Research

Research in the Department of Biology spans the entire breadth of biology: from ecology and evolution to molecular, cellular, and developmental biology. Our research is supported by a wide array of funding sources, including NIH, NSF and the Welch Foundation.

Many departmental faculty members actively participate in campus-wide interdisciplinary graduate research programs, including Genetics & Genomics, Neuroscience, Molecular and Environmental Plant Sciences, and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology.

Neural Circuits, Regeneration, & Repair

Profile Photo of Jen Dulin

Jennifer Dulin

Dulin Profile | Dulin Lab Website

Neural stem cell transplantation and circuit mapping approaches to restore motor, sensory, and autonomic function following spinal cord injury

Isabella Farhy

Farhy Profile | Farhy Lab Website

Astrocyte-neuron communication; Mechanisms of synapse development and function; Astrocyte function; Role of astrocytes in mood disorders

L. Rene Garcia

Garcia Profile | Garcia Lab Website

Genetics of behavior and development in C. elegans

Richard Gomer

Gomer Profile | Gomer Lab Website

Tissue size regulation, wound healing, and fibrosing diseases

profile picture of Jason Karpac

Jason Karpac

Karpac Profile | Karpac Lab Website

Genetic modeling the complex relationships between nutrients, pathogens, metabolism, and immunity.

alex keene

Alex Keene

Keene Profile | Keene Lab Website

Neural regulation of behavior in flies and fish models

profile picture of Josh Lillvis

Josh Lillvis

Lillvis Profile

 Neural mechanisms of behavior variation and evolution.

Dylan McCreedy

McCreedy Profile | McCreedy Lab Website

Mechanisms of acute inflammation and tissue damage following spinal cord injury; three dimensional imaging of inflammation and neural circuit plasticity; neuroprotective and neural regeneration strategies

Bruce Riley

Profile | Lab Website

Genetic regulation of zebra fish development

Kathryn Ryan

Ryan Profile

Nuclear pore complex assembly and nuclear envelope dynamics using yeast as a model system

Michael Smotherman

Profile | Lab Webpage

Neurobiology of animal communication: sensory-motor integration

Joseph Sorg

Sorg Profile | Sorg Lab Website

Mechanisms of Clostridium difficilespore germination and bile acid resistance

Aref Zarin

ProfileLab Website

Developmental and experimental neuroscience; Formation and maintenance of sensory-motor circuits in Drosophila; Behavioral neurogenetics, neural circuitry underlying locomotor behaviors and action selection;  Transcriptional regulation of neuronal properties