Biological Sciences
Department of Biology | Rutgers University Newark
One department, many paths to a career
The Biological Sciences have undergone tremendous expansion in recent decades with the development of exciting new discoveries and technologies. These developments have advanced fundamental knowledge in cell and molecular biology, as well as advancing knowledge in biomedical science, leading to new approaches to treating disease.
Programs
Undergraduate students in the program choose courses from among a wide range of research fields to both develop a solid foundation in biology and to build meaningful depth of study in areas of personal interest. In addition to formal lecture and lab courses, students have many opportunities for independent study through seminar courses and research with our outstanding faculty.
Graduate students can choose an MS or PhD program. Both programs stress the importance of the research experience and its value to critical thinking. Students choose from research tracks that have specific course and research requirements that aim to build depth of study in specific focal areas: Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Neurobiology.
News
TARGETING G3BP AGGREGATION TO PREVENT NEURODEGENERATION
Dr. Sahoo's G3BP1-derived peptide rescues multiple in vitro modelled neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimers, Parkinson, and ALS.
Drosophila tweety facilitates autophagy to regulate mitochondrial homeostasis and bioenergetics in Glia.
Authors: Andy Leung (Postdoc), Christina Mansour (Undergraduate), Anwar Nakhla (Undergraduate)
"Oligodendrocyte progenitor development from the postnatal rat subventricular zone is regulated by the p75 neurotrophin receptor"
This paper from the thesis work of Subhashini Joshi, who graduated in 2022, demonstrates that the absence of the p75 neurotrophin receptor from developing oligodendrocyte progenitors leads to their premature exit from the cell cycle and accelerated differentiation, causing abnormalities in early myelination.
"Cortical brain injury causes retrograde degeneration of afferent basal forebrain cholinergic neurons via p75NTR"
This paper from the thesis work of Srestha Dasgupta, who graduated in 2023, demonstrates that traumatic brain injury not only causes the loss of neurons at the injury site, but also elicits the retrograde degeneration of specific neurons that project their axons to the injury site from a distal location.
This study provides novel insights into the balancing act between Rho and Rac GTPases downstream of specific signaling amino acid motifs in the cytoplasmic domain of the Plexin-A4 receptor to mediate Sema3A-dependent dendritic elaboration in mammalian cortical neuron development.
Biology Colloquium
Tuesday 1:00 pm @LSC-130
Seminars given by faculty and graduate trainees
1/30/2024 Prof. Allison Edgar (NJIT)
2/13/2024 Prof. Jian Cao (CINJ)
2/20/2024 Prof. Monica Driscoll (RU-NB)
2/27/2024 Jack Delucia & Joan Baek (Tran Lab)
3/19/2024 Angelid Pabon (Wong Lab) & Adefemi Baderinwa (Tran Lab)
3/26/2024 Prof. Yoon Seung Kim (RU-NB)
4/2/2024 Dr. Vik Meadows (Gao Lab)
4/9/2024 Prof. Sabine Hilfiker (NJMS)
4/16/2024 Prof. Subhajyoti De (CINJ)
4/23/2024 Maciej Jeziorek & Ed Gonzalez (Etchegaray Lab)
Contact
Biological Sciences
Boyden Hall, Room 206
195 University Avenue
Newark, NJ 07102
United States
Tel: 973-353-5347
Fax: 973-353-5518