Bio:LifeChair’s messageIt has been a great start to the academic year! We have over 250 new students in the biological sciences major and over 700 undergraduates in total. With over 80 Ph.D. and M.S. students, our Life Sciences building is bustling with activity.

Dr. Mike McKay, Ryan Professor, is planning a second trip to Germany this spring for students to experience marine biology in the Baltic Sea; Dr. Hans Wildschutte, in his first attempt at NIH funding, secured a grant to study the microbiological community in Lake Erie; and Dr. Moira van Staaden has extended her very successful NSF SetGo program to study the effects of our five years of summer research projects for undergraduates on their career successes in science.

We recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Marine Biology Laboratory with Dr. Cindy Stong and approximately 100 alumni participated in a symposium describing their career successes and networked with current students. We also started this year with a new specialization in forensic biology to complement our new relationship with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation as they begin construction on a new facility just outside our building.

We hope that your lives are rich and that you find the time to enjoyably reflect on your career start here at BGSU. If you aren’t already, please become a recruiter for BGSU by talking with your neighbors, your employees, and your relatives about your career and how it started here. We count on you to help recruit the next generation of scientists, health professionals, science teachers, and science-savvy citizens who can also claim that they received their start here at BGSU!

Jeff MinerAssociate Professor and Department Chair

FALL 2013

www.bgsu.edu/departments/biology

Forensics specializations broaden options The announcement by the state last spring that it would build a Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation crime lab on campus prompted the creation of a new focus area at the University. Started in the fall, the departments of criminal justice, chemistry and biology now offer undergraduate specializations in forensic sciences.

“As soon as the president and the attorney general made the announcement about the building, my phone started ringing off the hook,” remembers Dr. Steven Lab, chair of the criminal justice department.

With interest in forensics already piqued by popular television shows such as “CSI,” the new specializations fit perfectly with students’ desires, Lab said. BGSU will join the very small number of colleges nationally with on-campus crime labs. Having access to personnel from a state-of-the-art crime lab will provide students opportunities for learning through internships and guest lectures. That interaction will help prepare them for careers in public safety and the growing field of forensic sciences.

Dr. Michael Buerger is developing the introductory forensics investigation course for criminal justice. The department is also planning a course on legal aspects of forensic investigations, which will be open to forensics

students in chemistry and biology as well, Lab said.

Biology will develop a new class: Molecular Biology Techniques Laboratory to train both forensic students and molecular biology students in molecular techniques used in forensics labs (and elsewhere). “We hope to have it running next spring,” said department chair Dr. Jeffrey Miner, adding that the University will then be among a limited number of schools offering such a class.

The molecular lab classes will be small, and students will work closely with Dr. Scott Rogers, who has experience in the discipline.

“Science is driven by technique,” Miner said. “You have to be able to do high-end work to get a job in the molecular biology and forensic science area. I think every undergraduate student in molecular biology and forensics, including some graduate students, will want to take this course.”

“I had long thought forensics would be a natural extension of analytical chemistry,” said Dr. John Cable, chemistry department chair. “That’s where the overlap lies. Analytical chemists basically ask ‘What is this substance and how much of it is present?’ Linking this with forensic science means applying the standard techniques to samples relevant to forensic investigations.”

DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES ALUMNI NEWSLETTER

www.bgsu.edu/departments/biology

Over 100 alumni and friends gathered on Friday, October 4 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Marine Lab at BGSU. From its humble beginnings in winter 1963 sharing space with the Comparative Anatomy Lab in the basement of Moseley Hall, BGSU’s Marine Program has developed into one of the University’s marquee programs and now attracts students from across the Midwest.

We owe much of the success of the Marine Program to Marine Lab Founder and Emeritus Director Cynthia Collin Stong whose vision and energy helped guide and sustain the marine lab during its first 30 years of existence. Over this period, Cindy mentored scores of students both in the classroom and in the field, leading over 30 field excursions to the Florida Keys, Belize and other exotic destinations.

Honoring Cindy’s contributions, marine lab alumni responded with great enthusiasm and generosity in 2003 to an initiative to

rename the Marine Biology Scholarship to the Cynthia Collin Stong Marine Biology Scholarship as part of our 40th anniversary event. The scholarship fund has since provided support to 34 undergraduate students to attend summer field programs such as those offered by our consortium partner, the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory.

Likewise, this year’s anniversary featured a successful fundraising campaign to create an endowment for marine lab operations to ensure sufficient resources for the lab into the future. To help make this a reality, Cindy has generously offered to match donations that are allocated to the Marine Lab Operations Fund to a maximum of $12,500. While we have not quite reached our goal, we are getting close and through the continued generosity of alumni and friends, we hope to announce the establishment of this fund by the end of the year.

Following the model of our 40th anniversary celebration, the day started with a symposium in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union theater featuring presentations by 14 alumni whose careers have spanned much of the 50-year history of the Marine Program. These individuals were selected to represent the diverse interests, career paths and life experiences of our graduates and represented state- and federal government agencies (Dr. Joy Marburger ‘74, Dr. Greg Doucette ‘79, Sarah Goldman ‘02), the armed forces (RDML June Ryan ‘84), academia (Dr. Patricia Biesiot ‘72, ‘75, Dr. Carol Stepien ‘79, Dr. Ron Oldfield, Dr. Adam Smith ‘05, ‘07), industry (Dr. Jim Guckert ‘82) and zoos and aquariums (Rick Payeff ‘88, Ray Popik ‘04). Another presentation featured two of Cindy’s Ocean Focus alumni (Terry McKibben ‘80 and Scott Hoff) who continue leading high school trips to the Florida Keys inspired through Ocean Focus. Joe Choromanski ‘82, Vice President of Husbandry at Ripley’s Entertainment had hoped to participate but was waylaid trying to secure US Fish & Wildlife Service inspections and clearances of animals being imported to the new Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada, the opening of which he was overseeing.

In addition to presentations by our alumni, we were joined by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Simon Morgan-Russell and Chair of Biological Sciences, Dr. Jeff Miner, who provided introductory remarks and formally welcomed our guests. A highlight of the day was a captivating keynote by Dr. Eddie Herdendorf, a friend of the Marine Program and Director Emeritus of the Ohio State University’s Stone Laboratory. Dr. Herdendorf served as science coordinator for the Columbus-America Discovery Group in 1989 during the group’s search and eventual discovery of the gold rush ship, S.S. Central America, which sank 200 miles off the Carolina coast in 1857 carrying 300 tons of gold. While studying the shipwreck, Herdendorf identified as many as

50 Years of “Makin’ Waves”The 50th Anniversary Marine Lab Symposium and ReunionBy Robert Michael McKay, Ryan Professor of Biology and Director, Marine Program, and Matthew Partin ‘96, ‘99, ‘08, Lecturer and Coordinator, Marine Lab

Bio:Life

2

Marine Lab Founder and Emeritus Director Cynthia Collin Strong (left) celebrating the marine lab anniversary with June Ryan ’84, RDML, USCG (right)

a dozen new species, including glass sponges, deep-sea woodborers, sea anemones and coral.

Following the keynote, he presented us with a sediment core of foraminiferal ooze collected from the site that will soon be on display in the department.

Following the symposium, many of the participants returned to the marine lab for an open house. For nearly two hours, the lab was packed with returning alumni interacting with our current students who were eager to show the results of their hard work. In addition to Marine Program students and faculty, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, Dr. Rodney Rogers along with Vice President for Research and Economic Development and Dean of the Graduate College, Dr. Mike Ogawa were on hand to welcome our alumni and friends. Also attending the open house were Patrick L. ’74 and Debra (Scheetz) ’74 Ryan. Deb Ryan presently serves as Chair to the Board of Trustees, is a biology graduate and along with her husband Patrick, are generous supporters of biological sciences at BGSU.

The day finished with a banquet and program at the student union. During the reception, candid shots during their BGSU days of nearly everyone in attendance kept the audience laughing and helped to bring back a lot of memories. Thanks to Mike Godfrey and Terry McKibben ‘80 for digitizing Cindy’s slides and putting the show together. A dear friend of the Marine Program, Mrs. Phyllis Evans ‘52 brought some

smiles to those in attendance while offering a blessing recounting an experience she shared with her late husband, Dr. William (Bill) Evans ‘53, ‘88 (Hon) while he was posted in Washington serving as Under Secretary of Commerce and NOAA Administrator. Following the banquet, Cindy kept everyone laughing as she recounted the beginnings of the marine lab. We also heard from BGSU senior Justin Grubb who shared his new venture “Running Wild”

which promotes conservation education in an adventure format and the audience was treated to an inviting travelogue by Ms. Lynn Funkhouser ‘64 who shared her passion for conservation and photography while diving the pristine reefs of the “Apex of the Coral Triangle” in the Philippines.

Many are owed thanks for helping to make the event a great success. Of course, Cindy is an inspiration to all of us. She has been a motivating force in keeping her alumni together and active as participants during the past two reunions. We are indebted to Deb McLean, Executive Assistant in Biological Sciences who was responsible for much of the planning and for keeping us on task. Deb has already informed me that she will have retired before the 60th Anniversary reunion but with a little coaxing, I’m sure we can bring her out of retirement to help in the planning of that. We also appreciate the efforts of Ann Krebs with Marketing & Communications who was a pleasure to work with in promoting the event. And of course, our appreciation goes out to all of the alumni and friends through whose generosity, both the Cynthia Collin Stong Marine Biology Scholarship and the Marine Lab Operations Fund will help to support current and future students of the Marine Program.

We would like to close with some remarks sent following the reunion by Jim Guckert ‘82 which nicely captured the spirit of the event and of the Marine Program as it exists today: “Those leading the BG Marine Lab have kept in place the spirit of community we had, as well as the undergrad-based opportunities and focus on problem solving. It was clear that what we experienced lives on.”

“Those leading the BG Marine Lab have kept in place the spirit of community we had, as well as the undergrad-based opportunities and focus on problem solving. It was clear that what we experienced lives on.” - Jim Guckert ’82

3

Dr. Patricia Besiot ’72 (right) with current student Victoria Hunter

‘Running Wild’ in Costa Rica

“When you do a documentary like this with wildlife, monkeys and snakes just get thrown at you by the jungle and you have to be ready for it.”

According to seniors Justin Grubb and Alex Goetz, they were more than ready for the wildlife they encountered while on a trip to Costa Rica as part of a BGSU Stuart R. Givens Memorial Fellowship. The Givens Fellowship provides up to $6,000 to a BGSU undergraduate to support a self-designed, off-campus experience in a manner not otherwise possible through an academic program, regular summer job, enrichment program or study abroad program.

Grubb, who is majoring in marine biology, and Goetz, who is studying film production, spent three weeks in the Central American country in May shooting scenes for a wildlife and conservation show called “Running Wild.” The show is the brainchild of Grubb, who says he came up with the concept in high school.

Grubb and Goetz initially paired up their sophomore year while working for “BG on TV” at WBGU. While there they shot several episodes of “Wild Adventures with Justin Grubb.” Eventually they decided it was time to try to make “Running Wild” a reality.

The pair explored their options, investigating Kickstarter, the online fundraising website, and various grants, but it was a fellow student who gave them the idea to pursue a Givens Fellowship.

“The odds were stacked against us,” Goetz said. “You’re supposed to have a year left in school and I’m graduating in December.” It’s also unusual for one fellowship to be shared between two people.

After what Goetz called a nerve-racking interview, the pair got the go-ahead to pursue their project.

Equipped with two DSLR cameras and a tripod, they left for Costa Rica on May 4. After a boat trip to Bahia Drake and an ATV ride, they found their way to the remote town of Tamandua and the biological station there.

“There was no electricity and no cell phone service,” said Goetz. “Tamandua is a town of just 200 people who don’t speak any English. In the rain forest where we were staying everything was lit by candles and we slept under this shelter someone had kind of built.”

The lack of gear made it easy for them to traverse the country. Their travels took them to Manuel Antonio on the western coast of the country, the marine park in Puntarenas, Curu and the cloud forest of Monteverde. They even climbed to the top of the continental divide.

“We were going to the most bio-diverse place on earth, so we could see almost anything and it would be awesome,” Grubb said. “We saw a quetzal, one of the most endangered birds in the wild, and it was a breeding male. All types of monkeys, including a squirrel monkey, the most endangered primate in Central America.”

But what they were really looking for was snakes.Much to the dismay of their guide, both men inched their way

closer to a yellow-sided green pit viper, which is very venomous, in search of the perfect shot. Grubb also scuba dived with sharks and wasn’t afraid to eat a few insects on camera.

Save for a case of sun poisoning, and a few snake bites, the pair left Costa Rica relatively unscathed and with close to 200 gigs worth of video footage.

After getting back to the United States, they made a website for “Running Wild.” Grubb emailed the link to his professors, old high school teachers and the director of the Toledo Zoo, Jeff Sailer. Sailer reached out and said he wanted to meet them.

“From there they approached us about doing videos for the zoo,” said Goetz. “When we got back we never expected that.”

Both have since been hired by the zoo, Grubb as a biologist and Goetz as a videographer. The pair has already produced several videos.

“We’re happy about the opportunities with the zoo and excited about the opportunities to come,” said Grubb.

As for “Running Wild,” Goetz says he’s going to keep editing and promoting the series online at http://runningwildtv.com/adventure/, building their fan base and looking for avenues to get it on the air.

Bio:Life

4

From Lake Erie to Lake OnegaBiology faculty collaborate with scientists in Russia

We were only a couple of hours into our 9-hour train ride from St. Petersburg to Petrozavodsk and already questioning the wisdom of our research foray to remote Lake Onega in the Russian Republic of Karelia. Checking my email earlier that day in St. Petersburg, I was informed that some of our equipment was stuck in Russian customs. Language barriers were also challenging us. Not that this was unexpected, but my colleague George Bullerjahn who accompanied me has a working knowledge of Russian. Or at least I thought he did! While George for some reason could remember the words for “men’s and ladies’ footwear” he was at a loss as to how to request something as simple as a plastic bag at the grocery store. And then there was the train…the Arktika makes its way from St. Petersburg north to the Arctic port of Murmansk stopping at Petrozavodsk en route. This was not a train for tourists, nor was it an “express”. Rather, it

took its time and all the while we could enjoy the stench of diesel, unfiltered cigarettes and decades of Baltika beer spilled through the corridors of our aged passenger car. And did I mention that it was late March and we were still in the grips of Russian winter?

We arrived at Petrozavodsk station

around 1 a.m. wondering if we would be met by anyone, as correspondence with our Russian hosts had been a little vague. We were in luck as Vasiliy, one of our hosts, was there to take us to the Hotel Karelia, our comfortable home for the next five days. It being dark, we had no feel for our new environment. That changed quickly the next morning upon awakening and seeing frozen Lake Onega just outside our window.

Lake Onega is the second largest lake in Europe after Lake Ladoga, also located in Russia’s north. I came to be introduced to Lake Onega while attending a Large Lakes congress in Konstanz, Germany in October 2012 where I presented the results of our work investigating the winter limnology of Lake Erie, a project that has been ongoing since 2007. Our field surveys of ice-covered Lake Erie have documented expansive under-ice blooms of cold-adapted phytoplankton, so abundant that the water is discolored brown. A number of the European scientists

were very interested in our results and I was approached several days later by a couple of Russian scientists affiliated with the Northern Water Problems Institute (NWPI) of the Karelian Research Center, Russian Academy of Sciences. They had collected preliminary data from the Russian Great Lakes supporting a similar phenomenon of under-ice algal blooms and were interested in a comparative study.

Ever ready for new experiences, we set the wheels in motion to try to make the visit a reality. The first challenge was funding which we addressed with a pitch to the National Science Foundation (NSF). George Bullerjahn and I were already funded by NSF to conduct research into winter limnology of Lake Erie and the NSF was receptive to our request for an International Supplement to offset travel expenses to visit Russia. We also thought this would be an excellent opportunity for our doctoral student Mark Rozmarynowycz ‘07, ‘09, a native of Sheffield Lake, OH to gain some international research experience. Fortunately, the flexibility of funds available from the Patrick L. and Debra Scheetz Ryan Endowment made Mark’s participation possible.

Despite our initial trepidation, the trip was a success. Our hosts at the NWPI were wonderful, ensuring we were well taken care of. Professor Nikolai Filatov, Director of the Institute, welcomed us on our arrival and introduced us to scientists from the institute with whom we would be working. Our visit to the NWPI started with a day-long research symposium where we introduced our Russian colleagues to the North American Great Lakes through research presentations and we, in turn, learned about the Lake Onega ecosystem whose watershed is heavily forested and supports pulp and paper, and salmon aquaculture industries. The following day was spent “on” Lake Onega where we manually augured holes through the ice that was three feet thick even in late March. We collected water samples and also returned to the institute with ice cores for analysis. Through support from the Department of Energy’s Joint Genome Institute, a genetic analysis of the organisms living in the lake (and ice) during winter is underway and will be compared with our results from Lake Erie. During our visit to NWPI, we enjoyed an excellent collaborative working relationship with the scientists. We are especially indebted to Professor Filatov for coordinating our visit, Dr. Natalia Kalinkina

Continued on pg. 6

5

Marine bacteria may prove source for new antibiotics

Survival is the name of the game even among marine bacteria, research by Dr. Hans Wildschutte, biological sciences, shows. In the competition for food, some have

genetically adapted to become “super-killers,” able to fend off other unrelated populations of bacteria in their area while remaining “friendly” toward closer relatives.

Although the Vibrio bacteria he studies are nonpathenogenic to humans, the survival mechanisms they have developed show promise as the basis for new antibiotics with therapeutic properties, said Wildschutte, whose work was featured in the leading journal Science last fall.

The rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has become a growing and dangerous problem and of great concern to the medical community, especially in the United States.

“Novel antibiotics could be useful in the treatment of illness caused by gram negative bacteria,” which can be resistant to many available antibiotics, Wildschutte said. His work is funded by a three-year, $300,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health.

The Science article, “Ecological Populations of Bacteria Act as Socially Cohesive Units of Antibiotic Production and Resistance,” details the initial findings that natural antibiotics produced by some Vibrio bacteria strains may provoke competition between populations instead of simply increasing the success of individuals.

As a postdoctoral researcher at MIT before joining the BGSU faculty, Wildschutte was part of a team that developed tools for genetically manipulating environmental organisms. This meant that, for the first time, wild strains could be cultured in the lab and mutated in order to study how they might function as social units in the wild, or if they even did function as part of a social structure instead of strictly as individuals.

Wildschutte is now performing research to identify genes that encode the antimicrobial factors. He and his students are improving methods to identify mutants that have lost the ability to kill other bacteria. Using this optimized method, a search of 20,000 bacteria is predicted to yield about 20 that no longer antagonize. These mutants are used to identify the genes that encode antimicrobial factors.

Wildschutte has adapted this research methodology, in collaboration with Drs. Michael McKay and Goerge Bullerjahn, at BGSU in order to study important microbial processes among freshwater bacteria within the Great Lakes. Ongoing research involves diverse bacterial interactions that can be probed for a range of factors from novel antimicrobial products to new alternative energy sources.

Bio:Lifeof NWPI, Dr. Sergei Komulainen of the Karelian Research Center’s Institute of Biology and Yulia Slastina, a doctoral candidate at the NWPI who not only carried the bulk of the analytical work, but also prepared homemade chicken soup and meat pies following our field surveys on the lake. Aside from our fieldwork on Lake Onega, highlights included a trip to the Kivach Natural Reserve and its famous waterfall, eating fish sashlik (barbeque salmon on skewers) along the shores of Onega and following the best-of-seven KHL ice hockey final between Dynamo Moscow and Traktor Chelyabinsk. Our doctoral student Mark, who is an avid birder, even rose to the top rank on a Russian bird watching list while recording birds during the trip.

On our return to St. Petersburg, we visited with our former graduate student, Dr. Natalia Ivanikova ‘06 who returned to Russia following her Ph.D. work at BGSU. It was wonderful to catch up with her and she provided an excellent guided tour of Saint Petersburg State University. A highlight was the Twelve Collegia building, which was commissioned by Peter the Great, and whose upper walkway extends for nearly 500 yards and is filled with sculptures and busts of famous graduates in mathematics and the sciences such as the chemist Mendeleev to whom we owe the Periodic Table.

We also had an opportunity to visit with colleagues at the Russian Academy of Sciences Center for Ecological Safety and learned about their biomonitoring projects where they use freshwater invertebrates (mussels, crayfish) as sentinels to detect toxins in the drinking water supply. There was interest in a possible collaboration to adopt this approach as an early warning to detect algal toxins produced in Lake Erie.

Aside from the scientific interactions, we are indebted to our host at the Academy of Sciences, Dr. Andrei Sharov for providing the experience of a visit to the banya (Russian sauna). A relaxing way to begin the long journey home.

Continued from pg. 5

6

(Above) Dr. Hans Wildschutte and junior biology major Alex Antel

Dr. R. Michael McKay and doctoral candidate Mark Rozmarynowycz

That “sheer attendance” alone would make the Meserves a favorite among student-athletes, coaches and administrators. But, add to that Lee’s 40 years as a professor of biological sciences and his 16 years of dedicated service as the Faculty Athletics Representative, helping to bridge the too-often-disconnected worlds of academics and athlet-ics. Add their status as inaugural Champions Circle donors, annually contributing the equivalent of one year’s tuition and fees to help an individual student-athlete year after year. Combine that with their en-dowing the Meserve Scholarship, given to the senior male and female student-athletes of the year.

The list goes on, but as it turns out, the Meserves were just get-ting started. The next chapter of the couple’s dedication and incredible generosity was announced at the Stroh Center just before the women’s basketball team played (and handily defeated) the Akron Zips on Wednesday, Feb. 20. The newest, historic gift from the Meserves is valued at more than $650,000. Coupled with a planned deferred gift to endow a biological sciences professorship, the overall impact will be nearly $1 million, making it one of the largest from a faculty member in BGSU’s history.

Displaying his characteristic humility, Lee observed, “I can’t imag-ine having been employed in a place that more suited my goals and aspirations. Marge and I can’t imagine having lived in a more providing, more embracing community for the greater part of our lives to date.

“The students have been great, the colleagues have been great, and the support of the two of us has been great. Since each of us is an only child, we appreciate the sense of family that we have received,” Meserve continued. “We are more than honored to be able to give back to our family.”

Lee Meserve began his teaching career at BGSU in 1973 after receiving his Ph.D. in zoology from Rutgers University and working at Vassar College. During his time in Northwest Ohio, he has served as an assistant professor, associate professor, professor and distinguished teaching professor of biological sciences.

He holds membership in numerous honor societies including Omi-cron Delta Kappa and Sigma Phi Omega. In 1990, he was the recipient of the Hollis A. Moore University Service Award. Two years later, he was honored with the BGSU Master Teacher Award. Dr. Meserve was also the recipient of the BGSU Distinguished Teaching Professorship in 1993, received the BGSU Honorary Alumnus Award in 1997 and was given the BGSU President’s Advising Award in 2001.

Marge Meserve retired five years ago after a career of over 30 years as a medical technologist at Wood County Hospital, where she was supervisor of the blood bank. Besides BGSU athletics, she is cur-rently deeply involved in gardening and is an enamel-on-copper artist. She has been involved in the Black Swamp Arts Festival in Bowling Green for each of the 20 years since its inception.

BGSU’s 18 intercollegiate sports are blessed with some of the world’s most supportive and enthusiastic fans. Even so, Lee and Marge Meserve have stood out for their faithful - some would say extraordinary - attendance across multiple Falcon sports for the past several decades.

A Transformational Gift

7

DEPARTMENT NEWS> Patti Crawford-Mayo joined the Department of Biological Sciences as a secretary I October 2012 after Louise Small retired last September. Patti’s responsibilities include undergraduate scheduling and registration, and recruitment events organization.

> The Pasakarnis Buchanan Lecture was presented by P. Dee Boersma, Ph.D. from the University of Washington last March. The title of her talk was “Penguins as Marine Sentinels” and she discussed the effects of climate change on Patagonian Magellanic penguins.

> Dr. Karen Sirum, associate professor of biological sciences, was invited to give a talk at TEDxToledo in September of this year. Her presentation was titled “The Science of Learning.”

Bouzat, Graduate Students’ Lake Erie Studies Reveal Microbial DiversityWork by Dr. Juan L. Bouzat, biological sciences, and former graduate students Matt Hoostal and Torey Looft is contributing to the knowledge base about the ecosystem of Lake Erie.

Although some types of bacteria are harmful, helpful bacteria are crucial to the health and survival of the lake and its inhabitants. Threatening that health are organic pollutants and heavy metals such as cadmium, zinc, cobalt and copper.

Bouzat’s team has looked at the distribution across the lake bottom of bacteria that play a role in transforming organic pollutants and heavy metals into nontoxic forms, and how these microbial communities have adapted over time to their environments.

The team has found that genes for heavy metal tolerance have been transferred across genomes of different bacterial species, likely favoring the adaptation of microbial communities to environmental contaminants.

Two papers on microbial diversity and the transfer of genes involved in heavy-metal resistance have been recently published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research and the Journal of Molecular Evolution, Bouzat reports. Both papers have received considerable attention: the microbial diversity paper was highlighted in a press release issued by the International Association of Great Lakes Research, and the heavy-metal paper was featured on the cover of the molecular evolution journal.

“These are good examples of quality research performed by our students at BGSU,” Bouzat said. Both papers involved the research of Hoostal and Looft, both from Bouzat’s lab.

Hoostal received his Ph.D. in biology in December 2012. “Of the five chapters in his dissertation, four have been published in highly regarded scientific journals,” Bouzat said.

Looft completed his master’s degree at BGSU in 2005, continued his graduate studies at Iowa State University and is now an independent research microbiologist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He was back at BGSU Sept. 11 to present a talk at the Department of Biological Sciences Seminar Series.

BRIE

FS

Bio:Life

8

Dr. Eileen Underwood, director of the herpetology lab and associate professor of biological sciences, with herp students and animals at the ArtsX Carnivale festival last year.

Dr. Donald Deters, a fixture in the microbiology program at BGSU for 28 years has recently retired. Dr. Deters was the advisor for our microbiology students for many years. Don taught one of our core foundation courses (BIOL 2050), microbiology, and cell biology, and stepped up to also teach our honors course (BIOL 2050H), as the number of honors students and advanced student population increased. His research interests included biochemistry, eukaryotic molecular biology (yeast) and molecular genetics. In addition, he supervised the research of over 30 students who graduated with either a Ph.D., M.S. or B.S. degree. Dr. Deters served on numerous committees at the department and university level, including but not limited to, the Curriculum, Executive, and Graduate Committees and was a member of Faculty Senate for twelve years. We wish Don the best and look forward to seeing him at department seminars. If you want to contact Don and wish him well, he can be reached at his BGSU e-mail address at ddeters@bgsu.edu.

Dr. John Graham retired from Bowling Green State University in May 2013. He joined the biological sciences faculty as an assistant professor in 1987. In 1993, he was promoted to associate professor and in 1999, became a full professor. John taught Foundations of Biology (BIOL 2050) for many years, Molecular Biology, and Molecular Genetics and was nominated three times for the BGSU Master Teacher Award. During his tenure, he advised the research of 13 graduate students and was a committee member for an additional 29 graduate students. As a molecular scientist, his research brought in multiple large grants and produced many important publications. Faculty and students in biological sciences wish John a great retirement and also hope to see him at department functions. If you want to contact John and wish him well, he can be reached at his BGSU e-mail address at johnsg@bgsu.edu.

Faculty Retirements

9

Again this year we want to recognize and thank our donors for their generous contributions. If you have provided a monetary gift to the Department of Biological Sciences and are not listed below, please let us know and we will publish a correction in the next newsletter.

Biological Sciences Scholarship/General Activities Foundation AccountDavid AlderferCarol AugspurgerEdwin BartholomewJoe/Betty BeckerAnne BenjaminBP Foundation (Eric Schwamberger match)Dale/Vicki BowlusGlen/Lareen BowmanDavid BraunGreg/Karen DeCampHenry/Alyssa GomesRobert/Anne Graves (Scholarship fund)Eric/Elizabeth HansonTerry/Janice HuffordRichard LymanBarbara MastersDebra McLeanLisa/Dale MerrittMark/Frieda MondlMary Ann RoachMary RupnowMark/Laura SeegerRobert/Karen WeilandPaul/Gerda WonerLamar/Sondra Zigler

T. Richard Fisher Biology ScholarshipClarence/Marjorie Smith

James D. Graham Memorial ScholarshipThomas/Virginia McQuistion

Karlin AwardGerald/Paula Levy

Ralph V. McKinney-Eloise Whitwer ScholarshipPatricia Bauer

Dr. Suzanne K. Miller Undergraduate Research AssistantshipsKenneth/Suzanne Miller-Kobalka

Larry and Linda Oman Graduate ScholarshipLarry and Linda Oman Charitable Gift Fund

Robert C. Romans Biology ScholarshipLorraine DeVenneyLisa/Dale MerrittTerry/Phyllis MorrowJohn/Bonnie MuchaJohn/Paula ParrishJean RomansBrent Takemoto

Waldo and Evelyn Steidtmann ScholarshipHarry/Sally Crawford

Dennis R. Whitmore Memorial ScholarshipKevin DielsRichard/Violet Whitmore

Biological Sciences Scholarship/General Activities Foundation AccountAnne BenjaminDale/Vicki BowlusGlen/Lareen BowmanGreg/Karen DeCampWilliam/Alyce DenglerTeresa GilbertJohn Hancock Financial Services, Inc. (match for Lisa Merritt)Eric/Elizabeth HansonJulie KadrmasDebra McLeanMark/Frieda MondlCarol ThatcherMary WolfLamar/Sondra Zigler

Biology Alumni Sophomore ScholarshipTristan CodnerTeresa Fisher

James D. Graham Memorial ScholarshipDaLynn/Sharon BadenhopThomas/Virginia McQuistion

Barbara Long Masters Biological Sciences Research FundBarbara Masters

Ralph V. McKinney-Eloise Whitwer ScholarshipPatricia BauerLee/Marge Meserve

Larry and Linda Oman Graduate ScholarshipEaton Corporation (match for Larry Oman)

Robert C. Romans Biology ScholarshipLorraine DeVenneyJohn Hancock Financial Services, Inc. (match for Lisa Merritt)Lisa/Dale MerrittLee/Marge MeserveJohn/Bonnie Mucha (in memory of Dr. Robert Romans)

Waldo and Evelyn Steidtmann ScholarshipKeith Imler

Dennis R. Whitmore Memorial ScholarshipMark/Catherine SommerRichard/Violet Whitmore (in memory of Dorothy Brauer)Dennis/Adrianne Todak (in memory of Dorothy Brauer)

Cynthia Collin Stong Marine Biology ScholarshipCatherine BevierGreg DoucettePriscilla DouglasCheryl DunnKathy CarrNikola GarberMike GodfreyJim/Laura GoodmanTed Groat/Peggy GiordanoJim/Susan GuckertDennis LawGary/Linda LemmonJulie Letterhos

Dan MacoyJoy Marburger Lisa MonkRobert MotticeRobert/Marina NaumannEdward NolanBarbara PackardValerie Reischuck Jean RomansDenise Seliskar Robert/April ShattuckMichael/Susie SochaEugene StongGary Stoops Jr.Charles ThomasLee Wright Don Zeisloft

Marine Lab Operations FundPatricia BiesiotMarissa BijarroEdward BoutonWilliam/Sharon BrowerJohn BucklewRobert Cape Kathy CarrTristan CodnerChristine DowningRon EutonPhyllis EvansPauline FlemingNikola Garber Mike GodfreyJim/Laura GoodmanTed Groat/Peggy GiordanoAllison GroteleuschenJim/Susan GuckertRichard HochenbergNancy KinneyJeffrey KlimowiczGary/Linda LemmonJulie LetterhosJohn/Ingrid LinkDan MacoyJane McClearyLarry/Karen MeyerJeff MinerRobert MotticeEdward NolanRonald/Janet Partin Valerie ReischuckPeter/Sabine SehlingerDenise SeliskarBree ShollenbergerMichael/Susie SochaRon/Gloria SpitlerCarol StepienGary Stoops Jr.Robin StreichlerJames/Elizabeth UhlikDan Woltering

2012 Alumni/Friends Contributions Exceed $55,500 January–October 2013 Alumni/Friends Contributions Exceed $45,500

10

Bonnie Blankinship Mike McKayDeb McLeanJeff MinerJen Sobolewski Tamera Wales

conTRIBuToRSBio:Life

Make a gift today

Name ___________________________________________ Year of Graduation______________

Address _____________________________________________________________________

City _________________________________ State ___________________ Zip _____________

Signature _____________________________________________________________________

Credit card # __________________________________________________________________

Expiration date _________________________________________________________________

o Visa o MasterCard o Discover

Return to: Bowling Green State University, Department of Biological Sciences, 217 Life Sciences Bldg., Bowling Green, OH 43403-0208

Enclosed is my contribution of:o $25o $50o $100o Other $________

My gift is designated for:o Scholarships (indicate fund)o New Equipmento Department General Fundo Marine Lab Operations Fund

Note: Make checks payable to BGSU Foundation Inc., Dept. of Biological Sciences

Following is the list of scholarship recipients for 2013-14. This list includes awards for graduating seniors. Congratulations to these outstanding students and special thanks to our donors! To view scholarship criteria, please visit: www.bgsu.edu/departments/biology/programs/undergrad/scholarships

Alpha Epsilon Delta Awardnikki Mccoy (ney, oH)

Karlin AwardVance Hartke (Bowling Green, oH)

Beta Beta Beta Awardnicole ott (Monroeville, oH)

Biology Alumni Freshman Scholarship (incoming freshmen)Scott Heidler (Hudson, oH)

Biology Alumni Sophomore ScholarshipTiffani Bolen (Galloway, oH)Ashley Dallas (cincinnati, oH)Danielle Kemp (Alliance, oH)Jillian Wray (Lowell, MI)Robert Zenas (Ann Arbor, MI)

Jean Pasakarnis Buchanan ScholarshipLauren Eaken (Lodi, oH)Amber Gombash (Delta, oH)Kristopher Holloway (Lorain, oH)Amanda Kuhlman (Lima, oH)

T. Richard Fisher Biology ScholarshipDanielle callicoat (St. Paris, oH)Margaret caryer (cleveland Hts., oH)Derek Smith (Toledo, oH)carmen Wimberley (Detroit, MI)

James D. Graham Memorial Scholarshipolivia Birck (Fairfield, oH)Dominique Kassa (Holland, oH)Lauren o’connor (north Royalton, oH)

Ralph V. McKinney, Jr. – Eloise Whitwer ScholarshipTia Anderson (oak Park, MI)clare Drennen (Bowling Green, oH)Marie Guthrie (Holland, oH)Jenifer nord (Stow, oH)Devin Wrice (Lorain, oH)Jonathan Yoo (Wellington, FL)

Suzanne K. Miller undergraduate Research AssistantshipHannah Duffy (Middleburg Hts., oH)Brittany novick (columbia Station, oH)natalie Sommerville (cincinnati, oH)Devin Wrice (Lorain, oH)

Barry R. Morstain Scholarship in BiologyBrionna Powell (Detroit, MI)Kathryn Rapin (Toledo, oH)

Multicultural Student ScholarshipTationa Dennard (Southfield, MI)

Linda and Larry oman Scholarship (graduate students)Sarah Lahman (Wauseon, oH)

Myra L. Patchen Biology Scholarshipnadejda Mirochnitchenko (oregon, oH)

Dawson S. and Sylvia A. Patterson ScholarshipAutumn court (Westchester, oH)Robert Witte (Whitehouse, oH)

Robert c. Romans Biology Scholarship (incoming freshmen)Allison Sutton (Pemberville, oH)Kelsey Weaver (Bowling Green, oH)Presley Weaver (Bowling Green, oH)

Joseph J. and Marie P. Schedel ScholarshipKatherine Bland (Mason, oH)Bobbi carter (Amelia,oH)Kayla Effinger (carmen, In)Jocelyn Williams (Perrysburg, oH)

Steven S. Steel ScholarshipJustin Grubb (Worthington, oH)

Waldo and Evelyn Steidtmann ScholarshipEmily DeArmon (Westlake, oH)Stephanie Hylinski (Monroe, MI)cole olmstead (Potsdam, nY)Seth Schulte (Bowling Green, oH)

cynthia collin Stong Marine Biology ScholarshipMarissa Bijarro (newport, MI)Lauren Eaken (Lodi, oH)Kathryn Rapin (Toledo, oH)Kelsie Saurber (Trenton, oH)Kathryn Sprague (Hebron, oH)

Harold E. Tinnappel ScholarshipBrittany novick (columbia Station, oH)Kelsie Saurber (Trenton, oH)Kathryn Sprague (Hebron, oH)

Dennis R. Whitmore Memorial ScholarshipAlexander Antel (Parma, oH)Hannah Duffy (Middleburg Hts., oH)natalie Sommerville (cincinnati, oH)

Biological Sciences Scholarship and Award Recipients

2012 Alumni/Friends Contributions Exceed $55,500 January–October 2013 Alumni/Friends Contributions Exceed $45,500

11

Nonprofit OrgU.S. Postage PAIDBowling GreenState University

Bowling Green State University Department of Biological Sciences217 Life Sciences BuildingBowling Green, Ohio 43403-0208

Address Service Requested

Please…Let us hear from you!

Your full name: (Include maiden name if appropriate)

Address:

Graduation year(s):

Degree(s):

Place of employment:

Job title and/or job description:

Appropriateness of BGSU training for this position:

What might be added to better prepare current students for positions such as yours?

Would you and/or your firm be willing to sponsor, if appropriate, undergraduate internships? Circle: Yes or No

If yes, indicate name, address and email address of contact person:

Most memorable moment at BGSU:

Bio:Life

14AS

338