PhD Program: Cell Biology & Physiology
| Name | PhD Program | Research Interest | Publications |
|---|---|---|
| Miller, Brian WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
The Miller lab is working to improve the efficacy of immunotherapy to treat cancer. We aim to develop personalized immunotherapy approaches based on a patient’s unique cancer mutations. We have a particular interest in myeloid cells, a poorly understood group of innate immune cells that regulate nearly all aspects of the immune response. Using patient samples, mouse models, single-cell profiling, and functional genomics approaches, we are working to identify novel myeloid-directed therapies that allow us to overcome resistance and successfully treat more patients. |
| Hantman, Adam PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
The Hantman Lab is interested in how functions emerge from network activity in the nervous system. Particularly, we study how the nervous system generates patterns of activity that control our bodies in the world. Our approach combines genetics, anatomy, physiology, perturbations, and a dynamical systems approach. |
| Thaxton, Jessica WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
The Thaxton laboratory studies the intersection of stress and metabolism in immune cells for applications in cancer immunotherapy. Our pursuits center around the biology of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). We aim to define how stress on the ER defines changes in protein homeostasis, metabolic fate, and antitumor efficacy of immune subsets in human tumors. In order to pursue our goals we collaborate vigorously with clinicians, creating a highly translational platform to expand our discoveries. Moreover, we design unique mouse models and use innovate technologies such as metabolic tracing, RNA-sequencing, and spectral flow cytometry to study how the stress of solid tumors impacts immune function. Ultimately, we aim to discover new ways to restore immune function in solid tumors to offer unique therapies for cancer patients. |
| Baldwin, Katie WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
Building a functioning brain requires an elaborate network of interactions between neurons and glia. We use mouse genetics, primary cell culture, quantitative proteomics, molecular biology, and super resolution microscopy to study glial cells during brain development. We are particularly interested in how astrocytes acquire their complex morphology and communicate with neighboring astrocytes, neurons, and oligodendrocytes. Furthermore, we are investigating how glial dysfunction drives the pathogenesis of brain disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, and leukodystrophy. |
| Wirka, Robert WEBSITE |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
Our lab uses human genetics to identify new mechanisms driving coronary artery disease (CAD). Starting with findings from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of CAD, we identify the causal gene at a given locus, study the effect of this gene on cellular and vessel wall biology, and finally determine the molecular pathways by which this gene influences CAD risk. Within this framework, we use complex genetic mouse models and human vascular samples, single-cell transcriptomics/epigenomics and high-throughput CRISPR perturbations, as well as traditional molecular biology techniques. |
| Hagood, Jim WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
I am a Pediatric Pulmonologist. My lab studies cell phenotype regulation in the context of lung fibrosis and lung development. We use in vitro and ex vivo models, mouse models, human tissue, and multi-omic approaches to explore fibroblast phenotypes in the formation of lung alveoli and in the pathologic modeling of lung fibrosis, and explore novel therapies for lung disease. Possible Rotation Projects: Markers of mechanotransduction in lung alveolar formation (immunofluorescence, bioinformatics) |
| Milner, Justin WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
The overall focus of our lab is to develop new and exciting approaches for enhancing the efficacy of cancer immunotherapies. We utilize cutting-edge techniques to identify transcriptional and epigenetic regulators controlling T cell differentiation and function in the tumor microenvironment, and we seek to leverage this insight to reprogram or tailor the activity of T cells in cancer. Our group is also interested in understanding how to harness or manipulate T cell function to improve vaccines and immunotherapies for acute and chronic infections. |
| Bowser, Jessica PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
We are studying tissue integrity and repair to develop innovative approaches for regenerative medicine and cancer prevention. We concentrate on highly regenerative (endometrial and intestinal) tissues and are particularly interested in how persistent inflammation influences the breakdown of biochemical pathways that oversee genome stability, stem cell plasticity, and cell adhesions and how these events influence future tissue repair and onset of disease, such as cancer. Projects employ a variety of molecular, cellular, biochemical, genetic, and machine learning techniques that span across cell culture systems, genetically engineered mouse models, and human tissues to understand the impact of acute and chronic inflammation on cell division, cytoskeletal dynamics, and DNA repair in regenerating epithelial cells. |
| Parnell, Scott E. WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
Our research focuses on the genetic and cellular mechanisms that underlie how prenatal exposure to alcohol and other drugs, such as cannabinoids, disrupt normal brain development. We use a wide variety of molecular and cell biology tools including RNA-seq (whole transcriptomic profiling), mouse transgenics, and confocal imaging to understand how drugs alter cell signaling pathways and transcriptional regulation in development. Our work also studies key regulatory pathways, such as Sonic hedgehog (Shh) and other primary cilia-mediated signals, during normal and aberrant embryonic development. |
| Scherrer, Gregory WEBSITE PUBLICATIONS |
PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST |
Pain is a complex experience with sensory and emotional components. While acute pain is essential for survival, chronic pain is a debilitating disease accompanied by persistent unpleasant emotions. Efficient medications against chronic pain are lacking, and the absence of alternative to opioid analgesics has triggered the current Opioid Epidemic. Our lab studies how our nervous system generates pain perception, at the genetic, molecular, cellular, neural circuit, and behavioral levels. We also seek to understand how opioids alter activity in neural circuits to produce analgesia, but also side effects such as tolerance, addiction and respiratory depression. To this aim, we investigate the localization, trafficking and signaling properties of opioid receptors in neurons. These studies clarify pain and opioid mechanisms for identifying novel non-addictive drug targets to treat pain and strategies to dissociate opioid analgesia from deleterious effects. |