored by the 

Arthur C. Cope Fund. 

Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental 

Biology Brian Freeman received the 

2009 Educator’s Award from the UI Alumni 

Association in April. He was nominated by 

Joyce Woo, a graduating senior who entered 

the U of I at age 14. “As a student, there are 

few ways I can thank an individual who has 

served as a leader, role model and mentor,” 

Woo wrote, saying she considered it 

“an honor to have studied under a brilliant 

scientist and great person.” 

Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology 

David Clayton has been appointed 

a Fellow of the Canadian Institute for 

Advanced Research. As a member of the 

Experience-Based Brain and Biological 

Development Program, he will work with 

a distinguished collective of international 

researchers to consider how early social 

experiences change neural, endocrine, and 

immunological systems. 

Professor of Biochemistry Robert Gennis 

is one of four faculty invested as a Harry 

E. Preble Endowed Professor. A celebratory 

event was held in September 2009.

MCB GRADUAtES 

graduate degrees 

Biochemistry 

brian bae, Ph.d. 

natalie bowerman, Ph.d. 

chio Mui chan, Ph.d. 

Kui chan, Ph.d. 

hsin-Yang chang, Ph.d. 

Yuan-hung chien, Ph.d. 

lisa cooper, Ph.d. 

hyun Ju lee, Ph.d. 

bo li, Ph.d. 

Yan ling Joy Pang, Ph.d. 

tiit lukk, Ph.d. 

robert Pugh, Ph.d. 

Vincent Pureza, Ph.d. 

John rakus, Ph.d. 

doreen Victoria, Ph.d. 

Ke Yang, Ph.d. 

Wei Yuan, Ph.d. 

chun zhou, Ph.d. 

Jia-Peng zhu, Ph.d. 

cell and 

developmental 

Biology 

Kensey amaya, Ph.d. 

Ivraym barsoum, Ph.d. 

anne cheever, Ph.d. 

Yan hu, Ph.d. 

zeynep Madak-erdogan, Ph.d. 

undergraduate degrees 

B.s. Biochemistry 

William Joseph beeler 

resty daniaty borhan 

natalie a. bowerman 

elliott J. brea 

hsin-Yang chang 

Yuan-hung chien 

lisa e. cooper 

sharon M. fluss 

caitlin heiderscheidt 

charles William hespen 

Piotr Karwowski 

John Kim 

Kimberly Jean lavin 

hyun Ju lee 

bo li 

Jessica Whitney luzwick 

nazihah Mohd salehan 

Michael lawrence Morgret 

christopher J. novotny 

Yan ling Joy Pang 

Min Ji Park 

brendan Powers 

robert allen Pugh 

Vincent s. Pureza 

Joseph M. radosevich 

John frank rakus 

harshvardhan V. singhania 

doreen c. Victoria 

brian chien-Wei Wang 

Julia laura elizabeth Willett 

Wei Yuan 

chun zhou 

Jia-Peng zhu 

nurul aqilah zulkepli 

B.s. molecular 

and cellular 

Biology honors 

concentration 

Meghan angley 

catherine crosby 

John davis 

rachel fiddler 

Vivian h. lee 

diana W. lone 

nga Man Juliana lui 

Kevin owen Mcnerney 

tarana nekzad 

branden J. skarpiak 

B.s. molecular and 

cellular Biology 

daniel bradley abbott 

amanda lynn affetto 

Irwin allen aguilar 

ammar W. ahmed 

raheel W. ahmed 

Yousif al rawi 

arij Masood alam 

ryan Michael alberts 

hussain samir ali 

lauren M. allegretti 

alicia christine allen 

amjad essam alomari 

Kaushik amancherla 

Ian Paul anderson 

nirav n. antao 

daniel Joseph armbrust 

Peter garrett arreguin 

dinanath Praveen attele 

zahabiya aziz 

favin babu 

cici bai 

amanda Mae banas 

eun Joo bang 

andrew J. barfield 

brian christopher barnes 

hector Miguel barrera 

Kelsey lizabeth bates 

Philip sebastian bell 

robin benjamin 

helena berezowskyj 

Kenneth charles berg 

gaurav beri 

Vikas beri 

Jacob ezequel bermudez 

elizabeth ann berry 

Jaimie d. bhagat 

shweta bhatt 

tushar K. bhattacharya 

Pratik bhojnagarwala 

bryce evan bidwell 

Jacob bierman 

John Patrick birk 

Martynas blistrabas 

alon bloom 

Melissa Marie boulukos 

Jessie bower 

Patrick Michael boyle 

david John bradshaw 

Whitney stina brandt 

William andrew bremer 

samantha gabrielle brewer 

Jacqueline brom 

Marie ann brown 

Michael bumroongsuk 

Kyuyoung byun 

ava louise caffarini 

Joshua dane carleton 

caitlin lee carmichael 

courtney cathryn caruso 

courtney caskey 

Joseph randolph cates 

ruta cepaitis 

Van lian ceu 

randy Michael chan 

rashi chandra 

logan K. chastain 

Michelle tamara chavez 

catherine etienne chen 

Yuan-hung chien 

Imran chishti 

brian cho 

edward hyungjin cho 

gi Jung cho 

James sungjoon cho 

grace Yun choe 

nag bum chu 

christina M. ciardiello 

Kevin M. clark 

Kayesha dania cobb 

James g. condis 

alexander a. connelly 

Victoria J. coraglio 

Patrick couture 

Michael christopher croix 

Maria tsambika cucuras 

christina Jo cudzewicz 

emmett culligan 

christopher cummings 

cheryl cwik 

robert James czuprynski 

catherine Mary daley 

christopher daley 

James anthony damore 

Julie K. davis 

Maureen erin davis 

rachel day 

ellyn rose rivera de Jesus 

henry reyes del rosario 

geraldine delos santos 

Kristofer Kenneth dempsey 

sarah allyson dePesa 

emily K. derus 

nicholas e. desanto 

christian andrew dewan 

Jana lynne didomenico 

alexandra leigh difulvio 

caitlin anne donahue 

reshma donthamsetty 

Julia drubinskaya 

colleen c. druffel 

stephanie ann dunlap 

lacie laine durand 

zaneta dymon 

Mark dziuba 

ashley ann edinger 

cyril ramathal, Ph.d. 

abhilasha rao, Ph.d. 

Yupeng zheng, Ph.d. 

microBiology 

luciana amado, Ph.d. 

brian budke, Ph.d. 

James davis, Ph.d. 

dylan dodd, Ph.d. 

soojin Jang, Ph.d. 

robert Jeters, Ph.d. 

gargi Kulkarni, Ph.d. 

dongxia lin, Ph.d. 

rina opulencia, Ph.d. 

ella rotman, Ph.d. 

Inna ekelman 

bachar hassan el haj hassan 

dina d. elmuti 

theresa lynn emmerling 

Viktoriya ermilova 

bradley s. evans 

Megan emily evans 

Melanie sarah evans 

Yi fang 

omar fareedi 

demat fazil 

timothy V. feldheim 

nicholas stephen feller 

danilo alberto fernandez 

Kara M. fiorenza 

nicole Kristen fisch 

Michael thomas fiscus 

steve J. fisher 

Patricia M. flores 

Jason Michael forbrook 

ashley a. franklin 

sara Kathleen fuhrhop 

rakesh gadde 

hannah gee 

samantha ghanayem 

Marjaneh sara ghasemi 

Michael bryan gilbert 

ashley drew ginsberg 

Karolina K. glaz 

adam bradley gluskin 

Mital Pratap gohil 

alexander P. golden 

tara nasrine goodarzi 

Patrick robert grady 

James christopher groberg 

Kathleen Marie guarna 

Michael John gutbrod 

John sung ha 

darren James hackey 

grant richard hahn 

Jenna Marie hall 

Marcus steven hancock 

stephan eugene hanowsky 

ryan e. hanson 

Katherine ann harden 

christa rene’ harlin 

Jordan lee harp 

tyler James harpole 

brittany harrington 

Kami renee harris 

spencer thomas hart 

emily ann havansek 

humera sadaf hazari 

Pearl he 

James t. heeres 

James William henderson 

sarah her 

Kelly hermann 

William leland hernan 

christopher allen ho 

david christoph hodge 

amanda elizabeth hoelscher 

sarah elizabeth hoene 

I-chun I. hsu 

Jonathan l. hsu 

scott In hur 

zayn syed husain 

Maryam hussain 

sadia hussain 

roveiza Irfan 

Jennifer Ivarson 

Karen elizabeth Jackson 

swetha Jalli 

david Mark Jandura 

scott e. Janus 

sadaf Javaid 

Justyna Janina Jedynak 

brad c. Jelinek 

brian P. Johnson 

christina Marie Johnson 

brandon d. Jordan 

Jihyun Jun 

Julie anna Jurgens 

Monika teresa Kadzielawa 

Jacob thomas, Ph.d. 

Jian zhang, Ph.d. 

Jessica chubiz, M.s. 

molecular and 

integrative 

physiology 

carol curtis-ducey, Ph.d. 

Jessie nicodemus Johnson, Ph.d. 

bhaskar Ponugoti, Ph.d. 

zachary sellers, Ph.d. 

Wei Wang, Ph.d. 

Matthew s. Kamps 

rachel Miriam Kaplan 

Kate Karberg 

benjamin david Katz 

Jamie elizabeth Keating 

domenick edward Kennedy 

russell alan Kesman 

soon J. Ki 

heu Yeon Kim 

Jason J. Kim 

Mary e. Kim 

christina Michelle Parker Kirk 

andrew s. Kleczek 

Jeanine Knicker 

steven douglas Knutson 

eun Ik Koh 

leigh sojka Komperda 

Kayvon Kord 

anna Kosztowski 

Jacqueline alyce Kramer 

sarah Marie Kristofik 

Kimberly Marie Kruk 

Paul edward Kukulski 

arun Kumar 

Jenny Kwak 

richard James lawley 

Jeanne le 

daniel stuart leach 

christine shinyoung lee 

daniel Yoon lee 

gordon r. lee 

Jeewhan lee 

Matthew b. lee 

sarah Young lee 

Yoon soo lee 

haley bryn leesley 

amy elizabeth lewis 

bo li 

Xuan li 

Michael M. liberman 

amanda christine lipon 

sebastian artur lisowski 

benjamin Kwan liu 

andrew William logeman 

Megan Joanne logsdon 

nina lopez 

Matthew John lorenz 

scott William lotz 

stephen James luchtefeld 

Jenna Marie lungaro 

erin Marie lusk 

Martin Patrick lynch 

Justin Macklin 

eduardo Magallanes 

umar Mahmud 

Monica Majumdar 

dhuha Maki 

Kaitlin Marie Malloy 

omar Justin Manlapaz 

steven Michael Markwell 

alexander dale Martin 

helena anna Maryniarczyk 

ndunge elizabeth Masesi 

Mathew Mathis 

Jeffrey Paul Mayer 

renee Mcalister 

lucy Justine Mccommas 

brian s. Mcdonough 

rachel Quinn McMahon 

shaun sadruddin Mehdi 

bryan anthony Mendes 

brian James Mendralla 

Moheet Mehboob Merchant 

Jason r. Michaels 

zachary arthur Miksanek 

brent Miller 

Kayleigh anne Miller 

Jessica Kyung-hwa Min 

alberto Miotto 

Michael andrew Mkrtschjan 

christopher t. Molitor 

andrew robert Mollo 

Matthew steven Monaghan 

Michelle erin Moore 

hatice seda Kaya, M.s. 

Jiyoung lee, M.s. 

Kieran normoyle, M.s. 

Vesna tosic, M.s. 

Biophysics and 

computational 

Biology 

eduardo cruz, Ph.d. 

sharlene denos, Ph.d. 

John eargle, Ph.d. 

Krithika ganesan, Ph.d. 

huazhi han, Ph.d. 

aleksandra Kijac, Ph.d. 

rommel cruz Morales 

cory rose Moser 

Melissa Mottonen 

brendan Mulhern 

timothy James Murphy 

alessandra Musetti 

Ketan Prakash nadkarni 

beth Michelle neighbors 

Mary Jane newell 

Kim-Phung t. nguyen 

lan t. nguyen 

tran nguyen 

evelyn c. nieves 

alyssa d. noak 

douglas brian nobbe 

William Matthew noel 

Matthew J. o’donnell 

Jamie Michelle olmstead 

Jamie olson 

brittany lynn openbrier 

zoheb osman 

ryan david overmeyer 

Pratik J. Pandya 

rincy rachel thomas Panicker 

gina Marie Papke 

alexander seung-hyun Park 

allen Joon-hyung Park 

amanda eunjung Park 

Kristen leanne Partyka 

colleen anne Pastuovic 

avani navin Patel 

bhavin Patel 

bindiya g. Patel 

chandni hitesh Patel 

chinmay Patel 

Jason r. Patel 

Jaymin P. Patel 

Karishma ajay Patel 

Kunal s. Patel 

Kushal P. Patel 

Mayur Patel 

nirav Mahendrakumar Patel 

Puja Patel 

tejas bipin Patel 

Michelle elaine Peiss 

samuel Joseph Pera 

robert William Perreira 

claire nicole Pescheret 

Manvika Pisitpong 

Jacqueline Marie Podrebarac 

Jovan Popovic 

raihan shafi Pothigara 

Mychal Kelly Powell 

stephanie nicole Presmyk 

emily Kathleen Puchalski 

anupama Krishna Puppala 

akif zeshan Qureshi 

Joseph daniel raab 

laura ann rachwalski 

bharath raju 

Jeffrey adam recchia-rife 

revanth eswaravaka reddy 

grant Michael reed 

elizabeth Marie regan 

shane Michael regnier 

david andrew reif 

Matthea rentea 

ashley elizabeth richter 

Phylicia anne robins 

emilie catherine robinson 

erin P. robinson 

Katie lauren rockwell 

benjamin I. rogier 

lauren Michelle rogowski 

hyeun seung roh 

Mark andrew rolla 

carolyn elyssa roloff 

thomas Joseph rose 

Kevin donald ross 

diana ruiz 

heather Marie rybar 

sara ryoo 

hye Young ryu 

sadaf safavinejad 

oleksandr Kokhan, Ph.d. 

eric lee, Ph.d. 

Myat lin, Ph.d. 

elijah roberts, Ph.d. 

ayano sakai, Ph.d. 

leonardo trabuco, Ph.d. 

neuroscience 

darien hall, Ph.d. 

diana thomas, Ph.d. 

amla sampat 

James William sanner 

Maheen fatima sayeed 

Jeremy schlake 

John leonard schneider 

charles richard schwartz 

ryan William scott 

Julie ann sedlacek 

Kiruthika selvadurai 

eric Michael senger 

leonid a. serebryannyy 

shreya Jitendra shah 

brittany a. shubert 

carly blair silverman 

david simison 

Jeffrey Michael singh 

Maheshwardeep singh 

sevgi sipahi 

nicholas Patrick slattery 

daniel J. slavicek 

timothy r. smith 

Joshua eric smothers 

daeho song 

david Yongmin song 

Wayne robert stephens 

stephanie Jeanne sterling 

Jonathon robert stevens 

cassie Marie stromayer 

Joon hooh sung 

sean swearingen 

abdul Majid syed 

christina grace tarazi 

Matthew thomas teasdale 

sonia tellez 

frank albert tenuto 

soe h. tha 

rima s.thakkar 

timothy david theobald 

sidney blaine thompson 

lisa tran 

Joel truffa 

caroline sayre trumpy 

luke tseng 

amy l. turenne 

Ikechukwu V. ujari 

angie catalina umana 

Michael a. Vander Pluym 

Merlin Varghese 

Jacob aloysius Varney 

Prathyusha Venkata 

aashesh n. Verma 

Jane ann Vilderman 

daniel J. Volpe 

stacy Vucich 

erik brian Wachholder 

Jennifer Marie Walsh 

rick Wang 

rebecca rose Warszalek 

christine Weaver 

benjamin ross Weber 

donghui Wei 

asher ben Weisberg 

elise l. Wessol 

anna Witowska 

richard ted Wlodarski 

arielle alice Wolf 

bryant McKay Wood 

Katherine f. Wu 

rabia Yaqub 

faiza tahir Yasin 

Joanne nari Yoo 

Ji hee Yoon 

Jun sik Yoon 

Wei Yuan 

thomas hyonuk Yun 

alexander eric zajac 

helio alejandro zapata 

hua zhou 

brian Joshua zider 

zachary alexander zobens 

This list is an unofficial list of degree recipients from summer 2009 through spring 2010. Due to printing deadlines, the list may contain inaccuracies. 


University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 

School of Molecular and Cellular Biology 

393 Morrill Hall 

505 South Goodwin Avenue 

Urbana, IL 61801 

www.mcb.illinois.edu 

department of biochemistry 

department of cell and developmental biology 

department of microbiology 

department of molecular and integrative physiology 

Nonprofit org. 

U.S. postage 

PAID 

Champaign, IL 

Permit no. 75

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