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Washington University in St. Louis News & Information > University Groups > Arts & Sciences >
Biology
The Washington University Department of Biology is par of the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences. The Division riginated in 1973 as one of the first interdisciplinary graduate programs in the nation. This interdisciplinary approach is key to solving emerging biological and biomedical problems in the "post-genomic" era. The Department is internationally recognized as outstanding, particularly in the areas of cell biology and molecular biology.
| News Stories & Tip Sheets: |
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'McDonaldization' of frogs
Frog fungus hammering biodiversity of communities
Sept. 22,
2009 --
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| Photo by Roberto Brenes |
| Tiny frog killed by invasive fungus. |
Everyone knows that frogs are in trouble. But a recent analysis by Washington University in St. Louis researchers of data on Central American frogs collected by a University of Maryland colleague shows the situation is worse than had been thought. Under pressure from an invasive fungus, the frogs in this biodiversity hot spot are undergoing "a vast homogenization" that is leaving behind simpler communities that increasingly resemble one another. "We're witnessing the McDonaldization of the frog communities," comments Kevin G. Smith, Ph.D., the lead author of the analysis and associate director of Washington University's Tyson Research Center, a site the fungus has also reached.
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Achieving a very small carbon footprint
Chase and Hellmuth discuss the trials and tribulations of building one of the greenest structures in North America
Sept. 17,
2009 -- The new Living Learning Center at Tyson Research Center was designed to be one of the greenest buildings in North America. Jonathan Chase, associate professor of biology in the Department of Biology and Environmental Studies in Arts & Sciences and Tyson's director; and Daniel Hellmuth, principal and co-founder of Hellmuth & Bicknese Architects, L.L.C., will deliver a talk about the Center and its challenges for the Assembly Series at 5 p.m. Thursday, September 24 in Wilson Hall Room 214. The program is free and open to the public.
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20,000 neurons keep steady time when working together
WUSTL research finds individual cells isolated from the biological clock can keep daily time, but are unreliable
Sept. 9,
2009 --
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| An isolated nerve cell busy keeping time. |
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Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have shown that individual cells isolated from the biological clock can keep daily time all by themselves. However, by themselves, they are unreliable. The neurons get out of synch and capriciously quit or start oscillating again. The biological clock, a one-square millimeter area of the brain just above the roof of the mouth and atop the crossing of the optic nerves, comprises about 20,000 neurons. These cells, remarkably, contain the machinery to generate daily, or circadian, rhythms in gene expression and electrical activity. But the individual cells are sloppy and must communicate with one another to establish a coherent 24-hour rhythm.
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| Faculty Experts: |
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Himadri Pakrasi
George William and Irene Koechig Freiberg Professor of Biology in Arts & Sciences
Direct contact: (314) 935-6853
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pakrasi@wustl.edu
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Tiffany Knight
Assistant Professor of Biology
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| Knight |
Knight is an ecologist who studies the population ecology of rare and invasive plant species, and addresses questions related to the causes and consequences of their abundances and distributions. Why are some species rare, while their closely related congeners are widespread? How does dispersal ability ...
Expertise: Ecology, biology, plants, ecosystems, habitat
Direct contact: (314) 935-8282
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knight@wustl.edu
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Jonathan Chase
Associate Professor of Biology in Arts & Sciences and director of Tyson Research Center
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| Chase |
Jonathan M. Chase, associate professor of biology in Arts & Sciences and director of the university's Tyson Research Center, focuses his research on the rules (or lack thereof) underlying the diversity, distribution, and abundance of animal and plant species from the population/community/ecosystem ...
Expertise: biology, ecology, ecosystem, natural history, evolution, biodiversity, food webs, …
Direct contact: (314) 935-4105
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jchase@wustl.edu
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Ralph Quatrano
Ralph S. Quatrano, Ph.D., is the Spencer T. Olin Professor in Arts and Sciences and chair of the Department of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis. He is internationally known for his plant science work on patterns of embryo formation, and how the patterns lead cells to acquire traits or ...
Expertise: Plants, plant biology, botany, moss, genome, algae, genes, …
Direct contact: (314) 935-6850
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rsq@wustl.edu
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Sarah Elgin
Professor of Biology in Arts & Sciences
A highly respected developmental biologist, Sarah C.R. Elgin has spearheaded a drive in St. Louis to share the Washington University science faculty expertise with area elementary and secondary school science programs. She organized the Washington University/University City Science Education Partnership ...
Expertise: school science programs
Media assistance: (314) 935-5272 / dlutz@wustl.edu
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Study on wildlife corridors shows how they work over time
Eureka! Science News (Canada)
and 3 others
Dec. 2,
2008 -- WUSTL biologists and their collaborators have created budding longleaf pine forest ecosystems with the help of the U.S. Forest Service-Savannah River to understand whether these "corridors" help plants and animals survive habitat fragmentation.
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New gene silencing pathway found in plants
ScientistLive.com (UK)
Nov. 18,
2008 -- WUSTL researchers led by WUSTL biology professor Craig Pikaard have made major headway in explaining a mechanism by which plant cells silence potentially harmful genes.
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Bird Diversity Lessens Human Exposure to West Nile Virus
ScienceDaily.com
and 7 others
Oct. 7,
2008 -- A study by WUSTL biologists shows that the more diverse a bird population is in an area, the less chance humans have of exposure to West Nile Virus.
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The New Theology
Chicago Tribune magazine
Jan. 22,
2008 -- The Chicago Tribune magazine story on the conflict between Darwin and theology. Ursula Goodenough professor of biology comments on the conflict.
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Mimicking plant evolution proves fruitful
MSNBC.com
Jan. 11,
2008 -- By mimicking plant evolution, a team of Illinois researchers has improved upon nature's design to build a leafy energy-producing powerhouse — or at least a virtual one on a supercomputer. In a study published within the journal Plant Physiology, WUSTL biology and chemistry professor Robert Blankenship comments on the Illinois study.
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