BMB Weekly #9: February 28, 2025

 

Rob Quinn Receives College of Human Medicine Award Associate Professor Rob Quinn was selected as a recipient of the College of Human Medicine Early Career Research Excellence Award. This award is presented each year to a faculty member who has demonstrated early success in research.

 

 

Jason Peters from University of Wisconsin - Madison will be presenting "CRISPR versus antibiotic resistance and climate change".

To join us on Zoom, click this link. Password: bmbseminar

The Spring BMB Seminar Series will run through April 24, 2025. The complete schedule is available on the BMB Spring Seminar Series website. If you are interested in meeting with any of these speakers please email Leslie Williams, glady@msu.edu. Many speakers are planning to visit in-person. A Zoom option will continue to be offered for all seminars.

 

Sticking around East Lansing for Spring Break? We are too! Come grab lunch on Tuesday, March 4 at noon to hang out with other graduate students and staff from the Graduate School. There will be MSU Swag Giveaways! We will be providing grab and go lunch, more details to come. No RSVP necessary.

This seminar will introduce the audience to a set of principles, practices, and free, open-source software tools that enable scientists to generate reproducible statistical analyses and reports. We will cover why reproducibility is important, then offer a vision of how to enhance the reproducibility of your work, with concrete steps you can take to achieve that goal. We will discuss tailoring the degree of reproducibility you aim to achieve for a given project, which may vary due to project context or constraints. Learn more and register here.

In this session you will learn about the benefits of rubrics, parts of a rubric and what to consider when creating rubrics to enhance assessment and feedback. Participants will identify key components of a rubric and strategies for aligning criteria with learning objectives. Through hands-on activities, attendees will draft a rubric which they can use as a starting point for creating a rubric for an assignment in their discipline. We will also share how ChatGPT or Claude can aid rubric creation. Learn more and register here.

This webinar is designed for Plan A Master’s students and all Doctoral students who intend to graduate this semester. During this workshop students will receive information regarding the following:

• How to format their thesis or dissertation correctly
• How to successfully submit their thesis or dissertation via ProQuest
• How to successfully submit required paperwork, complete their Graduate School degree requirements, and receive their diploma

Learn more and register here.

Learn about vital campus resources through informal, expert discussions, providing insights, Q&A opportunities, and practical guidance for student success and well-being. This session features Kim Steed-Page, Director of the MSU Student Parent Resource Center and her team. If you are a student who is also juggling responsibilities as a parent, this session is for you! Click here to register.

Join via Zoom (log in with your MSU Net ID).

This workshop will introduce the use of SPSS through both the point-and-click menus and syntax (programming language). The workshop is designed for beginners to SPSS and for intermediate users. No programming knowledge and/or experience is expected. We will begin with an overview of the SPSS interface, including data entry, types of variables, and an overview of how to import data from other software (e.g., Excel). We will then cover examples of data manipulation and data cleaning procedures, as well as examples of descriptives and data analysis, including t-tests, ANOVA, and regression. Learn more and register here.

TEDxMSU is a vibrant, non-profit initiative led by the spirited students of Michigan State University. Our organization represents a dynamic synergy of MSU's brightest minds – students, faculty, alumni – and the pulsating East Lansing community. Our annual conference features interdisciplinary talks with the purpose of promoting inquiry and critical discussion, as well as a diverse array of performances and an interactive marketplace. Experience the power of ideas at TEDxMSU – where we don’t just share ideas; we set them into motion. Learn more here.

 

The Walker Hill International Award is an award that can be used for pre-dissertation visits to a doctoral research site in a country outside the United States. International students who undertake research in the country of their origin are not eligible. Learn more and apply here.

The Plant Resilience Institute (PRI) is excited to announce the launch of its 2025 PRI Seed Grant Program, a funding opportunity designed to support innovative research projects that advance plant resilience. This program is open to all graduate students and postdoctoral researchers at Michigan State University, providing up to $10,000 in funding for projects spanning 18 months.

Building on the success of prior initiatives, the PRI Seed Grant Program aims to foster high-risk, high-reward research that promotes collaboration across laboratories. Key Information for Applicants:

• Deadline: Proposals must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. ET on March 1, 2025.
• Funding Amount: Applicants can request up to $10,000.
• Review Process and Notifications: Applications will be evaluated by the Seed Grant Committee. Decisions will be communicated by the end of March 2025.

A list of previously funded projects here, and full details about the program and application process are available here. For questions about the application process, please contact Gaëlle Cassin-Ross (cassin@msu.edu).

We are excited to announce that applications are now open for the 2025 MSU/USDA Summer Research Experience (SRE) Program! This 10-week program, running from June 2nd – August 8, is designed for MS and PhD students interested in tackling complex challenges in agriculture, geospatial analysis, and disease ecology. Participants will work collaboratively with a team of Mississippi State University faculty in a high-performance computing environment, gaining hands-on research experience while collaborating on real-world challenges. Learn more here and apply at this link.

The FAST Program is for doctoral students with interests in teaching, learning, and assessment in higher education who are enrolled in programs associated with the Colleges of Natural Science, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Engineering, Social Science, Nursing, Osteopathic Medicine, and Veterinary Medicine or whose college or department has an approved Certification in College Teaching Program. The primary goals of the FAST Fellowship Program are to provide opportunities for doctoral students to have mentored teaching experiences, develop and conduct a teaching-as-research project, and gain familiarity with materials on teaching and assessment techniques. Learn more and apply here.

 

The Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL) is looking for student volunteers! Learn about great volunteer engagement opportunities here.

Graduate Student Support Group: This is a supportive space where graduate students can gather and empower one another through shared experiences. Themes in this group include exploring stressors related to graduate studies, purpose, sense of belonging, “creative differences” with your advisor, juggling multiple roles and responsibilities, time management, challenges with completing dissertation or thesis and impacts related to diet, sleep, and emotional well-being. Whatever your concerns, we can listen, offer support, or help you develop strategies to make the most of your time in graduate school.

A Pre-Group Meeting is required to join. Please schedule a phone consultation by February 17, 2025 here and state your interest in this group during the appointment.

Apply now to be a member of a student hearing board. Graduate & Professional students needed! Hearing board members play a critical and valuable role in ensuring that those involved in allegations that a student violated experience a fair process, while also being both supported and held accountable (if found responsible). Learn more and apply here.

The MSU Student Food Bank is a resource available to students and scholars who may be experiencing food insecurity. The Food Bank provides free food and other essential items to those in need within our MSU community. Learn more here.

 

The Biological Sciences (BioSci) Program is seeking 1-2 fixed term faculty members to join the BioSci Program teaching team. The successful candidate will serve as an instructor for introductory biology lecture and lab courses designed to actively engage life-science majors in three-dimensional learning. Depending on the needs of the program and the expertise of the candidate, they may teach in cellular and molecular or organismal biology courses. Review of applications will begin on March 20, 2025, and will continue until the position is filled. Questions regarding the position may be directed to Dr. Katie Krueger, BioSci Program Assistant Director and Chair of the Search Committee (krueg172@msu.edu). Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

A Postdoctoral Research Fellow position is available in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB) at Michigan State University. The fellow will work at the interface of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and advanced molecular simulations. The principal project of interest will be the study of small molecule activators of metallopeptidase enzymes. Structural analysis will be used to guide further rational design of newly identified allosteric modulators. This position is funded by an internal fellowship that provides a collaborative and synergistic mentoring environment with two primary PIs. The Postdoctoral Research Fellow will be co-mentored by Dr. Ben Orlando (cryo-EM) and Dr. Alex Dickson (molecular simulation) labs. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

We are looking to hire a postdoctoral scholar to study the effects of climate change on coral bleaching through a project funded by the National Science Foundation of the USA. This project involves study of the metabolome and microbiome of corals during their response to thermal stress. The scholar will work on both live coral in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, including assisting with field experiments and site visits, and controlled biochemical and microbiological studies of their symbiotic algae at Michigan State University. The project involves complex analysis of metabolomics data coupled with molecular biology and genetic manipulation of culturable marine algae. The goals of the project are to understand how lipid dynamics in symbiotic algae allow corals to resist bleaching under thermal stress. Skills required for the position are broad and include mass spectrometry, microbiology, molecular biology and genetic techniques, as well as marine biology and field sampling experience. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

We are looking to hire a postdoctoral scholar to study the role of microbial bile acid metabolism in host/microbiome crosstalk related to gut inflammation and GI health. This position is funded by an NIH R01 grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases focused on identifying and characterizing microbial molecules. This project will focus on novel bile acids recently discovered called Microbially Conjugated Bile Acids (MCBAs). These diverse microbial molecules are produced by the human gut microbiome, but little is known about their effects on human health. Experiments will focus on understanding how MCBAs interact with human cells through cellular receptors with effects on epithelial barrier integrity and inflammatory signaling. The experiments will use both microbial and human cell culture and mouse models to identify MCBAs with the strongest bioactivity. This project provides unique opportunities to interact with other laboratories funded by the same NIH initiative to better understand how the human gut microbiome interacts with small molecules. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

 

Bose, S., Kilinc, C., & Dickson, A. (2025). Markov State Models with Weighted Ensemble Simulation: How to Eliminate the Trajectory Merging Bias. Journal of chemical theory and computation, 21(4), 1805–1816. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jctc.4c01141

Gatreddi, S., Urdiain-Arraiza, J., Desguin, B., Hausinger, R. P., & Hu, J. (2025). Structural Basis for the Catalysis and Substrate Specificity of a LarA Racemase with a Broad Substrate Spectrum. ACS catalysis, 15(4), 2857–2866. https://doi.org/10.1021/acscatal.4c07804

Jussupow, A., Bartley, D., Lapidus, L. J., & Feig, M. (2025). COCOMO2: A Coarse-Grained Model for Interacting Folded and Disordered Proteins. Journal of chemical theory and computation, 21(4), 2095–2107. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jctc.4c01460

Keng, M., & Merz, K. M., Jr (2025). In Silico Characterization of Glycan Ions from IM-MS Collision Cross Section. Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry, 10.1021/jasms.4c00370. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1021/jasms.4c00370

Lei, L., & Burton, Z. F. (2025). Chemical Evolution of Life on Earth. Genes, 16(2), 220. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes16020220

Roshanzadeh, A., Medeiros, H. C. D., Herrera, C. K., Malhado, C., Tomich, A. W., Fisher, S. P., Lovera, S. O., Bates, M., Lavallo, V., Lunt, R. R., & Lunt, S. Y. (2025). Next-Generation Photosensitizers: Cyanine-Carborane Salts for Superior Photodynamic Therapy of Metastatic Cancer. Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English), 64(9), e202419759. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202419759

Sahu, S., Bhardwaj, P., Singh, G., Bhalla, A., & Arya, S. K. (2025). A pioneering review on Ganoderma lucidum-derived leather: taking a step towards a cruelty-free leather manufacturing. Environmental science and pollution research international, 10.1007/s11356-025-36130-y. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-025-36130-y

Steensma, A. K., Kaste, J. A. M., Heo, J., Orr, D. J., Sung, C. L., Shachar-Hill, Y., & Walker, B. J. (2025). Modeling with uncertainty quantification reveals the essentials of a non-canonical algal carbon-concentrating mechanism. Plant physiology, 197(2), kiae629. https://doi.org/10.1093/plphys/kiae629

Subramanian, S., Kerns, H. R., Braverman, S. G., & Doore, S. M. (2025). The structure of Shigella virus Sf14 reveals the presence of two decoration proteins and two long tail fibers. Communications biology, 8(1), 222. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-07668-x

Vieira Wyzykowski, A. B., Niazi, F. F., & Dickson, A. (2025). AGDIFF: Attention-Enhanced Diffusion for Molecular Geometry Prediction. Journal of chemical information and modeling, 65(4), 1798–1811. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jcim.4c01896

Walters, J., Fisher, R., Sharkey, T. D., Isaacs, R., & Santiago, J. P. (2025). Extreme heat affects blueberry pollen nutrition, bee health, and plant reproduction. Scientific reports, 15(1), 6249. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-90676-y

Zhu, S., Song, Z., Tapayan, A. S., Singh, K., Wang, K. W., Chien Hagar, H. T., Zhang, J., Kim, H., Thepsuwan, P., Kuo, M. H., Zhang, K., & Nguyen, H. M. (2025). Effects of Heparan Sulfate Trisaccharide Containing Oleanolic Acid in Attenuating Hyperphosphorylated Tau-Induced Cell Dysfunction Associated with Alzheimer's Disease. Journal of medicinal chemistry, 68(3), 3356–3372. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c02563

 

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College of Natural Science | BMB Weekly | Vol. 58, No.9