Boston University Department of Biology

Graduate Student Profiles

Four of our current students write about their experiences below. To learn more about the range of research being conducted in the department, please take a look at recent dissertation titles and publications by our graduate students.

Stephen Amato

Cell and Molecular Biology 

As an undergraduate at the State University of New York at New Paltz, I participated in an internship program at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals during summer and winter breaks. Working on a project regarding vaccine development, I became familiar with a variety of molecular biology techniques and gained hands on experience in biomedical research. This work instilled in me a deep appreciation for what research can accomplish and prompted me to pursue additional training as part of a graduate school education.

While evaluating potential graduate programs, I was impressed with the diversity of biological research being performed at Boston University. With the focus of their labs ranging from cancer to behavioral neuroscience, I was confident that I would find a lab that, not only interested me, but one that I would work well in. Furthermore, with numerous universities and biotech companies residing in the area, Boston will provide a variety of opportunities for academic interactions.

Upon entering Boston University, my first laboratory rotation was in the cellular/molecular neuroscience laboratory of Dr. Hengye Man, focusing on synaptic plasticity and glutamate receptor trafficking. I immediately found that neuronal development, a new direction in the lab, presented unique and fascinating questions, well suited to my molecular biology background.

The focus of my research is on understanding the signaling pathways that control energy homeostasis within the neuron and how these pathways contribute to neuron morphogenesis during normal development or under pathological conditions. Boston University has provided me with access to an outstanding staff of faculty, whose continued guidance over the years has directly added to my development as a scientist and the advancement of my research.

Christine M. Snyder

Cell and Molecular Biology 

My interests in cell and molecular biology began at Ursinus College, Pennsylvania where I had the opportunity to engage in a variety of research and teaching opportunities as an undergraduate Biology major. I studied, in part, the origin of diploid-triploid mosaicism in hybrid freshwater minnows and meiotic exit defects in single-cell stage C. elegans mutant embryos. During this time, I also had the opportunity to study the efficacy of antimicrobial peptides as therapeutic agents against various bacteria during a summer internship at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia. From these experiences, I found that I really enjoyed biology research and the rewarding nature of experimental problem-solving.

I am currently pursing my Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology at Boston University, where I am provided the unique opportunity to teach undergraduates while completing my thesis research in one of the most prominent biotechnology hubs in the U.S. At BU, I’ve had the pleasure of teaching undergraduates for six semesters as well as participating in BioBugs, a high school biology outreach program. In addition to gaining considerable teaching experience and improving my presentation skills, I’ve also expanded my research repertoire in the lab of Dr. Frank Naya whose work focuses on the molecular mechanisms controlling the development and function of mammalian cardiac and skeletal muscle. As a part of the Naya Lab, I have gained experience working with knockout mouse models, performing primary cell culture from tissue, and generating adenoviral RNAi delivery systems for the study of gene function. Currently, I am in my fifth year with the Naya Lab, completing an exciting research study which profiles the role of the Mef2A transcription factor, and the microRNA mega-cluster it controls, to regulate Wnt signaling and proper skeletal muscle regeneration in mice.

Iker Etchegaray

Neurobiology 

The start of my scientific life began as an undergraduate. I started school at BU in the fall of 04’ and at the beginning I was looking to study anything that didn’t involve doing more than a bachelor’s (In other words no PhD). I was completely undecided, trying out various majors including but not limited to journalism, linguistics, and sociology. However, BU has a 2 class science requirement and one of the classes that I took to satisfy it was biology. After a couple lectures, I completely fell in love with the subject. It boggled my mind that nature, and in particular the brain, could be so sophisticated in its machinations. At that point I decided to become a Biology major concentrating in Neuroscience. Once I became a major in Biology I came to the conclusion that lab experience was the best way to get a job after college. With that in mind I started conducting research with Dr. Susan Tsunoda. In particular I was trying to uncover the mechanisms of signaling translocation in the compound eye of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. While trying to discover how these tiny little suckers were able to move proteins responsible for producing what they consider vision, I ironically dropped the no more school attitude and decided to pursue a PhD.

Fast forwarding to the present, I am now a PhD candidate working in the lab of Dr. Kim McCall and surprisingly I still work on the fruit fly. Specifically I work on elucidating the effectors of cell removal, through phagocytosis, in the Drosophila ovary. The Drosophila ovary is a great model for studying phagocytosis. Upon the removal of amino acids from a fly’s diet, the ovaries start to undergo cell death. It is during this time that cells in the ovary, termed follicle cells, begin to remove dead cells that have accumulated in this organ. To study cell removal in the ovary, we use immunohistochemistry and genetics to discover the mechanisms underlying this process. I also plan to work on the brain of the fly. In particular I want to uncover the processes controlling the response that brain phagocytes, glia, engage in when presented with cell death. Hopefully these tiny little suckers will help me once more in answering these engaging questions.

Eva Fast

Neurobiology

I have always liked adventures and exploring beyond what is familiar. This curiosity was one of the reasons why I first decided to leave my native home country Austria and come to the US to do research for my undergraduate degree. Although I was studying Biotechnology in Austria, working for eight months in a developmental neuroscience lab at the Dana- Farber Cancer institute got me really interested in basic research. During my time in Boston I also fell in love with the city which with its unique research environment unites scientists regardless from which country they are from. Therefore, I decided to extend my stay by pursuing a PhD here. Deciding on a specific school was not easy but a good friend of mine at the time gave me an important piece of advice: “Go to the school where the graduate students seem most happy, because you still want to like research by the time you finish your degree!” So I ended up at Boston University. Additionally I was really impressed by the breadth of research in the Biology department that really fosters collaboration across many disciplines.

Because of my former research experience in developmental neuroscience I entered the NEURO program but I actually ended up working more on developmental biology. I joined the Frydman lab where we study how Wolbachia, obligate intracellular bacteria, get transmitted vertically through the female germline of insects. Our lab has evidence that Wolbachia target the stem cell niches that maintain stem cells in the Drosophila ovary. I am currently ending my fourth year of graduate school and being in the graduate program at BU has definitely strengthened my desire to continue a career in science in the future. I am excited to figure out where my next research- adventure will lead me to.

Katie Faust Stryjewski

Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution

Ever since I was young, I have been interested in birds. As an undergraduate at Louisiana State University, I had the opportunity to work in a laboratory at the Museum of Natural History, where I was first exposed to molecular genetics and how to use it to learn about the evolutionary of populations and species. While birds remained my passion, I developed a broader interest in evolution, particularly questions related to the processes of speciation and adaptation.

Here at Boston University in the lab of Dr. Michael Sorenson, I am working with a group of 12 species of estrildid finches in the genus Lonchura that occur in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and surrounding islands. While these birds vary greatly in plumage coloration and to a lesser degree in bill size, they are genetically almost identical, which indicates a very recent, rapid radiation from a common ancestor—one of the fastest reported in birds. Additionally, several of these species have widely overlapping ranges, yet do not appear to extensively interbreed, implying that barriers to gene flow developed very quickly. I am using a combination of field studies, next-generation sequencing methods, and morphological analysis to determine the phylogeographic history of this clade, infer current and past levels of gene flow, look for evidence of reinforcement of reproductive isolating mechanisms, and identify regions of the genome potentially under selection.

Attending Boston University was a perfect fit for my desire to do research combining traditional field ornithology and specimen collection with cutting-edge molecular techniques and analyses. BU’s ever-growing Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution program has faculty engaging in a wide range of research topics and laboratory techniques, and the friendly atmosphere fosters collaboration and discussion among labs. Its location in Boston, the home of so many educational and scientific institutions, puts a number of additional resources in reach. BU has given me the opportunity to pursue my passion, equipping me to explore and discover new things in both the field and the laboratory.

Andrew Reinmann

Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution

From the first time I set foot in a forest I have been captivated by the beauty of these ecosystems. While getting my bachelor’s degree at Binghamton University my perspective was broadened and I became intrigued by all things related to the natural world. My research experiences were largely focused on the ecology and behavior of birds and small mammals; however, my research interests always wandered back to forest ecology. I went on to get a master’s degree in forestry at the University of Maine where I studied the impacts of tree harvesting on nutrient cycling in spruce-fir forests. As a master’s student I developed an interest in biogeochemistry and the ‘real world’ applications of ecological research.

After completing my master’s research I was a biologist for a non-profit environmental research institute in New York. I worked with municipalities to incorporate biodiversity conservation into town planning and created a framework for quantifying the carbon footprint of different types of land-use change that could be applied to municipal-level climate change mitigation strategies. Working at the interface between science and policy I became keenly aware of how the gaps in our understanding of ecosystem processes can limit the efficacy of policies aimed at addressing environmental problems. With an interest in improving our understanding of the variables that influence carbon sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems I came to Boston University to work with Dr. Pamela Templer.

My dissertation research is focused on quantifying the role of winter climate change in carbon storage in temperate forests. Forest ecosystems play an important role in mitigating climate change by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; however, the extent to which climate change may alter their ability to store carbon remains uncertain. We are conducting a snow removal experiment at Harvard Forest in central Massachusetts to study the effects of reduced winter snowpack on forest carbon dioxide exchange. We are also looking at the relationships between plant phenology (i.e. timing of leaf-out and root biomass production), photosynthesis, stem carbon dioxide efflux, and soil respiration to elucidate the importance of the interaction of these processes in total ecosystem carbon dioxide exchange.

The Biology Department at Boston University has proven to be a perfect fit for me as I pursue a career in forest ecology and biogeochemistry. The diversity of research interests among students and faculty in the ecology, behavior, and evolution program has fostered the development of unique ways of approaching science. This program has also provided me with opportunities to conduct research at world renowned field sites and collaborate with scientists across many disciplines and from many different universities.

Nikki Traylor-Knowles

Marine Biology

While studying cellular and molecular biology at Johns Hopkins University, I started to get interested in coral reef research during my second semester freshman year. After graduating, I continued my studies at Johns Hopkins and did a Master’s which focused on the development of cell culture techniques for coral stress studies. After I completed my Master’s, I took a year off to apply to graduate schools while pursuing Middle Eastern dance training, and traveling.

The reason that I chose to come to Boston University for my Ph.D. was that I liked the diversity of the department, the collaborative spirit of the faculty, and the fact that I could rotate in labs, before having to decide where I wanted to work. I also liked the location of Boston University.

Since being at Boston University I have had the fortunate experience to work in Drs. John R. Finnerty and Les Kaufman labs. I have been studying the molecular and transcriptomic aspects of wound healing in cnidarians, with a focus on corals. This work has taken me to some really awesome places like Hawaii, Australia, and Taiwan. I am now in my 6th year and working on finishing my last experiments, and writing my thesis, to defend in the late summer of 2011. After I have graduated, I will begin a postdoctoral position at Stanford University in the fall.

Benjamin H. C. Carr

Marine Biology

I received my bachelor's degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Cornell University with a specialization in Marine Biology. Dr. Charles Greene and Dr. Bruce Monger of the Geology Department, now the more aptly-named “Earth and Atmospheric Sciences” Department, advised my research project which used IDL programs to analyze ocean color data derived from the NASA SeaWIFS satellite. The research tracked the start of spring phytoplankton bloom events in the North Atlantic.

After graduating I worked on two projects with Dr. Mark Bain at the, now closed, Center for the Environment at Cornell University. The first project studied the biocomplexity of Lake Ontario and its tributary rivers and bays. When the field season for that project came to an end I moved to a position on a project analyzing the estuarine environment along the eastern Hudson River, south of the George Washington Bridge. We spent many weeks aboard the R/V Acipenser, dodging ice flows and piling fields trying to ascertain the health of inter-pier communities that had been damaged by dredging. Which was balanced by lots of time in the warm lab; huddled over a microscope, identifying invertebrates to species, often by their number of sex organs. I then spent two field seasons working under Dr. Roy Stein at the Aquatic Ecology Laboratory at Ohio State University as the head technician on a walleye parental influence study on Lake Erie.

Over the years I have also been involved in oceanographic work, beginning as a hydrographer on the last Western Atlantic GLOBEC broad scale survey for NOAA with Dr. Peter Wiebe as Chief Scientist, aboard the now retired (and very seasickness inducing) Albatross IV out of Woods Hole, MA. I also served as the Chief Hydrographer on a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution cruise from Newfoundland to Greenland and then to Iceland. My job just before joining the BU PhD program was as a Research Associate in the Physical Oceanography Department at WHOI. There most of my time was spent on the ARGO Float network and the remotely operated SPRAY Gliders. One of the greatest perks of this job was getting to launch and recover the gliders from a variety of vessels like the Sea Education Association’s sailing vessel SSV Corwith Cramer, commercial fishing boats like the MV Moreau out of New Bedford, and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences’ RV Henry M. Stommel and RV Weatherbird II, including one cruise on the latter as Chief Scientist.

I am member of Dr. Les Kaufman’s lab where I am analyzing the long-term dynamics of marine ecosystems in the Northwest Atlantic. Central to my research are the exploitation and conservation of two species; the Atlantic Cod (Gadus Morhua), a species fished in the region for hundreds of years, long before permanent European settlement; and the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus Thynnus), a fish that is principally flash frozen, shipped around the world, and consumed as sushi in Japan. My project however looks at more than just these two focal species and takes a more holistic approach to studying the region. I am trying to bridge the gap between basic science and the decisions that affect conservation and policy.

My hope is that my research will in some small way contribute to the creation of Ecosystem Based Fishery Management and Marine Spatial Planning for the area.

Since joining BU I have also served as Vice-President and President of the Biology Graduate Student Association (BGSA), a great organization that brings together all of the disciplines under the Biology Department “umbrella,” allowing the sharing of research and ideas and fostering a sense of community. This past year I was a GLACIER (Global Change Initiative, Education, and Research) GK-12 fellow placed at the Graham and Parks K-8 School in Cambridge, MA. There I helped teach and enrich 7th and 8th grade science classes and curriculum, also serving as a role model and an example of a professional scientist. I look forward to the 2011-2012 school year where I will again be a GK-12 fellow in a middle school, however my placement has not yet been finalized.