BioSynthesis

The College of Science and Technology Ice Cream Crew To kick off Welcome Weekend, freshmen in the College of Science and Technology were treated by the Dean's Office to an ice cream social  with faculty and staff in front of Hartline Science Center. It was fun to meet and and greet incoming students in BAHS and other CoST majors while enjoying ice cream treats. Some of the students ventured off to catch Pokemon, while others hung around to enjoy the beautiful evening and eat more ice cream. Welcome to all! 

Dr. Barry Nolt with new tropical aquariums on display n Hartline Lobby. There's something fishy in Hartline! Two beautiful tropical aquariums are now on display in Hartline Lobby. The aquariums are gifts from Dr. Judith Downing , professor emerita. Dr. Downing taught Microbiology and Immunology in BAHS for many years. Dr. Barry Nolt has been busy this summer preparing for their new home. The aquariums  house a host of aquatic plants, Colombian tetra, and Angel fish, with more fish on the way. Check it out!

The BU Honors Program welcomed 39 freshmen this year at a picnic in Town Park. Among them are five BAHS students:   Lauren Bunnell, biology, pre-medicine;  Tara Full , biology pre-medicine;   Aurora Tamblin,  biology major, Elizabeth Neifer , health sciences, pre-physical therapy; and Mikayla Ulicny , medical imaging.  As part of the honors programs, students will have opportunities to travel,  enroll in special classes,conduct a full-year of honors research with a mentor, engage in a variety of service projects,  and participate in a community of scholars. It is great to have you aboard!

BAHS faculty plan for the future at the department retreat. BAHS faculty gathered for a retreat to discuss short term and long term planning for the department. The day was spent discussing topics ranging from curriculum and facilities to student research and assessment. BAHS students can look forward to some new ideas heading their way.  Stay tuned!

Daniel Steinhauser , a double major in biology, environmental biology option and philosophy and minor in Spatial Analysis and Geographic Information Systems, earned a prize for top poster in the Natural Sciences and Engineering Category at the Susquehanna Valley Undergraduate Research Symposium (SVURS). Daniel's poster presentation was entitled " Quantification of the Spatial Extent and Water Quality Improvement Functions of Alluvial River Islands in the North Branch Susquehanna River Basin." He was mentored by Dr. Matthew Ricker in the Department of Environmental, Geographic and Geological Sciences. Daniel's research examined the content of coal sand and the concentrations of lead, arsenic and zinc in soil samples from two islands in the north branch of the Susquehanna River. Their  results revealed elevated levels of lead and zinc in the soil, suggesting that the islands continue to play a role in improving the water quality of the Susquehanna River....

Allison Bleistein , B.S. biology major, environmental biology option, conducted a summer internship at the Chincoteague Bay Field Station in Wallops Island, Virginia. Dr. Thomas Klinger was her academic supervisor.  During this 10 week internship, Allison applied her background from her BAHS courses to work experiences at the Field Station. Alison helped  lead a research project focused on sustainable shoreline restoration through the use of environmentally friendly methods, like planting natural grasses to help prevent erosion and building oyster reefs to promote water filtration.   Among her other tasks were the maintenance of aquaria, laboratories, and classrooms. While at the Field Station, Allison had the opportunity to take a Conservation Biology course where she gained many new field skills (e.g. setting live animal traps, tagging amphibians/small mammals, and using VHF tracking telemetry). On top of all of these great experiences, Allison report...

Jessica Willis, BAHS aluma, is currently a doctoral student  at Lehigh University. Jessica earned both her bachelor's and master's degree in biology from BAHS. Dr. William Coleman was her research mentor.  BAHS welcomed back alumna Jessica Willis , B.S. (2013) and M.S. Biology (2015), who stopped by for a visit recently to reconnect with faculty and staff. Jessica is currently a student in the doctoral program in biological sciences in the Integrated Neurosciences track at Lehigh University.  Jessica is working in the laboratory of Dr. Julie Miwa, a neuroscientist who studies the cholinergic system using a multidisciplinary approach.  The aim of Jessica's dissertation research is to understand the role of Lynx 1, an important regulatory protein, as a modulator of the nicotinic receptor. She is currently working on developing techniques for calcium imaging in mammalian cell culture lines. Jessica will be a teaching assistant in the Genetics laborato...

Erika Lebron , health sciences pre-physical therapy major, enjoys a break during her internship at St. Luke's Universty Health Network -Northampton Campus. An internship is a supervised learning experience that allows you to apply your classroom knowledge to the work environment. Internships can be very beneficial. In addition to helping you to clarify your career goals, internships can assist you in gaining admission to graduate school, professional programs, or clinical experiences. They provide great opportunities to learn more about your field of study and to network with professionals. Internships can count for 3 to 15 hours of credit; however only 3 credits may be applied as biology or health science elective credits. For more information on internships, contact your academic adviser. Advanced planning is required! Here is what some of our summer interns had to say about their experience. "This rewarding experience gave me the opportunity to learn from licens...

Morgan Berger , a medical imaging major, conducted an internship at Geisinger's Susquehanna Valley Imaging. Dr. Angela Hess was her academic supervisor. Morgan had the opportunity to observe  a variety of imaging procedures including ultrasound, CT, MRI, mammograms, and X-rays. In addition to learning more about imaging technologies, Morgan reports that she gained a better understanding of  how to interpret the scans.  What she will take away most from the internship, however, is her experiences with patient care. Morgan says it best " I absolutely loved my internship and would do it again in a heartbeat!"  Morgan and  staff at Geisinger's Susquehanna Valley Imaging. 

Jessica Peters , B.S. Health Sciences, interned at Janssen R & D, a Johnson and Johnson pharmaceutical company, in Spring House, PA for the past two summers . Dr. Brubaker served as her academic supervisor. Jessica conducted research on rheumatoid arthritis with the Immunology- Disease Integrative Biology team. Her work focused on testing serum samples from rheumatoid arthritis patients for specific cytokines. To accomplish this, Jessica conducted experiments that used luminex, ELISA, and Real-Time PCR. She also gained experience interpreting and graphing data using a program called GraphPad Prism 6 and recording experimental results in an electronic lab notebook. Her work will be published in the journal of the American College of Rheumatology this year.  When considering her summer internship, Jessica reflects that  " I've made a difference in the world and I would love to continue this work as a life time career. " The...

The Bloomsburg University Rho Chi Chapter of Beta Beta Beta celebrates 32 years since its installation in 1984. Beta Beta Beta, or Tri-Beta, is a national honor society dedicated to understanding and appreciating biological study and extending boundaries of human knowledge through scientific research. It fulfills its mission by recognizing outstanding individuals and chapters and by publishing  BIOS , a national journal. To take us back, here is a photo from the first initiation ceremony held in what is now 119 Hartline Science Cente. Honorary membership was awarded to Dr. Donald Rabb, former BAHS chairperson and faculty emeritus. The framed chapter charter is still displayed each year at initiation ceremonies. Do you recognize anyone in the photo? If you were initiated then, please contact us (csurmacz@bloomu.edu) to let us know know what you have been up to over these years.  Faculty initiated during this inaugural year were: D...

Congratulations to all of our recent BAHS graduates who have entered the workforce or are heading to various professional and graduate schools. Here is where some of our recent graduates are going: Katie Aunkst – Temple University, Masters in Physician Assistant Studies Jessica Baker - Naturalist at Assateague Island State Park Gabriel Barrile - University of Wyoming, Master of Sciences  Christopher Bastardi --Bloomsburg University, Accelerated Nursing  Alan Belles --employed as Atlantic coast fisheries observer with MRAG America, Inc. Nick Bilski -Alvernia University, Doctoral Program in Physical Therapy Mikala Britt – Slippery Rock University, Masters in Physician Assistant Studies Emily Broach - employed at Pulmonology Associates, Lankenau Hospital, Wynnewood, PA Kahli Castagnera --Elon University, NC, Doctoral Program in Physical Therapy Sarah Dodgin - University of New Hampshire, Master of Science program in Integrative and Comparative Biology  Ki...

Biology Master's student Jamie Shinskie won the Best Student Research Award for the poster she presented at the Northeast Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (NEPARC) Meeting on Aug 9 - 11 in Poultney, Vermont. Jamie's poster highlighted the interdisciplinary ecological research she has been conducting under the guidance of Dr. Amber Pitt (Department of Biological & Allied Health Sciences) and Dr. Tina Delahunty (Department of Environmental, Geographical, and Geological Sciences) in which she used a combination of field-based ecological research and remote sensing to evaluate the effects of reach-scale land use and land cover change and within-stream habitat quality on hellbender salamander population persistence and extirpation in the Susquehanna River drainage of Pennsylvania. Her research demonstrated that deforestation and the subsequent increases in siltation, sedimentation, and turbidity in stream channels were linked with hellbender population loss. ...

Dr. Clay Corbin Dr. Clay Corbin and his students have recently published their research results. Sean Hartzell, BAHS master's student, and Dr. Corbin have co-authored "New Finds in an Old Collection: Some Distributional Records for Amphibians and Reptiles" in Herpetological Review . Using the herpetological specimens in BU's Natural History Collection, they report new county records for Pennsylvania for the eastern long-tailed salamander, Fowler's toad, and the gray tree frog.  Dr. Corbin, along with BAHS alumni Kenneth Pallis and Brandan Gray , published a paper entitled "An Inexpensive and Mobile See-though Tunnel for Collecting Bird Flight Performance Data in the Field" in the Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Sciences. The group tested the use of a simple, durable, inexpensive, lightweight, and portable children's play tunnel for acquiring performance data on bird flight such as wing-beat frequency and acceleration. Very cool! Such...

Sean Hartzell The July 1, 2016 issue of Science , the magazine of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, contained a feature "NextGen Voices" entitled  "Science in Brief." Young scientists were invited to contribute exactly six words that create a story about the life of a scientist. The six word submission of Sean Hartzell , BAHS master's student, was selected for inclusion in the journal  from among 400 responses . Under the category of "motivation," Sean offered the following words:       Persist: You can make a difference These are wise words for us all! Thanks Sean!  Check out the complete set of responses at http://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6294/22?utm_source=sciencemagazine&utm_medium=facebook-text&utm_campaign=sixwords-5461 The submissions are both funny and inspiring. 

Shaidy Moronta Shaidy Moronta is participating this summer in PARAdiGM, short for PrepARAtion for Graduate and Medical Education Program, this summer at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, Alabama. She also participated in the program last summer. Shaidy is pursuing  a major in biology, pre-medical sciences option and minors in chemistry and digital rhetoric and professional writing. As part of PARAdiGM, Shaidy is conducting research in the genetics and biochemistry department, a continuation of her research last summer, that involves engineering a lentiviral vector for a gene therapy project aimed at curing a humanized mouse model of beta thalassemia major. Shaidy also has had the opportunity to shadow a renal transplant surgeon and a plastic surgeon and to prepare for the MCAT exam. Shaidy will present her research conducted in the PARAdiGM program at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students.  On campus, Shaidy is president o...

BAHS has been busy this summer welcoming incoming freshmen as part of BU Preview Days, the summer orientation program. Our newest BAHS majors had the opportunity to gain insights about freshman life, learn about opportunities with Professional U, attend the BU Info Fair, and meet with Dr. Chamuris, Dr. Wood,  or Dr. Kipe-Nolt regarding academic advisement, major requirements, and fall semester schedules. Here are some of our newest BAHS students. Welcome!

Sarah Bartra at the Susquehanna Valley Undergraduate Research Symposium The 6th annual Susquehanna Valley Undergraduate Research Symposium was held at Bloomsburg University on July 27, 2016.  The event was co-sponsored by Bloomsburg University, Bucknell Institute for Public Policy, Geisinger Health System, and Susquehanna University. Undergraduates from all disciplines were invited to present their research at the symposium in the following areas: biological science, clinical and translational research, natural science and engineering, and social science and humanities. The keynote address was delivered by  Jennifer K. Wagner, J.D., Ph.D,  the Associate Director of Bioethics Research for Geisinger Health System. Her presentation addressed  the topic " DNA lawyer: Define Your Own Career."     The symposium is a great opportunity for students to present their research, to learn about research methods in other  fiel...

Fourteen medical imaging majors  conducted internships in radiologic technology this summer. Dr. Barry Nol t and Dr. Angela Hess served as academic internship supervisors. Former interns have testified to how valuable their internship experience was was in gaining an understanding of the daily routine of a radiologic technologist, learning about procedures and equipment,  and developing communication skills with patients and medical staff. Internships for medical imaging majors are competitive and available every semester.  To be selected for an internship majors in medical imaging must submit an application and successfully complete an interview.  For more information contact Drs. Nolt or Hess. The following students conducted internships in Medical Imaging at campuses of Geisinger Medical Center. Mr Ken Roszel oversees and administers the onsite activities at Geisinger.  Danville: Niles Kauffman, Olivia Zeitler, Sean Beattie, Marjorie Martin ...

Over 40 BAHS students are heading off to clinical programs this fall semester to fulfill the requirements of our various allied health degrees. Congratulations to all for gaining admission. Have a rewarding and successful clinical experience. Keep in touch! MEDICAL IMAGING Lackawanna College, Scranton, PA:   Joel Kulick             Widener/Crozer Chester, Upland, PA: Emily Cropper Reading Hospital, Reading, PA: Caitlin Murphy  Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD: Darianny Antonio, Darianny, Gina Fiore, Alex               Moore, Olivia Mulvaney, Cole Sexton, Sabrina Sholtes, Sarah Vital    Misericordia University, Dallas, PA: Emily Barrett, Paige Kirkner, Devan Sweeney             York Hospital, York, PA: Cassandra Becker, Joshua Howard, Lily Mehalick      Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, P...

Dr. Steven Rier and two former students,  Keith Kinek (BS Biology and MS Biology)   and Sarah Hay (BS Biology, environmental biology),  recently published a paper entitled “Polyphosphate plays a vital role in the phosphorus dynamics of stream periphyton” in the June issue of the journal Freshwater Science .  This paper is the first to demonstrate the importance of polyphosphate storage during storm runoff as a mechanism for microganisms to alleviate phosphorus stress in nutrient poor streams.  This research involved experimental work in the Bloomsburg University Stream Research Facility located in the basement of Hartline Science Center, extensive sampling in Fishing Creek and a large-scale survey of streams throughout central PA.  This research was funded by the Degenstien Foundation and Bloomsburg University.

Dr. Steven Rier and students Aaron Gordon-Weaver , Jennifer Tuomisto and Jordan C. Krebs   have been working with the USGS Northern Appalachian Research Lab in Wellsboro on a large-scale year-long simulated brine spill experiment in outdoor raceways that have been set up to mimic natural stream ecosystems. These raceways were naturally colonized with algal, microorganisms and macroinvertebrates and were stocked with ecologically relevant fish. Raceways then experienced brine pulses of varying magnitude and duration to simulate frac water spills associated with unconventional gas drilling. An array of ecosystem-related parameters is being measured for one year following the brine pulses.  This research is being funded by the USGS and a $25,000 grant to Dr. Rier from the Geisinger Hood Center for Health Research.   Ongoing research This summer, Dr. Rier’s lab is completing construction of a real-time water quality monitoring station on Fishing Creek, continuing ...

Dr. Thomas Klinger, Coordinator, Master's Program in Biology A hearty BAHS welcome to our new students who have entered the Masters of Science program in Biology. Our master's program in general biology provides opportunities for course work and research at the supraorganismal, organismal, cellular, and molecular levels of biology. The program prepares students for admission to doctoral programs or professional schools and also enhances the knowledge and experience of high school biology teachers.For more information, contact the graduate program coordinator, Dr. Thomas Klinger (tklinger@bloomu.edu) The following students have entered the program in spring 2016: Jordan Krebs (mentor, Dr. Rier ), Bradley Ohlinger (mentor, Dr. Hranitz ); and John Poling (mentor, Dr. Klingerman ). Aboard for fall semester 2016 are: Stephanie Buczkowski (mentor,  Dr. Hess ), Alex Hoke (mentor, Dr. Corbin ), Heather Llewellyn (mentor, Dr. Schwindinger ), Michael Moniger (mentor,  Dr. K...

Dr. Angela Hess , associate professor of biological and allied health sciences, led an eager group of high school students from the Allentown area in two weeks of hands-on biology activities. The   Bloomsburg-Allentown Partnership  Program aims to inform, excite, and prepare high school students for college. Students had the opportunity to engage in activities ranging from dissections and microscopy to genetics and anatomical terminology. One of the highlights of the program was a poster session on topics that students researched using resources and databases available at Andruss Library.

The College of Science and Technology held its spring Research and Scholarship Day on Friday, April 1. The keynote address, delivered by Dr. Michael Shepard, chairperson of the Department of Environmental, Geographical, and Geological Science, was on Asteroids: Relics of Ancient Times. Research Day was a great opportunity to attend oral and poster presentations co-authored by BAHS students and faculty.   We enjoyed learning about the research of the following students: Beverly Andre.  Sublethatl effects of mite tratments on honey bees: prelimary findings (mentors: Drs. Surmacz and Dr. Hranitz ) Sarah Bartra . Investigating the Role of Synapsin I during Human Sperm Capacitation and Acrosome Reaction (mentors: Drs. Venditti and Coleman ). Jean Nicole Place and Jennifer Young , DNA methylation of Gng7 and Gng11 in human breast cancer (mentor: Dr. Schwindinger ) Andrew King . Evaluating G-protein Subunit Gamma-4's Effect on Cell Migration in a ...