WPI Department of Biology & Biotechnology

Dr. Jeff Bailey is our guest speaker on Tuesday, Dec. 3rd. Stop by and check it out!

Natalie Farny's Lab recently participated in the 7th?International Conference on Microbiome Engineering at Tufts University. Several lab members gave posters, including graduate students Cabrielle Cabebe (BCB ) Genesis Nicole Carpio Paucar (BBT), Rehema Mrutu (PASET scholar), Siqin Li (BCB ), BBT postdoc Kalisa Bogati, and undergraduate students Aleksandra Maak (BCB ) and Ben Feldman (UMass Amherst).?Congratulations?to all presenters! And our sincere thanks to the conference organizers for their generous support of our students.?

FACULTY POSITION AVAILABLE: Search in progress for a full-time tenure-track Assistant Professor to start July 1, 2025 in the Dept. of Biology & Biotechnology at WPI. The successful candidate will complement the department’s strengths in cell biology, molecular biology, microbiology, and neurobiology. They will contribute to WPI’s distinctive academic program, which has been recognized globally and nationally for:? ? Interdisciplinary, project-based education with the NAE’s?Bernard M. Gordon prize?for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education, ? Faculty who are ranked #1 by the Wall Street Journal in?balancing teaching and research, and? ??Progressive tenure and promotion policies?that elevate teaching and provide multiple paths to promotion Additionally, the 2021 COACHE Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey ranked WPI?#1 among peers for faculty satisfaction?with interdisciplinary work, mentoring, and collaboration. Please apply by December 15th?to be considered for the first round of interviews. https://lnkd.in/ebhp8UYB

WPI Receives Federal Funding to Address Anticipated Demand for Biology and Biotechnology Professionals and Educators https://lnkd.in/eY_PYztX

Please join us in welcoming our first-year students to Biology & Biotechnology with apple cider and donuts! Still undecided on which major to choose here at WPI? Our Undergraduate Advisors and our Ambassadors will be on hand to answer any questions you might have about our courses and programs! October 23rd 10-12 Goddard 203 #wpi?#biology?#biotechnology?#bbt?#freshmen?#undergraduate?#biologystudent?#careersinbiology?#undecidedmajor?#undeclaredmajor?#meetthedepartment

Congratulations to Biology & Biotechnology Assistant Professor Karl-Frédéric Vieux on his award of $747,000 through the The National Institutes of Health Maximizing Opportunities for Scientific and Academic Independent Careers program that supports diverse researchers transitioning from postdoctoral programs to careers! Vieux received his PhD from McGill University, was a postdoctoral fellow at NIH, and joined the WPI faculty in July 2024. His research focuses on transcribed copies of genes, known as RNA, and the molecular modifications that regulate their expression and stability in the context of reproduction. His project, which began during his postdoctoral fellowship at NIH and will continue for up to three more years, focuses on understanding the role of these genes during the process in which an egg transitions into an embryo. #wpi #wpibiologybiotechnology #bbt #biologybiotechnology #NIH

Congratulations to Biology & Biotechnology Assistant Professor Inna Nechipurenko on her award of a $1,890,960 grant through the The National Institutes of Health’s Maximizing Investigators Research Award for Early Stage Investigators! Her lab studies the assembly of tiny cellular antennae called primary cilia, which mediate communication between cells and their environment. Defective cilia cause a myriad of genetic disorders that have no cure. Nechipurenko’s five-year project will delve into mapping the signaling networks that regulate cilia assembly, remodeling, and function in nerve cells to better understand how cilia dysfunction contributes to human neurodevelopmental disorders. A member of the faculty since 2020, Nechipurenko previously received grants from the NIH and the Charles H. Hood Foundation for her work. She received her PhD in neuroscience from Case Western Reserve University. #wpi #wpibiologybiotechnology #bbt #biologybiotechnology #NIH #neuroscience

Join us for our 2nd Annual pumpkin decorating gathering for the faculty, graduate students, and staff of BBT! Bring your own pumpkin(s) and your favorite fall snack(s) to share.?We’ll provide the rest! October 24th 2-6PM Gateway 4th Floor Kitchen

Please join us this Friday, 10/11, from 10-12 in Alden Hall, for an open poster session presented by the students of BB3827 Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering! All are invited! From the instructor, Prof. Lou Roberts: “We used CRISPRi to knock down expression of the non-essential and under-studied RNases (i.e., RNase PH, RNase AS, RNase Z, and YbeY) in an RNase D deletion strain background. These RNases are implicated in rRNA and tRNA processing. I hope you can stop by!” #wpi #worcesterpolytechnicinstitute #wpibiology #wpibiologybiotechnology #biology #biotechnology #undergraduateresearch #researchposter #molecularbiology #geneticengineering #shelllab Scarlet Shell

Please join us Tuesday, 10/8, at 12 PM for our Life Sciences Seminar, featuring talks by Rholee Xu, Bioinformatics & Computational Biology PhD student, and Samuel Isife, Biology & Biotechnology PhD student! “Measurement of cell wall surface elastic moduli in tip-growing cells is supported by synthetic cell simulations” Rholee Xu, BCB PhD Student Advisor: Professor Luis Vidali “osas#9-mediated Transgenerational Inheritance in C. elegans” Samuel Isife, BBT PhD Student Advisor: Associate Professor Jagan Srinivasan #biology #biotechnology #wpi #worcesterpolytechnicinstitute #biologybiotechnology #graduateschool #biologyresearch #lifesciences #seminar #vidalilab #srinivasanlab #bioinformatics #computationalbiology