Cell Biology 2020

Dr. Aguilar obtained his PhD degree in Immunochemistry from the School of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Dr. Aguilar pursued his post-doctoral training at the National institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD in the lab of the well-known cell ... biologist Dr. Juan Bonifacino. In 2005, after a period as Associate Research Scientist at The Johns Hopkins University (in Dr. Beverly Wendland lab), Dr. Aguilar joined the Faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences at Purdue University. There, his group studies the mechanisms linking endocytosis and signaling in health and disease. In order to pursue its research goals, the Aguilar lab routinely use biophysical, biochemical and genetic approaches.

Dr. Antonio T. Baines is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) and an adjunct professor in the Department of Pharmacology in the School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Chapel Hill. He earned a ... bachelors degree in biology from Norfolk State University and a doctorate in pharmacology and toxicology from the University of Arizona. Afterwards, Dr. Baines accepted a postdoctoral fellowship at UNC in pharmacology and radiation oncology under Drs. Channing Der and Adrienne Cox. His research focused on understanding the role of the Ras oncogene as a molecular target in pancreatic cancer oncogenesis. In August 2006, Dr. Baines accepted a tenure-track faculty position at NCCU where he currently teaches and conducts research as a cancer biologist. Also, he mentors high school, undergraduate, and graduate students in his laboratory. Pancreatic cancer is the 4th most common cause of cancer deaths in the United States with a high mortality rate and very limited treatment options. The overall focus of Dr. Baines research program is to identify and validate novel molecular targets in pancreatic cancer which can be targeted by potential cancer therapeutics. Additionally, his lab aims to understand the role of these molecular targets in the development and progression of normal cells transforming into cancer cells of the pancreas. Currently, Dr Baines studies the functional significance of the oncogenic Pim kinase family in pancreatic cancer growth and development. He hypothesizes that inhibition of these enzymes will be an effective approach for antagonizing the aberrant growth of pancreatic carcinoma. In addition to working with colleagues in academia, he collaborates with various pharmaceutical companies that are developing Pim inhibitors. Results from his studies will allow for critical validation of these kinases as novel therapeutic targets for pancreatic cancer treatment. Dr. Baines research has been funded by NIH and other grant sources. He has presented his research at various national scientific meetings such as the Society of Toxicology and the American Association for Cancer Research. In addition, Dr. Baines has given invited research seminars at universities such as Duke University, UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical (A&T) State University, Indiana University, North Carolina State University, University of Missouri-Kansas City and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Matt entered the research field over 24 years ago as a lab animal technician at the TSI/Mason contract research facility. Since then, he has worked at contract facilities such as TSI and OREAD Biosafety as well as in industry at Pharmacia, Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis, and Biogen ... During that period he has performed a variety of surgical procedures including device implantation, transplants, orthopedic defect, ocular and vascular implants, cardiac surgery, and brain and spinal procedures. His experience ranges from mice and rats to non-human primates and livestock. In addition, he holds four patents for novel surgical devices and implants and has been training technicians, scientists, veterinarians, and physicians in surgical techniques and procedures for over 18 years. Outside of the surgical realm, he has been a study director, sonographer, Safety Pharmacology scientist, and manager. Currently Matt supervises a team of associates at Biogen who conduct surgical and non-surgical studies. Matt was also on the board of directors for the Academy of Surgical Research for over ten years, serving as their program chair for three of them as well as educational chair for two. Currently he is the program chairman for the New England branch of AALAS.

Dr. Anthony A. Grace is a Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience and a Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University School of Medicine with Dr. Benjamin S. Bunney and had postdoctoral ... training with Dr. Rodolfo Llinas in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Grace has been involved in translational research related to the dopamine system for over 30 years. His early work pioneered the mode of action of antipsychotic drugs, and the identification and characterization of dopamine-containing neurons, and was the first to provide a means to quantify their activity state and pattern in a way that is the standard in the literature. His current work involves novel treatments for schizophrenia and its prevention, the role of dopamine in anhedonia and affective disorders, and the mode of action of ketamine and novel antidepressant drugs. Dr. Grace has received several awards for his research, including the Paul Janssen Schizophrenia Research Award and the Lilly Basic Scientist Award from the International College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the Efron Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, as well as a NIMH MERIT award, a Distinguished Investigator Award from the National Alliance for Research in Schizophrenia and Depression, the Judith Silver Memorial Investigator Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and appointment as a Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh. He is also a past member of the governing council of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology and is on the editorial board for numerous leading journals in the field.

Dr. Rowshanak Hashemiyoon is a scientific and executive consultant. She was the founder and head of the Human Brain and Behavior Laboratory in the Department of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery at the University Hospital of Cologne in Germany. Her academic work unites ... scientific research with clinical care. It focuses on identifying the altered network dynamics underlying the dysfunctional brain states of neuropsychiatric and neurologic disorders as well as fosters the development of novel treatments which alleviate the symptoms of these disorders. She has been involved in the study and development of time- and structure-adapted neuromodulation for disease-tailored treatment. A computational neuroscientist by training, she received her PhD with John Chapin from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia while studying the nonlinear dynamics of oscillatory behavior in the subcortical visual system. After a post-doctoral fellowship with David McCormick at the Yale University School of Medicine where she then studied the dynamics of thalamocortical activity in the somatosensory system during normal and epileptic states, she moved to the Center for Complex Systems in Florida to investigate large-scale human brain dynamics during dyadic interaction. While at the University of Miami, she reported the first longitudinal study in humans of the effects of DBS on the underlying neuropathophysiology in a psychiatric disorder. Her work described the dynamics of neuronal activation in correlation with the symptomatology observed in Tourette syndrome, offering important insights into tic genesis and expression. She has now expanded her work to studying the neuropathomechanisms of whole network dysfunction in a range of psychiatric and movement disorders in humans, including OCD, addiction and Parkinson's disease. A computational neuroscientist by training, she received her PhD with John Chapin from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia while studying the nonlinear dynamics of oscillatory behavior in the subcortical visual system. After a post-doctoral fellowship with David McCormick at the Yale University School of Medicine where she then studied the dynamics of thalamocortical activity in the somatosensory system during normal and epileptic states, she moved to the Center for Complex Systems in Florida to investigate large-scale human brain dynamics during dyadic interaction. While at the University of Miami, she reported the first longitudinal study in humans of the effects of DBS on the underlying neuropathophysiology in a psychiatric disorder. Her work described the dynamics of neuronal activation in correlation with the symptomatology observed in Tourette syndrome, offering important insights into tic genesis and expression. She has now expanded her work to studying the neuropathomechanisms of whole network dysfunction in a range of psychiatric and movement disorders in humans, including OCD, addiction and Parkinson's disease.

Andreas Jeromin, PhD, has more than 25 years of experience in CNS clinical diagnostics and companion diagnostics and co-authors more than 150 publications. He is the founder of Atlantic Biomarkers, Inc., and currently the consulting Chief Medical Officer to Quanterix Corp and ... member of several biomarker/CNS disorder consortia and working groups.

Brian McNally received his doctorate in Cell & Molecular Biology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, where he focused on the transcriptional mechanisms governing polycystic kidney disease, renal cancer and development. His post-doctoral fellowship concentrated on ... the regulatory relationship between the proteasome and Toll-like receptor signaling at the University of Maryland Medical School in the Department of Immunology and Microbiology. Brian has fifteen years of practical experience at the laboratory bench, and his work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at international conferences. In 2008, he transitioned to industry to commercialize new biomedical products including assays, reagents and software. Brian has been with Canon BioMedical since its inception last year. He is passionate about partnering with life scientists to develop the next wave of biomedical solutions.

Dr. Perret-Gentil serves as University Veterinarian and Director of the Laboratory Animal Resources Center (LARC) at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) as well as Attending Veterinarian for the South Texas Accelerated Research Therapeutics. His experience involves a ... Veterinary career since 1987, and Laboratory Animal Medicine since 1993. He has helped a number of institutions attain AAALAC International accreditation. Dr. Perret-Gentil received a B.S. in Animal Science & Industry, and a D.V.M. from Kansas State University. After obtaining his D.V.M., he practiced Veterinary Medicine in the U.S. Army. He later completed a residency in Laboratory Animal Medicine and an M.S. in Comparative Medicine at the University of Washington followed by an experimental/minimally invasive surgery post-doctoral fellowship at Ethicon Endo-Surgery. His industry and academic experiences include positions at Merck, Associate Clinical Professor in Animal Care Services and Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine at the University of Florida. He also obtained an academic appointment as Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, where he also served as the Institutional Veterinarian and Director of the LARC. Past research interests focused on minimally invasive surgery. His current interests are in rodent experimental surgery and biomethodologies as well as preparing programs for AAALAC International accreditation. As of August 2015, Dr. Perret-Gentil has published or contributed to 53 papers, articles, abstracts, two book chapters. He has presented (including scheduled presentations) 310 special presentations and workshops at various academic and research institutions, including national and international meetings. He serves as ad hoc Specialist for AAALAC International and consultant to the government, biotechnology industry and other institutions of higher education in the U.S. and abroad.