Mentors in the Biosciences
Gagan Agrawal, Computer Science and Engineering, OSU
My interests are mainly in high-end computing and data mining. Of particular focus are statistical and other techniques for analyzing biological datasets including those related to gene sequences, gene expression, and protein folding. Another area is tools for high-end computing, including middleware, runtime, compiler, and algorithmic techniques for solving large scale computational and data-intensive problems.
Baltazar Aguda, OSU Medical Center
Systems biology and biomedical systems modeling. The focus of my research program is the mathematical and computational analysis of cancer networks - especially those involved in the cell cycle, apoptosis, and associated signaling pathways. There are on-going collaborations with cancer research groups at the Ohio State University and Georgetown University Medical Centers. For more information, visit http://people.mbi.ohio-state.edu/baguda/AgudaLab/
Michael Beattie, Department of Neuroscience, OSU
My research areas include neural development, plasticity and regeneration, spinal cord injury and recovery of function, cellular basis for neural growth and cell death, spinal cord reflexes, neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, and behavioral neuroscience.
Georgia Bishop, Department of Neuroscience, OSU
My research areas are anatomical, pharmacological, and physiological organization of the cerebellum including connections from the brainstem.
Anthony Brown, Department of Neuroscience, OSU
Axonal transport is the mechanism by which proteins and membranous organelles move along nerve fibers from their site of synthesis in the nerve cell body. This movement is essential for the growth and survival of axons, and it continues throughout the life of the neuron. I am interested in using mathematical modeling to test specific hypotheses concerning the mechanism of axonal transport.
John Buford, Physical Therapy, OSU
In the primate, the organization of systems for control of movement is remarkably similar to that of the human. From analysis of signals from neurons in multiple locations within the brain, the communication and coordination within neural networks is being deciphered. In my laboratory, students record for neurons in awake, behaving primates. Opportunities exist for neural network modeling among components of these circuits and analysis of neural influences within the circuits. Quantification of the strengths of connections between the brain and the muscles during movement is also required.
Ralf Bundschuh, Departments of Physics and Biochemistry, OSU
Research in the Bundschuh group revolves around the physical properties and interactions of biopolymers (largely nucleic acids but also some proteins) and statistical as well as algorithmic questions in biological sequence analysis. Current research includes projects on the thermodynamics and kinetics of RNA secondary structure, RNA editing, and protein sequence database searches.
Umit Catalyurek, Biomedical Informatics and Electrical & Computer Engineering, OSU
I have been working on runtime systems for data management and manipulation of very large databases, and hypergraph partitioning methods, with a particular focus on parallel computing applications. My current research focuses on runtime optimizations and systems software for efficient storage and processing of very large scientific datasets on disk-based storage clusters and in the grid environment.
Ramana Davuluri, Biomedical Informatics and Statistics, OSU
In recent years, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology tools have proven to be invaluable in biomedical research. The major goal of my laboratory is to develop statistically rigorous computational tools that will accelerate research in human cancer genetics and eventually translate into the clinical setting. My group is currently working on: (i) development of computational tools to annotate transcriptional regulatory regions in mammalian genomes; (ii) development of pattern recognition methods and statistical models to identity transcription factor binding sites, model transcriptional modules, and networks in hematopoiesis cell lineages; and (iii) development of robust databases and visualization tools for genomic data and annotations. For more information about my lab, please visit http://bioinformatics.med.ohio-state.edu.
John Enyeart, Department of Neurosciences, OSU
My research is focused on ion channels in secretory cells, and the exploration of their role in regulating hormone secretion and gene expression. I am interested in the possibility that electrically-coupled endocrine cells function as synchronized coupled oscillators, wherein hormone secretion is tightly linked to Ca2+ influx through synchronized oscillating membrane potentials. Secretion may be optimized in glandular cells through modulation of waveform amplitude and frequency. Mathematical models of electrical activity in cellular networks can be tested using electrophysiological methods, including patch clamp.
Virginia A. Folcik Nivar, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, OSU
virginia.nivar@osumc.edu
My research interests include the study of complex systems using agent-based modeling. I have created a model of the immune system that can be used to study many different aspects of disease. My current focus for this project is the study of potential mechanisms for the idiopathic interstitial lung diseases. I also have a project that involves studying the Medical Intensive Care Unit using agent based modeling, for the purpose of finding ways to improve compliance with best practices. In addition I am interested in applying computational methods including Artificial Neural Network analysis to medical data for the purpose of discovering new associations between patient phenotype, gene expression and disease processes.
Erich Grotewold, Department of Plant Cellular and Molecular Biology, OSU
One of the interests of my lab is to establish the architecture of regulatory networks in higher eukaryotes, using plants (Arabidopsis and maize) as models. We utilize combinations of genome-wide RNA profiling (microarrays) coupled with chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and genome-widel location analyses (ChIP on chip) to determine where transcription factors bind in the genome and what genes they directly control. This information is then used to populate our databases on plant transcription factors and cis-regulatory elements, with the goal to visualize regulatory motifs. We also investigate how transcription factors with very similar DNA-binding domains acquire regulatory specificity, primarily by interacting with other cofactors.
Sissy Meihua Jhiang, Physiology and Cell Biology and Veterinary Biosciences, OSU
My current research interests are in two areas: (a) characterization of signaling pathways induced by the activation of RET receptor tyrosine kinases in human cancers and clinical applications of the acquired information to improve medical care for patients with cancers of MEN 2 inherited cancer syndromes or papillary thyroid carcinoma; and (b) characterization and regulation of Na+/I- symporter(NIS) and its clinical applications in noninvasive tumor imaging in vivo and radioiodine therapy for human cancers by induced endogenous NIS expression or by NIS gene transfer to facilitate exogenous NIS expression.
Tahsin Kurc, Department of Biomedical Informatics, OSU
My research interests include data-intensive computing, where I have developed techniques, systems software, and middleware tools to provide support for storage, data management, and manipulation of very large scientific datasets. In particular, in high-performance computing area, I am interested in domain decomposition techniques for efficient distribution of data and computation in scientific and engineering applications on distributed-memory machines, and the application of parallel computing in scientific visualization.
Jeff Kuret, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry and Center for Molecular Neurobiology, OSU
This laboratory studies molecular mechanisms underlying Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. One aspect of our program focuses on the discovery of small molecule ligands that bind and also block the formation of neurofibrillary lesions, which are comprised of proteinaceous filaments. We are interested in applying mathematical modeling in conjunction with inhibition kinetic data to clarify the mechanism of action of these ligands.
Stuart C. Mangel, Department of Neuroscience, OSU
We use the vertebrate retina, which is part of the brain, as a model system for understanding brain function due to its easy accessibility and well-characterized inputs. My laboratory is currently pursuing two research objectives using electrophysiological, neurochemical, anatomical, and computational techniques. First, we are studying how a circadian (24-hour) clock, a type of biological oscillator, in the retina modulates cellular processes and chemical and electrical synaptic transmission to control adaptive state so that the retina can respond to visual images in both the day and night during which the ambient or background illumination changes by approximately 8 orders of magnitude. Second, we are studying the cellular, subcellular, and neural network mechanisms that underlie the computation of the direction of image motion in the retina. The neural coding of the direction of stimulus motion, which is a classic example of local neural computation, is a common feature of the nervous system.
Karl Obrietan, Department of Neuroscience, OSU
My laboratory utilizes a combination of cellular, molecular, and behavioral approaches to examine the second messenger signaling and transcriptional pathways that regulate biological timing. Another area of research examines the cellular signaling events that couple changes in cytosolic calcium to transcriptionally-dependent forms of neuronal plasticity in the cortex and hippocampus.
Mike Ostrowski, The Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, OSU
My lab has a long-standing interest in understanding how signaling pathways elicit selective changes in gene transcription in mammalian cells. More recently, we have become interested in understanding interactions between signaling pathways locating the different cell types involved in these complex biological processes of cancer cell progression and normal cellular differentiation. For example, a breast tumor is composed not only of the epithelial-cell derived tumor cell, but also stromal cells, endothelial cells, and immune cells including macrophages, B-cells and T-cells. It is the interaction of these cell types through complex signaling networks that are likely to be important for tumor cell progression and metastasis and not just the action of individual signaling pathways within the epithelial tumor cell.
John M. Robinson, The Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, OSU
My laboratory studies intracellular trafficking of membranes and certain protein molecules(e.g., IgG) in cells and tissues. We are particularly interested in specialized microdomains of the plasma membrane known as caveolae. Caveolae are thought to be enriched in certain lipids (i.e., sphingolipids and cholesterol) and a number of proteins associated with signal transduction events including caveolin. In addition, we are interested in the cytoskeleton of cells and how these polymeric supermolecular assemblies regulate the intracellular movements as well as motility of cells.
Andrej Rotter, Department of Pharmacology, OSU
My research areas include: molecular neuroanatomy of developing cerebellar circuits and synapses and developmental regulation of neurotransmission involving glutamate and GABA/benzodiazepine receptors. My more recent interest is in genomics.
Wolfgang Sadee, Department of Pharmacology, OSU
The effective application of genomic information to drug discovery and therapy promises a revolution in the treatment and prevention of disease. Current databases - on gene expression, proteomics, polymorphisms, tissue banks, drug effects and toxicities, and clinical outcomes - expand exponentially. Yet, the enormous complexity of the data impedes our ability to extract key elements relevant to therapy. Our challenge is to develop a mathematical/statistical approach to the design and interpretation of complex data sets from laboratory experiments and clinical trials.
Dale D. Vandre, Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, OSU
Research in Dr. Vandre's laboratory examines posttranslational modification of cytoskeletal proteins involved in regulating cell cycle progression, cell differentiation, and degeneration. Current studies include development of proteomic, RNS interference, and immunocytochemical approaches to examine the functional properties of cytoskeletal proteins and the mechanisms of action for new cancer chemotherapeutic agents.
Tom Waite, Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, OSU
Our research interests fall in the fields of evolutionary ecology and biodiversity science. In evolutionary ecology, we use optimality models to study decision making under cognitive constraints, focusing on violations of rationality. We use game theoretic and genetic algorithm models to study evolution of cooperation among selfish agents. With colleague Kevin Passino, we also use evolutionarily inspired models for biomimicry in engineering. In biodiversity science, we use quantitative methods to evaluate extinction risk and macroecological processes.
Mike Zhu, Department of Neuroscience
My lab focuses on the structure and function relationship of cation channels. Some of these channels mediate calcium influx following the stimulation of phospholipase C and thus control calcium homeostasis inside the cells. These channels have different activation and inactivation kinetics and are modulated by a number of cellular factors. Our challenge is to model the changes of intracellular calcium concentrations as functions of channel activity under different physiological conditions. The proposed models will be tested using electrophysiological and calcium imaging techniques.
