VCU Biological Complexity

"Mid Atlantic Microbial Pathogenesis Meeting"
Saturday-Monday, February 8-10, 2004
Wintergreen Conference Center, Virginia

Sponsored by: East Carolina University, Center for the Study of Biological Complexity, United States Army Medical Research and Materiel Command,
United States Department of Agriculture National Research Initiative Animal Health
and Well-Being Program

Dear Colleagues:

We are pleased to announce that the response for this years Mid Atlantic Microbial Pathogenesis meeting has been tremendous. I am writing to encourage those of you that haven't yet registered to do so as soon as possible. If the numbers exceed our original expectations we will need to either close the meeting and not accept further registrants or if we receive the registration forms early enough we will be able to make arrangements with Wintergreen to handle the larger crowd. Please take the time to register by phone or fax TODAY. All information can be found at the link below. We look forward to seeing you at the meeting.

http://www.ecu.edu/mampm/registration.htm

Best regards Rich Marconi and Joanna Goldberg

"Why Biologists need Mathematicians "
Wednesday, February 11, 2004 * 12:00pm
Oliver Hall Room 2079

"Why Biologists need Mathematicians"
Robert Reams, College of William and Mary

Hosted by the Math Department, this seminar is aimed at undergraduate math majors.

Biologists need mathematicians to analyze their data. At least, sometimes they do. This talk is about one of those times. Protein molecules don't just consist of a bunch of amino acid molecules strung together; proteins have a three-dimensional shape. Nuclear magnetic resonance experiments can be performed on a protein molecule to provide some of the interatomic distances. This talk is not about nuclear magnetic resonance experiments. It is about how to get from the °imsy interatomic distance data, to a three-dimensional picture of a protein molecule on a computer screen ... so that the biologist can look at it and say \Aha, now I understand how this enzyme works!".

"Processing Compatible Polymer Surface Modification for Biocidal Activity"
Wednesday, February 11, 2004 * 3:30pm - 4:50pm
ENGB Rm 106

School of Engineering Building
601 West Main Street
Richmond, VA 23284

"Processing Compatible Polymer Surface Modification for Biocidal Activity"
Dr. Kenneth J. Wynne
Professor, Chemical Engineering
Research Professor, Chemistry
Virginia Commonwealth University

A School of Engineering Graduate Research Seminar

This presentation is concerned with control of polymer surfaces so as to understand and enhance known functions and to introduce exciting new functions. Recent results concerning the surface science of polyurethanes will be described. Cationic ring opening co-polymerization of oxetanes is used to generate functional oxetane polyols having a propylene oxide backbone and controlled ratios of fluorinated and functional side chains (Figure 1). Incorporation of these functional polyols into polyurethanes has been accomplished generating Surface Modifying Additives (SMAs). The SMAs have been used with conventional PUs so as to surface-concentrate function. XPS has been useful for quantifying of surface functionality. Wetting behavior is investigated by means of Dynamic Contact Angle (DCA) analysis. Oxetane-containing polyurethanes will be described that exhibit unusual wetting behavior: coatings become more hydrophobic on contact with liquid water. In another direction, biocidal polyurethane SMAs have been synthesized. These have proved effective against pathogenic bacteria.

Kenneth J. Wynne is Professor and Director, Surface Characterization Laboratory in the Chemical Engineering Department at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is also Research Professor in the Department of Chemistry. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts in 1965. Prior to February 2000, he managed the Polymer Program at the Office of Naval Research. His research interests at VCU include polymer design and characterization for functional polymer surfaces, silicones and fluoropolymers, supercritical CO2 assisted polymer processing, “soft” lithography and microfluidics. He has published over 90 papers, has co-edited three books, and has 15 patents. He is Past Chair (2003) of the Polymer Chemistry Division, American Chemical Society. He is a member of the Editorial Advisory Boards of Journal of Applied Polymer Science and Journal of Inorganic and Organometallic Polymers.

"Building the Mycoplasma pneumoniae attachment organelle"
Monday, February 16, 2004 * 4:00 PM
Life Science Building Room 253

"Building the Mycoplasma pneumoniae attachment organelle"
Dr. Mitch Balish, University of Georgia

Presented by the the Department of Biology

"snoRNPs and structural dynamics required for ribosome biogenesis: How to make a ribosome"
Wednesday, February 18, 2004 * 4:00 PM
Life Science Building Room 253

"snoRNPs and structural dynamics required for ribosome biogenesis: How to make a ribosome"
Dr. Brenda Peculis, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda MD

Presented by the the Department of Biology

"Application of Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry to Study Signal Transduction in Vivo"
Monday, February 23, 2004 * 12:00 Noon - 1:00PM
Massey Cancer Center, Room G-120

"Application of Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry to Study Signal Transduction /in Vivo/"
Paul Graves, Ph.D.
Research Scientist and Assistant Director
Duke Proteomics Facility and Department of Pharmacology
Duke University, Durham, N.C.

Research Seminar sponsored by Radiation Oncology

"Probing Mycobacteria pathogenesis by genetic, biochemical and
cell biologic approaches and by use of genetically tractable hosts"
Tuesday, February 24, 2004 * 3:00 - 3:50PM
Sanger Hall 6-032

*FACULTY CANDIDATE SEMINAR*

"Probing Mycobacteria pathogenesis by genetic, biochemical and
cell biologic approaches and by use of genetically tractable hosts"
Dr. Lian-Yong Gao
University of California, San Francisco