Recent News

Andrew Willoughby selected for Joint Genome Institute’s 2025 Community Science Program!

Andrew Willoughby, a Nimchuk lab alum and May 2024 PhD graduate, was selected as one of the 18 scientists for JGI’s 2025 Community Science Program Annual Call. He will be working to sequence Gesneriaceae genomes to help understand plant regeneration. … Read more

Brian Lerch awarded one of the Best Publications in Animal Behaviour!

Brian Lerch’s paper titled “Male-mediated early maturation unlikely to evolve via adaptive evolution” has been selected as one of the Best Publications in Animal Behaviour. The publication combines theory with a long-term field study to argue that early sexual maturation … Read more

Chimney Swift birds take flight at UNC’s Davie Poplar tree, feat. Profs. Haven Wiley & Keith Sockman

On the evening of Oct. 2, community members gathered around the historic Davie Poplar on McCorkle place, eagerly awaiting thousands of Chimney Swifts, a type of small bird, to fill the sky. During the event, fittingly called “Swift Night Out,” … Read more

Biology professor helps build 1,000 microscopes for NC schools

FROM THE WELL: Carolina professor Bob Goldstein has led DIY microscope workshops across the state for nearly a decade. Every so often, an exuberant second grader will burst into Christine Sawyer’s classroom with an object they found outside – a … Read more

Vox: This coral reef has given scientists hope for years. Now they’re worried. -Featuring John Bruno and Sophie McCoy

If you plunge into the warm, blue waters of the Caribbean today, what you’ll see in most regions is actually quite bleak. Where there were once vibrant coral reefs teeming with sharks, groupers, and lobsters, there are now piles of … Read more

One Bird’s Physics Trick For Flying At High Altitudes – Science Friday – Featuring Jonathan Rader (Matute Lab)

If you’ve ever taken a trip to a higher elevation, you know that the air gets thinner as you go up. If you’re not acclimated to the altitude, it can feel harder to breathe. That thinner air also makes it … Read more

Ty Hedrick – Fish That School Together Save Energy, Study Finds, New York Times

“…That individual fish have a harder time swimming against eddies “is not exactly shocking,” said Ty Hedrick, a biologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who was not involved in the work. “After all, getting knocked around … Read more

Rachel DuMez-Kornegay (R. Dowen Lab) Featured in UNC Research Endeavors Podcast!

Noor Singh (Gordon Lab), “The Rac pathway prevents cell fragmentation in a nonprotrusively migrating leader cell during C. elegans gonad organogenesis,” Current Biology

The C. elegans hermaphrodite distal tip cell (DTC) leads gonadogenesis. Loss-of-function mutations in a C. elegans ortholog of the Rac1 GTPase (ced-10) and its GEF complex (ced-5/DOCK180, ced-2/CrkII, ced-12/ELMO) cause gonad migration defects related to directional sensing; we discovered an … Read more

Michael Werner, Amy Maddox Lab Published in Current Biology (and on the cover!)

Mechanical and biochemical feedback combine to generate complex contractile oscillations in cytokinesis https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.037 The actomyosin cortex is an active material that generates force to drive shape changes via cytoskeletal remodeling. Cytokinesis is the essential cell division event during which a … Read more

Biology Graduate Student Stephanie Peak Mentors EMES SURF Student: The Well

Think of a coral’s skeleton as a house in which tiny algae live and produce nutrients that feed the coral. That cooperative living arrangement, known as symbiosis, is what Rachel Geyer is studying. As part of her Summer Undergraduate Research … Read more

UNC-Chapel Hill researchers investigate chemical modifications to gain deeper insights into genetic regulation mechanisms, feat. Duronio Lab

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers [Duronio Lab] have determined whether a specific chemical modification of a protein that packages the genome called a histone affects gene activity and cell proliferation according to the paper, “Drosophila melanogaster Set8 and … Read more

UNC senior researches cicadas’ impact on food web dynamics

Alexander Smith (Allen Hurlbert Lab) used his Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship to explore how the bugs’ cyclical emergence changed some animals’ feeding habits around the Triangle. The emergence of millions of cicadas across North Carolina caused a buzz in parts … Read more

Welcome Derek Cain, Associate Chair for Business Administration

We are pleased to announce that Derek Cain has started as the new Associate Chair for Business Administration in the Department of Biology, effective Monday, July 8, 2024. Derek earned a Master’s of Business Administration in Health Care Management from … Read more

Michael Werner, Amy Maddox Lab Published in Current Biology (and on the cover!)

Mechanical and biochemical feedback combine to generate complex contractile oscillations in cytokinesis https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.037 The actomyosin cortex is an active material that generates force to drive shape changes via cytoskeletal remodeling. Cytokinesis is the essential cell division event during which a … Read more

SHARK WEEK! feat. John Bruno, Joel Fodrie, and more!

From The Daily Tar Heel: UNC academics research shark ecology and mislabeling of shark meat in grocery stores “…At UNC, sharks take the limelight for longer than a week, with many professors and students researching and studying the creatures year-round. … Read more

Dr. Patricia Gensel featured in UNC Endeavors!

Upon first glance, the fourth floor of Wilson Hall on UNC-Chapel Hill’s campus is no different from the rest of the biology department building: fluorescent lighting, white tile floors, ancient wooden desks in professors’ offices. But then Patricia Gensel leads … Read more

Dr. Parul Johri Receives Early Career Award!

Dr. Parul Johri has received the prestigious Early-Career Excellence Award from the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. This award is intended for outstanding members of the SMBE community who are in the early stages of an independent research career … Read more

Dr. Ty Hedrick research in PNAS, “It pays to follow the leader: Metabolic cost of flight is lower for trailing birds in small groups”

Many bird species commonly aggregate in flocks for reasons ranging from predator defense to navigation. Available evidence suggests that certain types of flocks—the V and echelon formations of large birds—may provide a benefit that reduces the aerodynamic cost of flight, … Read more

Salomé Jaramillo Gil (Bruno Lab) Featured in UNC Research!

Salomé Jaramillo Gil’s research journey began during her undergraduate studies in Colombia, where she studied the habitat preferences of the yellow stingray in the Caribbean. Then, she moved to Mexico, where she pursued a master’s degree in marine ecology, affording … Read more

UNC Endeavors features class of 2024, undergraduate researcher Sarah Broyhill!

That’s a Cap! Undergraduate researchers from Carolina’s 2024 graduating class share how research has shaped their college experience.

DUNKED! Lillian Zwemer dunked during the Carolina Cancer Association “Dunk-A-Professor”

Carolina Cancer Association holds a “Dunk-A-Professor” fundraiser in support of the Be Loud! Sophie Foundation, which benefits adolescent and young adult cancer patients at UNC Hospitals. The event was held in the Pit on April 25. In this image, Lillian … Read more

Biology Staff Member Honored for ‘Herculean’ Work

In 1981, her senior year, Summer Montgomery took a class unrelated to her major in radio, television and motion pictures: Botany 10. Now, 43 years later, Montgomery works as a student service specialist for UNC-Chapel Hill’s biology department in Coker … Read more

Hollings Scholarship Awarded to Three UNC-CH Undergraduate Researchers

Congratulations to Clara DiVincenzo, Lucy Henthorn, and Isabel Leonard, who were recently awarded the prestigious National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship! Clara DiVincenzo is a sophomore at UNC majoring in Biology and Statistics and Analytics with … Read more

Recent Publications by Xiao Feng!

Dr. Feng and his lab have been featured in several recent publications. Below are a couple of highlights: Rethinking ecological niches and geographic distributions in face of pervasive human influence in the Anthropocene, Biological Reviews – a theoretical work (termed … Read more

Katherine Malinski (Kingsolver & Willett Labs) Receives 2-Year Postdoctoral Fellowship at Smithsonian!

Read more about the Peter Buck Postdoctoral Fellowship.

What Makes Tiny Tardigrades Nearly Radiation Proof, Featuring the Goldstein Lab

The Goldstein Lab was recently published in Current Biology along with The New York Times! The paper, “The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris dramatically upregulates DNA repair pathway genes in response to ionizing radiation,” explores new research finds that the microscopic “water … Read more

Corey Johnson, Winner of the 2023-2024 Tri-Beta Biology Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award!!

TriBeta is a society for students, particularly undergraduates, dedicated to improving the understanding and appreciation of biological study and extending boundaries of human knowledge through scientific research. Congratulations Dr. Johnson!!!

Lillian Zwemer Recipient of the 2024 Out in STEM Inclusive Teaching Award!

This award recognizes a professor and TA from UNC’s STEM departments who have created an inclusive and celebratory environment for diversity. Honorees were chosen through majority nomination by their students. oSTEM (Out in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) empowers LGBTQ+ … Read more

Jeff Dangl Recipient of Philip N. Benfey Arabidopsis Community Lifetime Achievement Award

Congratulations to Jeff Dangl, who is a recipient of the inaugural Philip N. Benfey Arabidopsis Community Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Benfey was a renowned Arabidopsis biologist who passed away in 2023. This award was established in honor of Dr. Benfey … Read more

Congratulations to our Spring 2024 Phi Beta Kappa Biology Initiates!

Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most honored college honorary society, inducted 298 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill students as new members. Less than 1% of all college students qualify for acceptance. The recent induction ceremony featured … Read more

Rachel Dumez-Kornegay & Rob Dowen: Probiotics in kombucha found to mimic fasting and reduce fat stores in C. elegans model

“These findings are significant as they are consistent with purported human health benefits of kombucha tea, which include protection against metabolic diseases, improved liver function, and reduced fat accumulation.” — Rob Dowen, PhD Read more about the study in Medical … Read more

Greg Copenhaver leads UNC along with 9 other partner institutions to create new “Ag Tech Corridor”

Through a new NSF Engines award, Carolina and nine partners will develop a plan for a 42-county Agricultural Tech Innovation Corridor, boosting innovation and access for underserved agricultural communities across North Carolina. Agriculture is a cornerstone of North Carolina’s economy … Read more

Salomé Jaramillo Gil (Bruno Lab) Research Featured in The Applied Ecologist

Whale Shark and Ecotourism Management – Nowadays, ecotourism with wildlife has witnessed unprecedented growth, attracting tourists seeking immersive experiences with nature. However, when ecotourism guidelines are not well-established, human behaviour can induce stress in animals. When you spend time with … Read more

NUCLEUS: “Heterochromatin in plant meiosis,” by Copenhaver Lab

The Copenhaver lab has published a collaborative review in Nucleus entitled Heterochromatin in plant meiosis, which describes how regions of chromosomes can be packaged into a dense state called heterochromatin that is associated with gene silencing. The review focuses on … Read more

THREE Biology Faculty Win 2024 Student Undergraduate Teaching Awards!

That’s right – THREE! We have the best faculty, and everyone knows it! Drumroll… Congratulations to: Dr. Mara Evans Dr. Alaina Garland Dr. Eric Hastie By student body referendum in 1989 and initiation of a special student fee, the Student … Read more

Drew Davidson visits a Kenan Fellow’s 7th Grade Science Class

The Hige Lab has worked with the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership every summer since 2021. The program connects a K12 educator with a mentor in a research or industry setting. The goal is to equip the educator to … Read more

Greg Copenhaver Inducted into the National Academy of Inventors

Gregory Copenhaver, director of the UNC-Chapel Hill Institute for Convergent Science, has been named a 2024 senior member by the National Academy of Inventors in recognition of his work as both an innovator and a mentor to future inventors. The … Read more

Karin Pfennig: Working on Women In Science (WOWs) Scholar

College of Arts & Sciences Dean Jim White announced the two newest scholars in our Working on Women in Science (WOWS) initiative, which is dedicated to professional advancement in the sciences in the College. Congratulations to Professors Laura Mersini-Houghton in … Read more

NIH Researcher Spotlight: Andrew Davidson, F32 Recipient

Dr. Drew Davidson is an F32 award recipient who used the funding opportunity to investigate context-dependent behaviors in animals. The F32 funding opportunity supports the research training of promising postdoctorates early in their postdoctoral training period. The NIH BRAIN Initiative … Read more

Professors Shiau and Yang Win the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Grant!

Biologists Celia Shiau and En Yang at UNC-Chapel Hill have been awarded a competitive Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) grant to tackle unsolved grand challenges in neurodegenerative diseases and fundamental neuroscience. The awards were announced on Feb. 21. The scientists received … Read more

Biology Alum Heads to Space!

A former University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill student, and now a NASA astronaut, Zena Cardman, is set to embark on her first spaceflight as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Mission. Scheduled for launch no earlier than August, Cardman will … Read more

Enigmatic fossil plants with three-dimensional, arborescent-growth architecture – “Dr. Seuss” Tree, feat. research by Patricia Gensel

Newly discovered tree fossils from ~350 Ma in New Brunswick, Canada, are architecturally unique, and Gastaldo et al. interpret them to presage modern treefern lineage growth forms. These fossils, preserved by earthquake-induced burial in an Early Carboniferous rift lake, may … Read more

‘A picture of winners and losers’: Several Triangle bird species declining as the climate warms, feat. Allen Hurlbert

Bird populations are declining, including in the Triangle. A 2019 study led by bird research and conservancy organizations found “major” population loss among North America’s birds — nearly 3 billion birds have been lost since the 1970s. That’s more than … Read more

An “Emergent” Field Possibly Guides the Future of Cell Engineering, feat. Kerry Bloom

Particles bouncing off a surface, altering their direction of movement; electric fields acting on charges; mass continuing its motion after a push. These are the basic physical properties many are intimately familiar with, yet the laws of underpinning them — … Read more

‘It’s insane’: New viruslike entities found in human gut microbes, feat. Mark Peifer

Analysis of sequence databases reveals novel circular RNA genomes belonging to “obelisks” As they collect and analyze massive amounts of genetic sequences from plants, animals, and microbes, biologists keep encountering surprises, including some that may challenge the very definition of … Read more

Congratulations on the Dangle lab for garnering 100,000 citations!

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=IeBc5OsAAAAJ&hl=en

Lessons in Field Work: 3 Biology Undergrads Intern at the UNC Outer Banks Field Site

Each fall, the program hosts a group of UNC-Chapel Hill undergraduate students at the Coastal Studies Institute in Wanchese, North Carolina, where they spend the semester taking classes in ecology and environmental policy, engaging in research, and completing internships with … Read more

Doctoral Student Protects Galapagos’ Sharks

It’s 5 p.m. and the sun is starting to set. But Savannah Ryburn’s workday is just beginning. A doctoral student in the College of Arts and Sciences’ environment, ecology and energy program, Ryburn has dedicated the last five years to … Read more

UNC Class Combines Science and Art

Science-based artwork of varied colors, sizes and subjects — from the Black Death to the Great Dismal Swamp —hung along the walls of the Genome Sciences Building lobby for a one-day exhibition on Friday evening. The show, “Artist/Scientist: Printmaking and … Read more

VIDEO: L’Oréal 2023 Women in Science Award Recepient Taylor Medwig-Kinney

Idea-to-Impact Series, ‘The most amazing movie I’d ever seen,’ feat. Paul Maddox!

Using technology developed by UNC-affiliated startup Mizar Imaging, scientists can transform traditional microscopes into high-resolution instruments that let them see the inner workings of living organisms and cells in ways that weren’t previously possible. How did this startup survive an … Read more

New paper reviews importance of variability in marine climate change ecology research, feat. Dr. John Bruno

A new paper published in the Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics emphasizes an unusual approach to researching climate change within marine ecosystems: focusing on variance in addition to trends in ocean temperatures to make more accurate climate change … Read more

Dr. Senay Yitbarek – CGS seed grant funds research on host-pathogen dynamics on San Cristobal Island

Thanks to the funding of a Center for Galapagos Studies seed grant, Senay Yitbarek, Peter Thacher Grauer Fellow and assistant professor in the department of biology in the College of Arts and Sciences, traveled to the Galapagos this summer to … Read more

Endangered shark? Wrong bass? WRAL Investigates puts local sushi to the DNA test, featuring John Bruno

WRAL Investigates bought dozens of pieces of sushi to see if the description on the menu is the same fish you get on your plate. Check out the story and video HERE.

Dr. Senay Yitbarek – Deconstructing taxa x taxa x environment interactions in the microbiota: A theoretical examination

In their newly published paper, Senay Yitbarek and coauthors examine the ecological complexity of microbial communities. Higher-order microbial interactions, involving more than just pairwise interactions, are prevalent in nature but are notoriously difficult to quantify as microbial communities can contain … Read more

Jeff Dangl Named Internationally Ranked “Highly Cited Researcher”

In 2023, more than 40 researchers from Carolina made Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list as trailblazers among their peers, an increase from 2022’s rankings. Each researcher selected has authored multiple Highly Cited Papers™ which rank in the top 1% by … Read more

Taylor Medwig-Kinney (Goldstein Lab) is a 2023 recipient of L’ORÉAL WOMEN IN SCIENCE AWARD!!!

L’Oréal USA announced the recipients of its 2023 For Women in Science (FWIS) Fellowship program, which grants awards annually to five female postdoctoral scientists to support their research endeavors. This year marks L’Oréal USA’s 20th anniversary of helping to advance … Read more

Congratulations 2023-2024 Phi Beta Kappa Initiates!

Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most honored college honorary society, inducted 259 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill students as new members. Less than 1% of all college students qualify for acceptance. Past and present Phi Beta … Read more

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN Scientific Quickly Podcast: These Creatures are Probably the Closest Thing Nature Has to Real Werewolves, feat. David Pfennig

Brian Gutierrez: Werewolves aren’t real. Everyone knows that. But stay with me for a moment while I tell you about the spadefoot frogs—specifically, their tadpoles, which just might be the closest things to werewolves in nature. I want to tell …

Carolina Women’s Leadership Recognizes Gidi Shemer

Each year, the Carolina Women’s Leadership Council recognizes outstanding faculty members in guiding, mentoring and teaching with a pre-tax award of $7,000. Established in 2006, the Faculty Mentoring Award honors mentoring to undergraduate students, graduate students and junior faculty. Dr. … Read more

A Boost for Biology Education – CBER Lab Featured in Endeavors

Each semester, on the first day of classes, Laura Ott and Eric Hastie kick off their biology classes in exactly the same way: by gushing over their passion for biology education research.  The field aims to improve learning processes and … Read more

Cryogenic electron tomography reveals previously undiscovered interactions between cytoskeletal proteins, Rogers Lab

The cytoskeleton is made up of distinct systems of filamentous protein polymers, microtubules and actin filaments. The canonical view is that these proteins organize the cytoplasm and mediate intracellular transport as distinct systems, occasionally working together with the assistance of … Read more

High-resolution microscopy illuminates the mechanisms cells use to generate force, Maddox Lab

The ability to create and regulate force production is a fundamental feature of the cell. Specialized biopolymers such as microtubules and their associated motor proteins including dynein are responsible for producing and coordinating force production. Cortical forces generated in mitosis … Read more

UNC Biologists use mathematical models to predict the fate of endangered populations

A new publication by recent UNC Biology PhD Kuangyi Xu and his UNC Biology co-advisors provides theoretical insights into what governs whether small populations succeed or fail in getting “rescued” by natural selection. When small, chance events play a large … Read more

Biology Professor Karin Pfennig joins the 2023 class of Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars

Karin Pfennig announced as new member of the 2023-2025 class of Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars. The program brings together selected faculty from across campus in a two-year competency-based experience to advance their engaged research, which is conducted in partnership with … Read more

Maria Servedio in PLoS – Inferred Attractiveness: A generalized mechanism for sexual selection that can maintain variation in traits and preferences over time

Animals display a wide variety of display traits whose function is to attract the opposite sex, yet in many species, female mating preferences are inconsistent both from female to female and over time. Current models of sexual selection cannot sufficiently … Read more

Our own Hínár Schrader Polczer featured in Endeavors!

György “Hínár” Schrader Polczer has worked for UNC-Chapel Hill for 22 years as a technology support analyst for the Department of Biology within the UNC College of Arts and Sciences. What brought you to Carolina? I’m originally from Hungary and … Read more

Goldstein Lab introduces student to the joys of tardigrades!

Lilly Papell is a senior majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry and creative writing within the UNC College of Arts and Sciences. She studies how genome organization within microscopic animals called tardigrades plays a role in how they survive … Read more

Kelly Hogan & Viji Sathy At our NC universities, DEI is about more than being woke

Copenhaver Lab Published in Nature Communications

The Copenhaver lab has published a paper Nature Communications SCFRMF mediates degradation of the meiosis-specific recombinase DMC1 which describes how a key meiotic protein is regulated by a degradation process that ensures it is removed when no longer needed. Disruption … Read more

New Nimchuk lab Nature Plants paper looking at how plants make flowers across different temperatures

Featuring Graduate Students Amala John and Elizabeth Smith. Plant body plans are elaborated in response to both environmental and endogenous cues. How these inputs intersect to promote growth and development remains poorly understood. During reproductive development, central zone stem cell … Read more

Dr. Laura Ott & Colleagues Celebrate Landmark Collaboration in DC-Area Consortium

In 2018, faculty at UMBC and four of its top-sending community colleges embarked on a project with an ambitious mission: improve students’ quantitative skills in biological contexts, and eliminate the achievement gap between transfer and direct-entry students in courses requiring … Read more

Congratulations Oscar Arroyo, 2023 HHMI Gilliam Fellow!

Congratulations to Biology doctoral student Oscar Arroyo and mentor Dan McKay for Oscar’s new HHMI Gilliam Fellowship to Advance Equity & Inclusion in Science. These awards recognize outstanding science, paired with dedicated mentorship and leadership.

Savannah Ryburn featured in Research UNCovered!

Savannah Ryburn (Bruno Lab) is a PhD student in the Environment, Ecology, and Energy Program within the UNC College of Arts and Sciences and a graduate student researcher within the UNC Center for Galapagos Studies. She studies the diet and … Read more

Bruno Lab Grad Student Teaching in the Galápagos!

Bruno lab graduate student Salome Jaramillo Gil teaching local kids in the Galápagos Islands about marine life. Salome is doing her dissertation research in the Galápagos on the feeding ecology and movement of eagle rays and scalloped hammerhead sharks.

Senay Yitbarek Published in Journal of Ecological Applications

Urban mosquito distributions are modulated by socioeconomic status and environmental traits in the USA

Grad Student Katherine Malinski Published in Journal of Experimental Biology

Congratulations to Biology graduate student Katherine Malinski, whose research on hornworms, parasitoids and climate change was recently highlighted in Journal of Experimental Biology!

Dr. Alan Weakley and his team launch FloraQuest app!

Alan Weakley wants to help you identify the hot-pink wildflower that catches your eye on morning dog walks and distinguish between a tulip tree and a sweet gum without having to lug around a guide that could double as a … Read more

Joe Kieber Named 2023 Shang-Fa Lecturer

Congratulations to Dr. Joe Kieber, the 2023 invited recipient of the Shang-Fa Lectureship! The Shang-Fa Yang Memmorial Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2007 to commemorate Dr. Shang-Fa Yang’s contribution to encyclopedia knowledge in agrictural research, including elucidation of … Read more

FY24 Research Grant Award!

Congrats to Drs. Steve Rogers and Kevin Slep, recipients of the FY24 Undergraduate Research Program Grant for their proposal, “Establishment of Undergraduate Microscopy Learning Laboratory”!!!

Summer Montgomery awarded Staff Hall of Famer Peer Recognition!

Congratulations to our own Summer Montgomery, Biology Undergraduate Student Services Manager. Summer has won the 2022-2023 Staff Hall of Famer award from the Employee Forum Peer Recognition Awards for consistently exemplifying the University’s mission of integrity, collaboration, respect & high … Read more

Dr. Hige Featured in UNC endeavors!

Toshihide Hige holds a joint appointment as an assistant professor in the Department of Cell biology & Physiology within the UNC School of Medicine and the Department of Biology within the UNC College of Arts & Science. He uses fruit … Read more

Dr. Gidi Shemer Receives Academic Advising Award!

Dr. Gidi Shemer has been selected as the 2022-2023 winner of the Class of 1996 Advising Award!!! Thank you for all that you do for our students and our department!!!

Dr. Gidi Shemer receives Faculty Mentoring Award!

Dr. Gidi Shemer has been awarded the 2023 Carolina Women’s Leadership Council Faculty Mentoring Award for “Faculty Mentor to Undergraduate Mentees” – thank you for being such an important mentor to our students!!!

Jeff Dangl elected member of Royal Society!

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Jeff Dangl, who was elected as a member of the Royal Society for his highly impactful research regarding plant immunity. This is an incredible honor and a testament to Jeff’s outstanding career as a … Read more

Gidi Shemer receives Mentorship Award!

Congratulations to Dr. Gidi Shemer, one of four recipients this year of The Carolina Covenant Scholars “Clark & Kessler Award” for outstanding mentorship. This award honors the memories of Dr. Fred Clark and Mr. Frank Kessler who served as extraordinary … Read more

Laura Ott wins the SUTASA at the Chancellor’s Awards!

Congrats to Laura Ott who won the Student Undergraduate Teaching and Staff Award (SUTASA) as part of the Chancellor’s Awards!

Laura Ott and Vikram Puri win Teaching Award!

Biology Teaching Assistant Professor Dr. Laura Ott, and BIOL 101L Teaching Assistant Vikram Puri have won the UNC Out in STEM Inclusive Teaching Award this year! This award is given to a professor and a TA from UNC’s STEM departments … Read more

Alayna Mackiewicz receives P.E.O. Scholar Award!

Congratulations to Alayna Mackiewicz for receiving a P.E.O. Scholar Award for the 2023-2024 academic year. These awards are one-time, competitive, merit-based awards intended to recognize and encourage academic excellence and achievement by women in doctoral-level programs. Congrats Alayna!

Jeff Sekelsky wins Graduate School Award!

Congratulations to Jeff Sekelsky for winning the 2023 Graduate School Award for Excellence in Graduate Student and Academic Program Support for his decade-long work directing the Curriculum in Genetics and Molecular Biology. Jeff’s work has had a huge impact on … Read more

Matthew Lu wins Hagadorn Award!

Each year the Undergraduate Honors Committee selects a junior Biology major as the Irvine Hagadorn Award recipient, based on academic and research excellence and contributions to the Biology Department. We review an outstanding group of students, and the choice is … Read more

Esteban Agudo receives Dissertation Fellowship!

Congratulations to Esteban Agudo, who has been selected to receive a Dissertation Completion Fellowship from The Graduate School for AY2023-2024!

Congratulations to the Phi Beta Kappa Inductees!

Congratulations to the Phi Beta Kappa Spring 2023 Inductees! Check out this article on the society and this semester’s inductees. Congratulations to: Oyindamola O’temu Ajasa Bilar Nizar Azzam Connor Jarrett Blevins Garrison Wallace Bullard Natalie Lauren Clark Rami Zahi Darawsheh … Read more

Lohmann Lab Members win Editor’s Choice Award!

Ken and Cathy Lohmann and grad students Kayla Goforth, Alayna Mackiewicz, and Dana Lim were authors of a paper entitled “Magnetic maps and animal navigation” that won the Journal of Comparative Physiology’s 2023 Editor’s Choice Award. The editors declared it … Read more

Ken Lohmann given Lifetime Achievement Award!

Congratulations to Ken Lohmann who was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Sea Turtle Society! Check out the full list of past award recipients here.

Kerry Bloom featured on DG Early-Morning Show!

Kerry Bloom has been featured on an episode of the DG Early-Morning Show podcast! The episode, entitled “Dr. Kerry Bloom talks about engineering chromosomes, 3D printing centromeres, solutions to improve America’s outdated education system,” is available where you listen to … Read more

Frank Conlon published in Nature!

Be sure to check out “Sex-chromosome mechanisms in cardiac development and disease” by Frank Conlon and Arthur Arnold in the Nature Cardiovascular Research journal! Read about it here.

Congrats to the NSF GRFP Awardees!

Congratulations to Eva Mei Shouse and Madelina Marquez, current Department of Biology graduate students, who have been awarded NSF GRFPs! Madelina’s research is in environmental microbiology, cyanobacteria, trophic ecology, and secondary metabolites, and is advised by Sophie McCoy. Eva’s research … Read more