Spring 2023 ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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Chair's Message
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Welcome to the relaunched BMB newsletter! I am excited to welcome you to the Spring 2023 BMB newsletter. It has been a terrific 9 months since I started here as chair of the department, taking over the reins from Dr. Bert Flanegan. During this time, I have continually been reminded of the key reasons that drew me to UF BMB: the exciting scientific opportunities, outstanding collaborative atmosphere, and world-class education. I continue to appreciate the support of leadership at UF, who are committed to the department’s success, including Dean Koch and Dr. Bihorac, Dr. Nelson, Dr. Norton, and Dr. Licht. College and University leadership’s support of fundamental, translational, and clinical science is a great encouragement to all we do. In a recent Dr. Gator highlight on UF BMB, I emphasized that UF is a scientific playground just waiting for discoveries to made. In this newsletter, we highlight a few of the recent key findings and people that make BMB an exciting place to achieve and succeed. In particular, I am excited about the increasing number of collaborative projects that are developing in the department. These collaborations are often centered around our departmental pillars, which will be strengthened and expanded in the upcoming year. And the future is even brighter! We are thrilled to have two new faculty candidates joining our department in the fall. Dr. Chen Zhao is completing her postdoctoral fellowship with Nobel Prize awardee Dr. Rob MacKinnon. She is a world-leading structural biologist who is doing cutting-edge research on the function and regulation of integral membrane proteins important for human health and disease. Dr. Zhipeng Li is also completing his postdoctoral fellowship at UC Berkeley under the mentorship of Dr. James Olzmann in the areas of cancer biology, redox biology and lipotoxic damage. Dr. Li has an outstanding publication record who will also bring outstanding scientific expertise to UF. You can see more detailed information on these two new faculty members in articles highlighted below. We are greatly looking forward to Dr. Zhao and Dr. Li joining us.
As with any organization, the most important aspect of UF BMB are the people that work here. You will see a number of people highlighted in this newsletter for their recent successes. I am excited to be part of this dynamic and collaborative community. In fact, multiple laboratories in the department have openings for trainees and scientists. Consider if you would like to join our team, building the future of UF BMB! And finally, a note of thanks to the outstanding and committed support staff in the department. They do a fantastic job ensuring efficient operations and future success of our department. A particular note of thanks to Teresa White for her leadership in relaunching the BMB newsletter. Going forward, this newsletter is for our all of us. If you would like to contribute a piece, please reach out to Teresa. We look forward sharing all of your successes with our BMB community.
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Chen Zhao, PhD
Dr. Chen Zhao comes to us from Rockefeller University where she completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the laboratory of Nobel Prize awardee, Dr. Roderick MacKinnon.
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Zhipeng Li, PhD
Dr. Zhipeng Li joins UF from UC Berkeley, where he has done some outstanding work in the laboratory of Dr. James Olzmann in the areas of cancer biology, redox biology, and lipotoxic damage.
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The Foundation for Discovery
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology provides road map for research in molecular life sciences.
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Doctoral Dissertation Mentoring Award
Congratulations to Dr. Robert McKenna for receiving the 2022-2023 Doctoral Dissertation Advisor/Mentoring Award!
"My philosophy of graduate education is simple: it should be a life-defining experience. With this in mind, I approach graduate student education with vigor and enthusiasm. I ask my students to give their very best towards their research endeavors."
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2023 Medical Guild Winner
Congratulations to Mario Chang for being a Silver Award Winner at the 2023 Medical Guild Research Symposium!
Mentor: Matthew Merritt, Ph.D
Topic: “Assessing Chemotherapeutic Efficacy In Vivo Using Deuterium Metabolic Imaging”
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Dr. Joanna Long Honored for 20 Years of Service
Dr. Joanna Long was recognized for 20 years of service at the recent College of Medicine Spring Faculty Awards ceremony. Congratulations, Dr. Long! We look forward to working with you for the next 20 years.
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Michael Kilberg, PhD, Retires After 42 Years
Dr. Kilberg, congratulations on your retirement! We are very appreciative and grateful for your example to UF COM faculty, trainees, students, and staff over the last 42 years. Your nearly 50-year run of discoveries regarding amino acid biochemistry in human health and disease is truly remarkable. Coupled with your outstanding mentoring, teaching, and service, you have been a pillar at UF and a model faculty member. Thank you for all that you have done for UF BMB.
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The BMB Undergrad Poster Symposium was held on April 6, 2023. We would like to thank all of those who presented posters and attended the event. A special "thank you" to the Office of Graduate Education and the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology for sponsoring this event!
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Dr. Mavis Agbandje-McKenna Undergraduate Poster Award
Michael YaoInvestigating the target-directed microRNA degradation in Xenopus laevis
Faculty Advisor: Mingyi Xie Lab Mentor: Nicholas Hiers
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2nd Place Poster Award
Robert DavisDetermining the binding site of Escherichia coli of single-stranded DNA binding protein on the YoaA-X complex
Faculty Advisor: Linda Bloom Lab Mentor: Savannah J. Weeks-Pollenz
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3rd Place Poster Award
Aleezeh ShaikhIsotopic Tracing of Glycolytic Metabolic in Glioblastoma Cells After Ketogenic Diet
Faculty Advisor: Matthew Merritt Lab Mentor: Anna Rushin
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Celebration of Research Poster Session
The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was represented at the 2023 College of Medicine Celebration of Research with over 20 posters from our students and faculty! Find a full list of posters and presenters below.
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Recent Publications
- Newcomb ESP, Douma LG, Morris LA, Bloom LB. The Escherichia coli clamp loader rapidly remodels SSB on DNA to load clamps. Nucleic acids research. 2022 Dec 13. Epub ahead of print.
- Sheng P, Li L, Li T, Wang Y, Hiers NM, Mejia JS, Sanchez JS, Zhou L, Xie M. Screening of Drosophila microRNA-degradation sequences reveals Argonaute1 mRNA's role in regulating miR-999. Nature Communications. 2023 Apr 13;14(1):2108.
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PI: Gentry, Matthew Defining APBD pre-clinical biomarkers and assessing a therapy in an APBD mouse model. Grant Type: Foundation Sponsor: Million Dollar Bike Ride - APBD Foundation Total Awarded: $49,677
PI: Long, Joanna National High Magnetic Field Laboratory Renewal 2023-2027 Grant Type: NSF Sponsor: NSF (FSU Sub) Total Awarded: $4,081,303
PI: Ramon Sun Novel Antibody-Enzyme Fusion Therapy Targeting Ewing’s Sarcoma Sponsor: The V Foundation for Cancer Research Type: Foundation Total Awarded: $62,192
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PI: Gentry, Matthew Brain Glycogen-Metabolism,Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Potential Grant Type: R35 Sponsor: NIH/NINDS Total Awarded: $5,310,487
PI: Ramon Sun Aberrant Glycogen Modulates Cerebral Glucose Metabolism in Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease Sponsor: NIH/NIA Type: R01 Total Awarded: $762,500
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Call for Alumni
If you are interested in being featured in a future newsletter let us know by completing the form below. Also, please forward the link to this form to as many alumni as you are in contact with so that we can have a comprehensive list for future newsletters and departmental updates.
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Share the Fun and Your Feedback
Send us pictures of fun events you participate in with your lab. See feedback from below for more information. If you have any suggestions on content you would like to see featured in a future newsletter please let us know! We would like to highlight any labs traveling to meetings, any presentations you might be giving, whether poster or speaking, etc. Let us know and take pictures!
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