As it is becoming a tradition, here is a series of reasons to celebrate our lab this Spring semester:
- Dr. Gustavo Silva was inducted to the Bass Society of Fellow for excellence in research and teaching and is now the new Jack H. Neely Associate Professor of Biology (2025-2030). Dr. Silva also received the 2025 Biology Teaching Award!
- Dr. Austin Maduka’s paper has now been published in MCP and is entitled “Localized K63 Ubiquitin Signaling Is Regulated by VCP/p97 During Oxidative Stress”
- Dr. Tonie Farris became a 2025 fellow of the Leading Edge program that promotes gender diversity and empowers early career scientists!
Our undergraduate students are also doing an outstanding work and being recognized by their accomplishments and successes. It takes a village to properly mentor students and I am very proud of the work my lab has been doing to support them.
- Jorge Mato has recently received the 2025 Faculty Scholar Award, the most prestigious recognition undergraduates can receive from faculty at Duke for their accomplishments and potential as students and scholars. Prior to that, Jorge has received the 2025 Biology Faculty Scholar and the 2025 Deans Summer Research Fellowship. Congratulations on an amazing semester, Jorge!
- Rachel Field has graduate with a Major in Biology and received The Edward C. Horn Memorial Prize for Excellence in Biology, for academic achievement and promise. Rachel accepted an offer from the UC San Diego Biological Sciences PhD program, a partnership between the School of Biological Sciences and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Rachel also received the UCSD Cota Robles fellowship to conduct her PhD studies. Well done, Rachel — proud of you!
- Joy Buchi-Ahiabuike has graduated with a major in Biology with a Chemistry minor and has accepted an offer to work with Project Horseshoe Farm, a community health organization in Pomona, CA for her gap year. She is currently applying to medical school. Best of luck, Joy!
We also say farewell to Lubhanshi Garg and Silas Almeida, our two visiting graduate scholars. Lubhanshi is a Fulbright Scholar who was studying the regulation of bacterial DUBs and Silas was supported by a BEPE fellowship from the Sao Paulo State Research Foundation, where he studied regulatory roles of the E2 UBE2A. We wish them the best as they return to their home institutions to finish their graduate studies!
We also say farewell to Dr. Chia-Yu Chen, who worked with us for a year and contributed to many different projects as a biostatistician guru. Chia-Yu is currently a postdoc at Caltech!
Phew! We keep posting as we go!
