Work-in-Progress Series
To foster cross-disciplinary conversations about ongoing GEM-related research, the GEM Community hosts monthly Work-in-Progress talks. These informal science talks take place at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, located on UB's Downtown Campus.
We are actively seeking UB faculty, post-doc and student speakers for the GEM Work-in-Progress series! Contact Sara Thomas at msthomas@buffalo.edu to present your work.
Spring 2025 Work-in-Progress Speakers
Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Monday, January 27, 2025 at 4:00 p.m.
“Defenders vs. Invaders: The Role of Restriction Factors in HIV-1 Defense”
Room 2213A, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, UB Downtown Campus
Amit Kumar, Ph.D.
Research Scientist, Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Monday, February 24, 2025 at 2:00 p.m. (Note: Time change)
"Ferredoxin Reductase (FdxR) mutations and stability: a link to mitochondriopathies and neural atrophies"
Room 2213A, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, UB Downtown Campus
Associate Professor, Director, Center for Climate Change and Health Equity, Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Health Professions
Monday, March 24, 2025 at 4:00 p.m.
"Application of Patho-microbial community patterns at the One health interface for prioritization of community-based infectious disease prevention interventions"
Room 2213A, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, UB Downtown Campus
Past Work-in-Progress Speakers
Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"DNA barcoded libraries to discover functions in human gut bacteria," Monday, November 25, 2024
"Hijacking bacterial translesion DNA synthesis for therapeutic gain," Monday, October 28, 2024
Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"When good bugs go wild: How commensal microbiota shape chronic airway disease trajectories, " Monday, September 23, 2024
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
“Emerging role of MECOM on AR activity in Treatment-Resistant Prostate Cancer” Monday, April 29, 2024
Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, UB Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
"Creation and Maintenance of Polarized Cell Structure in Humans," Monday, March 25, 2024
Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, UB Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Regulation of global transcription by chromatin architectural proteins in retina,” Monday, February 26, 2024
Assistant Professor, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Obesity and Cardiac Arrhythmias," Monday, November 7, 2023
Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, UB Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
"Uncovering the mechanisms of birth defects using human pluripotent stem cells," Monday, September 25, 2023.
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, UB College of Arts and Sciences
"Structure and dynamics of RNA in biomolecular condensation," Monday, August 28, 2023.
Jamal Williams, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Demonstrating the Need for Ancestrally Diverse Data in Genetic Autism Research," Monday, April 24, 2023
"Application of wastewater-based epidemiology to track COVID-19: opportunities and challenges", Monday, February 27, 2023
Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
“Regulatory Pathways that Control Cell Differentiation in Fungi”, Monday, January 23, 2023
Director, Witebsky Center for Microbial Pathogenesis & Immunology
Associate Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, and Biochemistry, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Small tumor virus replication: viral helicases and cellular polymerases," Monday, November 28, 2022 at 4:00 pm
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
"Famine, microbes, and growth: A delicate balance that shapes human evolution and health," Monday, September 26, 2022
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
"Hunting for a role for Huntingtin, the Huntington’s disease protein during axonal transport," Monday, April 25, 2022
"Leveraging a donor eye repository to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying age-related macular degeneration," Monday, March 28, 2022
Director, Coalesce Center for Biological Art
Professor & Program Head, Emerging Practices, Department of Art, College of Arts and Sciences
"BioArt in the Public Sphere," Monday, February 28, 2022
Director of Community Translational Research, Department of Family Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
"Community Engagement Efforts for COVID Vaccination," Monday, January 24, 2022
Associate Professor, Department of Oral Biology, School of Dental Medicine
"Heparan Sulfate in Cathepsin K biology," Monday, November 22, 2021
Co-Director, Genome, Environment and Microbiome (GEM) Community of Excellence; Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Genomic surveillance of SARS‐CoV‐2 in Erie County highlights the need for regional surveillance," Monday, October 25, 2021
Professor and Division Chief, Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"New Insights into Mitochondrial Medicine," Monday, September 27, 2021
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
"Role of NAD+-dependent deacetylases (sirtuins) in filamentation of two fungal pathogens," Monday, August 30, 2021
Jamie Abott, PhD
Research Assistant Professor,
Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Gary Iacobucci, PhD
Postdoctoral Associate,
Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Keith McArthur
CEO and Head of Science, CureGrin Foundation
“GRIN Disorders: A rare neurodevelopmental disease of the NMDA Receptor”, Monday, May 24, 2021
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"The Airways Microbiome: Focus on COPD and Lung Cancer," Monday, April 26th, 2021
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology, School of Dental Medicine
"Uncovering the roles of phages in the ecology of Porphyromonas gingivalis," Monday, March 22nd, 2021
Professor of Empire Innovation, Director UB Microbiome Center, Department of Oral Biology, School of Dental Medicine
"Unraveling inter-species cues that promote microbiome dysbiosis", Monday, February 22nd, 2021
Research Professor, Department of Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Complement, Microbiome and Lupus", Monday, January 25, 2021.
Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Polymicrobial interactions in the catheterized urinary tract", Monday, November 23rd, 2020
Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
"Targeting the extracellular adenosine pathway to control Streptococcus pneumoniae infection in aged hosts", Monday, November 25, 2019.
Associate Professor, Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health and Health Professions
"Gaming-based introduction to genetics using dragon breeding in the high-school classroom", Monday, October 28, 2019
Stefan Ruhl, DDS, PhD
Professor, Department of Oral Biology, School of Dental Medicine
"Straight from the Mouth: Glycan Recognition at the Host-Microbiome Interface", Monday April 29, 2019 .
“Identification of genetic and epigenetic determinants in cardio-oncology”, Monday, March 25, 2019
Professor and Chief, Infectious Disease; Vice Chair for Finance; Department of Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
“Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae, an evolving public health threat”, Monday, February 25, 2019
Professor, Department of Biochemistry; Director, Genetics, Genomics and Bioinformatics Graduate Program
“Genes for Buffalo - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, November 26, 2018
Associate Professor & Director of Community Translational Research, Department of Family Medicine
Director of UB CTSI Community Engagement Core
"Breast cancer genetic testing in African Americans: opportunities to improve knowledge and patient-provider communication", October 29, 2018
Virginia Del Solar Fernandez, PhD
Glycoscience Postdoctoral Associate, Genome, Environment & Microbiome (GEM) Community of Excellence
"‘Omics’ approaches to the study of carbohydrates", August 27, 2018
Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Biochemistry
“Regulating the Regulator: Arginine methylation and life cycle stage modulate the function of a master RNA binding protein in trypanosomes”, May 21, 2018
Daniel I. McSkimming, PhD
Bioinformatics Research Scientist, Genome, Environment & Microbiome (GEM) Community of Excellence
"Identifying Keystone Bacteria in Microbiome-Associated Diseases", April 30, 2018
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
"How pathogenic fungi monitor NAD+ levels to sense nutrient availability and modulate genome architecture accordingly", March 26, 2018
Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
“Evolutionary Interplay Between Human Genetic Variation, the Skin Microbiome, and Psoriasis”, February 26, 2018
Professor, Clinical Instructor, Department of Oral Biology
"Posttranscriptional Regulation of Oral Immunity and the Microbiome", October 30, 2017
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
"The Airway Microbiome and Lung Cancer in a COPD Cohort", September 25, 2017
Research Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
Professor and Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Director, UB Microbiome Center;
Distinguished Professor of Oral Biology, Periodontics, Microbiology
“Protists and Fungi in the Oral Microbiome” - Gerald Koudelka, PhD & Mira Edgerton, DDS, PhD, August 28, 2017
“Pilot Study of Placental, Oral, and Gut Microbiome Related to Pregnancy” - Vanessa Barnabei, MD & Robert Genco, DDS, PhD, August 28, 2017
Lixin Zhu, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics
“Bile acid metabolizing microbiome in the gut and the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.” , June 26, 2017
“PPI effects on gut microbiota in diabetic kidney disease patients”, June 26, 2017
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering
"Tracking Sources of Microbial Pollution in Lake Erie Using Culture-Based Methods and Next Generation Sequencing," April 24, 2017
Associate Professor & Associate Chair, Department of Theatre and Dance
Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry
"Deriving Genetic Variations from Functional Genomic Assays," August 29, 2016
Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
"Glycoscience: The Art of Making Sugars of Different Kinds," May 23, 2016
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
"An Evolutionary Perspective on the Gut Microbiome--Lessons from Whales," April 25, 2016
Research Associate Professor, Department of Biotechnical and Clinical Laboratory Sciences
"An Introduction to GENI-ACT: A Novel System to Introduce Students to Microbial Genome Analysis," March 28, 2016
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry
"So You Want to do Microbiome Research," February 22, 2016