Newman Lab Studies "Leaky" Mitochondria and Inflammation Response

Dr. Laura Newman researches how “leaky” mitochondria – the powerhouses of our cells – can drive harmful inflammation responsible for diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Scientists may be able to leverage the findings to develop better treatments for those diseases, improve our ability to fight off viruses and even slow aging.

UVA Cell Biology Welcomes Dr. Laura Newman

Dr. Laura Newman joins the department from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Her research focuses on the role of mitochondria in regulating innate immunity.

Cell Biology MSTP Students Receive F30 Fellowships

Ryan Mulligan (Winckler Lab) and Gustavo Pacheco (DeSimone Lab) were awarded prestigious F30 fellowships from the National Institutes of Health. The F30 National Research Service Awards Fellowships help support trainees during their last one or two years of their PhD and for an equivalent amount of time in their clinical clerkship training. The awards are highly selective, which attests to the research success and talent of these students and their faculty mentors. Ryan’s project broadly explores the molecular machinery by which cells respond to lysosomal stresses, especially in diseases that affect the nervous system. His F30 grant is specifically looking at how these lysosomal stress responses may be impacted within the cells of our brains as we age. Gustavo’s research focuses on integrin proteins — the glue between cells and their surrounding physical environment, called the extracellular matrix. Through his thesis work in the DeSimone Lab, he has discovered and demonstrated a new function of integrin proteins as regulators of metabolism.

UVA Cell Biology Welcomes Dr. Joshua Wythe

We are very excited to welcome Dr. Joshua Wythe, a new Associate Professor in our Cell Biology Department, who recently relocated from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Josh’s research focuses on gaining a detailed mechanistic understanding of how endothelial cell identity is specified and maintained in the developing vertebrate embryo. His lab combines both zebrafish and mouse genetic models together with bioinformatics, functional genomics, and 3D imaging to investigate blood vessel development and pathogenesis. In addition to defining the transcriptional basis of endothelial organotypic plasticity and function in development, the Wythe lab aims to understand pathological angiogenesis leading to brain arteriovenous malformations and pathological angiogenesis in glioma. Josh is highly collaborative, and his work is cross-disciplinary and intersects with the Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Developmental Genomics Center, the Cardiovascular Research Center and the Neuroscience Department. We look forward to having Josh onboard and working closely with him on exciting new projects.

Prof. James Casanova receives Kadner Award

We are pleased to announce that Professor James Casanova has received the 2023 Robert J. Kadner Award for Outstanding Graduate Teaching. This prestigious annual award recognizes a faculty member for their exceptional and lasting contributions to the teaching and mentoring of Ph.D. students and/or postdoctoral trainees. A special feature of the Kadner award is that the faculty member must be nominated by trainees. We are very proud of Dr. Casanova and all the past Kadner awardees from Cell Biology, Drs. David Castle, Douglas DeSimone and Judith White. Congratulations to Dr. Casanova for this important recognition; we thank him for his dedication and leadership in support of our educational mission.

UVA Cell Biology Welcomes Dr. Sameer Bajikar

We're excited to welcome Dr. Sameer Bajikar, Ph.D., as Assistant Professor of Cell Biology. Dr. Bajikar is an alumnus of UVA's Department of Biomedical Engineering, where he completed received his undergraduate and graduate degrees, mentored by Dr. Kevin Janes. He then completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Molecular and Human Genetics under the mentorship of Dr. Huda Zoghbi at Baylor College of Medicine.