Congratulations!
Dr. Mazen Saleh (Dept. of Biology, LU) , together with Ed Gardner from the Sudbury and District Health Unit, received a Louise Picard Public Health Research Grant valued at $5,000 for their joint project on the enzyme-based detection of E. coli and total coliforms in drinking and recreational water using fibre optics and fluorescence. These grants are awarded to researchers who are involved in projects that encourage research partnerships between Sudbury & District Health Unit staff and Laurentian University faculty.
We congratulate Mr. Neville Hewage (M.Sc. student supervised by Dr. M. Saleh) on his recent scholarship award of $10 000 from the Walkerton Clean Water Centre, an agency of the Government of Ontario, for his project on E. coli and coliform detection in drinking and recreational water using an automated fluorescence-based method.
Laurentian University graduate students in Biology receive over $15,000 in bursaries
On March 26, 2008, Laurentian University biology graduate students received bursaries from various public and private organizations. Please see the provided photos and captions for more details.
Laurentian University Biology M.Sc. student Erik Szkokan-Emilson (centre) receives the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Habitat and Restoration Scholarship, valued at $5000 from Northern Ontario A/District Manager, Karen Broughton (left), and his supervisor, Dr. John Gunn (right).
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Laurentian University Biology M.Sc. student Megan Rasmussen (left) receives the Ruffed Grouse Society Wildlife Conservation Bursary, valued at $1500 from her supervisor, Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus.
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Laurentian University Biology Ph.D. student Sophie Laurence (centre left) and M.Sc
student Karen Vanderwolf (absent) both receive the Sudbury Game and Fish Protective Association Bursary, valued at $1,000 each from President, Mr. Bert Legault (left), executive member, Mr. Dick Stewart (right), and their supervisor, Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde (centre right).
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Laurentian University Biology M.Sc. student Michelle Martin (left) receives the Elk Restoration and Conservation Research Bursary, valued at $6000 from her co-supervisors, Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus (right) and Dr. Josef Hamr (absent).
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Laurentian University Biology M.Sc. student Alison Buckner (right) receives the Marita I. Mallory Cancer Research Bursary, valued at $1000 from her supervisor, Dr. Robert M. Lafrenie (left).
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ACFAS - Sudbury's 15th Day of Science and Knowledge
At this year's ACFAS-Sudbury's 15th Day of Science and Knowledge on Friday, April 4, Nadia Mykytczuk (Ph.D. candidate in Boreal Ecology) received the award for the best student communication in Science and Engineering worth $1000 for her presentation entitled "Les bactéries du drainage minier acide et la durabilité de l'environnement : Adaptations microscopiques, applications macroscopiques." Nadia is supervised by Drs L. Leduc, G. Ferroni, and J. Trevors.
Other Biology students also received awards for their presentations.
2nd place, $500 - Amanda Bennett - "Les impacts de la fragmentation de l’habitat sur les mouvements et la génétique des populations de tortue géographique (Graptemys geographica) sur la Voie*Navigable*Trent*Severn", Ontario, Canada." (M.Sc. student, supervised by Dr. J. Litzgus)
3rd place, $350 - Justin Boyer - "L’effet de l’absence de Bpag1 sur le tissu cardiaque" (MSc. student, supervised by Dr. C. Boudreau-Larrivière)
4th place, $250 - Julie Grandbois - "Extraction et caractérisation des glucosinolates chez Dithyrea wislizenii" (Biomedical Biology undergraduate student)
Congratulations to all award recipients!
Theses defended
Congratulations to the following graduate student who successfully defended her thesis:
Shanna Blomme (M.Sc.- April 1) - Toxicological evaluation of liposomal microbials (Supervised by Dr. A. Omri)
Seminars presented
March 7 - Dr. Gary Burness (Trent University, Peterborough, ON) - Strategies of energy expenditure in vertebrates (Invited by Dr. A. Sculte-Hostedde)
March 28 - Dr. Joe Shorthouse (Dept. of Biology, Laurentian University, Sudbury, ON) - The search for the Holy Grail of rose galls in the mountains of northeastern Turkey (Invited by Dr J. Litzgus)
April 4 - Dr. Serge Payette (Université Laval, Québec, Qc) - La forêt boréale dans tous ses états (invited by Dr. D. Campbell)
April 11 - Dr. Karl Cottenie (University of Guelph, Guelph, ON) - Cryptic dispersal in zooplankton: Insights from a metacommunity perspective (invited by Dr. C. Ramcharan)
Lunch and learn with Gerard Courtin, professor emeritus of Biology
On March 6, 2008, ACFAS–Sudbury and Institut franco-ontarien (IFO) presented a conference by Gerard Courtin entitled:
The Northern Arctic (L’Arctique septentrionale)
The tundra did not always exist in its current state. At one time, the continental Nordic range of North America was covered by a diverse circumpolar forest. However, a period of mountain formation produced a change in global atmospheric circulation which led to a much colder and drier climate.
This lecture examined the tundra range and its characteristics in relation to the climate, the tundra flora and fauna as well as its vulnerability facing climate change.
Mini-symposium of 4th-year Undergraduate Theses Presentations (BIOL 4035E/F) - April 10
Dr. D. Lesbarrères, Course coordinator
As this year’s Research & Seminar course (BIOL 4035E/F) comes to an end, I would like to congratulate all of the students for the effort and dedication invested into their research projects. I have always believed that working on a 4th year research project and defending the results in front of one’s peers is the “icing-on-the-cake” of a B.Sc. degree. I hope that you feel proud of your achievements and that your experience in research over the last two terms was rewarding and enjoyable. For most of you it was a first experience with research but likely not the last one.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the professors from the Biology Department, the Biochemistry & Chemistry Department, the NOSM and the Cancer Research Centre for supervising these students as well as the Graduate students that helped me during our mini-symposium.
See you all next year.
Schedule of Presentations:
Ecology & Evolution - session I
(Chair: Andreas Lük)
8:00 -8:20 D. Lesbarrères - Comments on program and procedures / Présentation de la journée
8:20 -8:40 M. Akelaitis - Comparison of component communities associated with the galls of D. spinosa (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) from distant parts of its range
8:40 -9:00 B. Ross - Effects of climate variation on structural and community components for galls of Diplolepis ignota (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae)
9:00 -9:20 C. Laurin and M. Shaw - Comparison of benthic macroinvertebrates between naturally recovered lakes and limed lakes in the Sudbury area
9:20 -9:40 K. Standeven - Sex-based divergence in mercury bioaccumulation by northern fishes
9:40 -10:00 M. Prévost - Reproductive life history variation in Great Lakes naturalized rainbow trout
10:00 -10:30 *** COFFEE BREAK / PAUSE-CAFÉ ***
Ecology & Evolution - session II (Chair: Sarah Bogart)
10:30 -10:50 D.A. Langlois - The effects of stress and fitness on secondary sex characteristics and sperm morphology in fathead minnows Pimephales promelas
10:50 -11:10 E. Wyszynski - Assessing population demography of eastern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) in the Greater Sudbury region
11:10 -11:30 K. Santala - Influence of heavy metal stress on plant water relations in Betula papyrifera
11:30 -11:50 N. Monette - The effects of waterlogging on fine root characteristics of a wetland grass, Calamagrostis canadensis (Michx.) Beauv. in the fall season
11:50 -12:10 D. Whalen - A green technology for the production of biofuels
12:10 -1:30 *** LUNCH / DÉJEUNER ***
Ecology & Evolution - session III (Chair: Sarah Elsasser)
1:30 -1:50 S. Castillo - Emerging Infectious Diseases (EIDs) in Leopard frogs (Rana pipiens ) in relation to a watershed system
1:50 -2:10 J. Wood - Movements and habitat selection by Blanding's turtles (Emydoidea blandingii ) in an urban landscape
2:10 -2:30 S. Hubert and E. Vandermarel - Small mammal diversity in revegetated VETAC stands of different ages in the city of greater Sudbury
2:30 -2:50 L. Villano - Development of an index of physical condition in wolverine, Gulo gulo , based on fat contents
2:50 -3:10 H. Filion - Habitat selection of reintroduced elk (Cervus elaphus ) in the Burwash and French River area
3:15 *** AWARDS & CLOSING REMARKS / REMISE DES PRIX ET CLÔTURE ***
Molecular Biology - session I (Chair: Nadia Mykytczuk)
8:20 -8:40 S. Conaty - Secretome of Mycoplasma capricolum.
8:40 -9:00 K. McGrath - pH dependent expression of secreted phosphatase activity in Mycobacteria
9:00 -9:20 B. Yebio - Antimicrobial activity of co-incorporation gentamicin and gallium into liposomes
9:20 -9:40 F. Li - Liposomal lipoic acid: physicochemical characterization
9:40 -10:00 D. Racine - Application de la méthode de polymérase en chaine pour le typage des PVH 16 et 18 (amplification des oncogènes E6 et E7)
10:00 -10:30 *** COFFEE BREAK / PAUSE-CAFÉ ***
Molecular Biology - session II (Chair: Tyler Kirwan)
10:30 -10:50 T. Jessup - Study of the Jak-STAT pathway in HUVEC cells
10:50 -11:10 L. Rossi - The role ERK inhibition by SU1498 in breast cancer cell apoptosis
11:10 -11:30 H. Peltsch - Immunoprecipitation of the B1 protein from non-malignant and malignant cells to qualitatively identify the B1 protein
11:30 -11:50 N. Gauthier - High resolution 2D gel analysis to determine actin isoform specificity of the B1 antibody
11:50 -12:10 H. Hobbs - Investigation of B1 antibody specificity using GFP labeled beta actin expressed in breast and ovarian epithelial cells
12:10 -1:30 *** LUNCH / DÉJEUNER ***
Molecular Biology - session III (Chair: Justin Boyer)
1:30 -1:50 J. De Witt - Regulation of the phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT) gene in hypertension
1:50 -2:10 E. Gervais - Les perturbations du cytosquelette chez les souris déficientes du Bpag1 dans le muscle squelettique
2:10 -2:30 C. Ashick-Stinson - The effect of chronic exposure to particulate air pollution on the leukocyte population in the lungs of non-obese diabetic mice
2:30 -2:50 D. Garrido - Identification of cell surface biomarker associated with the acquisition of drug resistance in MCF-7 breast tumour cells
2:50 -3:10 S. Fabris - The influence of hypertension and fiber type on basal nitric oxide concentrations in rat skeletal muscle
3:15 *** AWARDS & CLOSING REMARKS / REMISE DES PRIX ET CLÔTURE ***
BIOL 4035 class of 2008 ,from left to right :
Bottom row - K. McGrath, D. Garrido, E. Gervais, E. Wyszynski, K. Santala
Middle row - D'A. Langlois, H. Peltsch, C. Ashick-Stinson, L. Rossi, L. Villano, F. Li, S. Conaty, J. De Witt, Dr. D. Lesbarrères
Top row - C. Laurin, M. Akelaitis, S. Hubert, E. Vandermarel, B. Ross, S. Castillo, J. Wood, H. Filion, N. Monette, M. Shaw
Missing - S. Fabris, N. Gauthier, H. Hobbs, T.Jessup, M. Prévost, D. Racine, K. Standeven, D. Whalen, B. Yebio
Message to BIOL 4035 students from Dr. J. Shorthouse, Chairman of the Department of Biology:
Here we are, at the end of the year. A day, that I would argue, you’ll never forget. On behalf of all the staff and faculty of this Department, I would like to offer our congratulations on your presentations, which most of us have said get better and better every year. For those who did the marking or helped you get to this point, we tend to forget that on the thesis front cover it says “In partial fulfillment of”. We tend to forget that you put together this thesis while tending to full time courses and exams. The pressures you have all been under are extensive. Best of all, you survived, managed to pull it off, with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and passion, which we will all remember. From here, we wish you good luck in all your future endeavours and we are all very proud of your work. Don’t forget to give us some news of your accomplishments in the world.
Publications
Burness, G, A.I. Schulte-Hostedde, and R. Montgomerie. 2008. Body condition influences sperm energetics in lake whitefish. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Research 65: 165-170.
Litzgus, J.D., F. Bolton, and A.I. Schulte-Hostedde. 2008. Reproductive output depends on body condition in spotted turtles (Clemmys guttata). Copeia 2008: 84-90.
Pagano, A., D. Lesbarrères, A. Crivelli, M. Veith, T. Lodé, and D. S. Schmeller. 2008. Geographical and ecological distributions of frog hemiclones suggest occurrence of both "General Purpose Genotype" and "Frozen Niche Variation" clones. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 46:162-168.