Department of Biological Sciences, UT Martin

🎉 🧬 🦠 🧑‍🎓 This weekend was bittersweet with our graduating seniors. Congratulations to you all! You were such a wonderful part of the department, we are going to miss every one of you. We know you will be going off to do some amazing things, can’t wait to see what then future has in store for you!!

The biology department held a Brain Awareness Day at Discovery Park of America! We had crafts to make brain cells, explore the senses and even got to hold a real brain!! 🧠 Thank you to all the UTM volunteers that made this happen and thanks to for hosting us! It was so much fun to share our love of science with the wider community.

Applied Neuroscience (NEUR 363) students visited Dr. Dena Weinberger’s lab at Murray State last month. Dr. Weinberger uses molecular and behavioral techniques to study aspects of nervous system development in Zebrafish. Thank you to for having us!

Happy final exam week! I wanted to share the fun that Dr. Gathers’ histology class had on Friday. The students made t-shirts based off different tissues they saw in class over the semester including bone, cartilage and all kinds of blood conditions. Love the creativity, and the shirts looked JUST LIKE the real thing!

🧬🦆🦠We are excited for the upcoming undergrad research event in the Latimer-Smith building this evening! I love talking to students of all STEM backgrounds about their research and the cool things they’ve developed or learned. The event is TONIGHT at 5:30-7:00 in Latimer-Smith lobby, don’t miss it! 🧬🦆🦠

Biology as art?! 🧬 🎨 UTHSC faculty Dr. Shelia Criswell and Ms. Chelsea Peeler taught tissue staining techniques to the Histology students. These UT Martin alumna made learning fun (and colorful)!! Thank you Dr. Ann Gathers for sharing.

UT Martin's Department of Biological Sciences made waves at the 85th Annual Meeting of the Association of Southeastern Biologists in Chattanooga, TN! 🌿 Thirteen UTM students joined Drs. Kevin Pitz, Tom Blanchard, and Dawn Wilkins to showcase their research. Highlights include Matthew Vincent's investigation into novel yeast strains from Weakley County and Grayce Cunningham's study on stream restoration's impact on Brindled Madtoms' diet. Skylar Lowery delved into Osprey nesting success, while Autumn Reeves discussed Eastern Bluebirds' mortality post-winter storm. 🐦 Kudos to all presenters for their contributions to science!

I am so proud of the work our Biology Mentor Class put into our first (hopefully annual) Biology Trivia Night! What a fun event!! Special shoutout to ‘Team Sarcina’-Hunter Avery and Dr. Matt Pritchett for their come-from-behind victory!

I am very proud to present back from years of hibernation..is our Biology Trivia Night!! The biology mentors have been working so hard (even over spring break) to put on this event. We invite you this coming Thursday (April 4th) in UC 230 at 5pm! It is completely free, you can work solo or in teams of up to 4. The event is open to anyone! Come win a gift card to a local business or biology department swag! Registration link is in the bio (https://runway.utm.edu/event/10065938)

Dr. Gather’s Applied Neuroscience class took a field trip across the quad to Dr. Saman Sargolzaeis EEG lab in the Latimer-Smith building! Electroencephalography (EEG) is a technique decoding brain activity through scalp sensors. This invaluable tool offers insights into neurological functions, aiding in diagnosing and treating conditions like epilepsy and sleep disorders. Very cool ! 🧠

Here Dr. Ray and Dr. Smart are sporting their academic regalia on their way to the investiture ceremony last Friday. Looking good!

🌿🔬🐦 Exciting Opportunity Alert! 🌊🦢 Field biology classes are being offered during Maymester & Summer I courses at Reelfoot Lake Environmental Field Station!

Join us for an interest meeting next Tuesday (March 19th) at 5 PM in Brehm Hall, Rm 259! Meet the instructors, learn about course formats, and get all your questions answered. Don’t miss out on this hands-on learning adventure!

A shoutout to Dr. Gathers and her histology class (Zool 461) they have some new equipment! 🫁🫀Histology is the study of tissues, which requires some skill in using a microscope 🔬 luckily we’ve just gotten some new scopes! These students were exploring nervous tissue 🧠 of the brain and spinal cord.

🔍 Opportunity alert! Join us for the STEM RESUME REVIEW sponsored by UT Martin’s Women in STEM! 🚀 Drop off your resume/CV on March 11th, 3-4 PM in Latimer Smith 102. Can’t make it? No worries! Leave it in the Dean’s Office, and we’ll still provide valuable feedback. Let’s boost those STEM careers together!

A shoutout to our biology peer mentoring group! Last week Laura Millsaps and Kelly Fitzpatrick organized a scavenger hunt for our participants which included meeting professors, taking pictures with research posters, and finding useful resources on campus. It was a blast, thank you again to all the mentors!!

Position Open with US Fish and Wildlife in West Tennessee!

Biological Science Technician (Wildlife) This position is a Biological Science Technician (Wildlife), GS- 0404-7 working in Dyersburg, TN for the R4-West Tennessee Refuge Complex. This is a term position expected to last 13 months but may be extended up to a total of 4 years at management's discretion.

Greeting from our Biology 140 lab! 🥼 🧬 This lab focuses on cell and molecular biology and the world of life at the smallest level. Students worked to identify different types of cells including animal, plant and bacteria.🦠 A great class for exploring the microscopic universe!

Biology students! Ready to get out into the field and explore? 🦠🦆🦞

We have some Maymester and Summer classes being offered that sound like fantastic opportunities:
In May Dr. Blanchard ([email protected]) is teaching Aquatic Macroinvertebrates. In June, Dr. Greenwood ([email protected]) will be teaching Freshwater algae and Dr. Wilkins ([email protected]) will be teaching Field Ornithology. These classes have limited spots, so if you are interested, email the professors for the class you would like to take. An interest meeting will be held soon, keep an eye out for an announcement!

Welcome back everyone! It’s been an icy start to say the least. Hope you all are staying warm during this start to the semester. Stay safe, and see you soon!

🌎🐻🦐🌳🧬🦟
Dr Grubaugh shared some pictures from the research event in Latimer-Smith last week. Congrats again to all our undergraduates in the biology department for all your hard work! It was a pleasure to talk with you all and learn about your projects.

Last post from TAS:
Dr. Andy Sliger, Professor Emeritus and one of the professors recognized by the Smith, Henson, Sliger Undergraduate Research at Reelfoot Lake Grant attended TAS and met Skylar Lowery, the 2023 recipient of the grant as she was presenting her findings at the meeting (and won 1st place!).
🚤🦅🦆🐟🦠🐍
This grant of up to $4,000 is available for scholarly summer work in any discipline in the Reelfoot Lake watershed. The funds are primarily used for a stipend, but may also cover travel, expendable supplies and use of the Reelfoot Lake Environmental Field Station. At the end of the study, the student will write a summary report and present his or her findings. If you have a project that you think would fall under this grant, you should apply for it next year!!

Congratulations again to all our participants who came out to the annual Tennessee Academy of Science meeting!

Lots of posters are being printed, that can mean only one thing…

.The College of Engineering and Natural Sciences is hosting a showcase of undergraduate STEM scholarship work!

We currently have over 40 students who will be presenting posters about their undergraduate research projects. Please come by and check out their hard work and scholarly efforts this semester!

The event will be held today (Thursday 11/30) in the Latimer-Smith lobby from 5:30-7:00pm. I’m excited to check it out this evening!

More stories from our students participating in the Tennessee Academy of Science meeting:

Lauren Milam, senior cell and molecular biology and chemistry double major, and Xavier Jimenez, junior chemistry major, won 1st place in the Science and Math Teaching and History of Science Section for their poster coauthored by Dr. Shaw titled “Impact of using a hormone recap table and oral presentations on students' learning in upper division classes including endocrinology.”.

Congratulations to all participants, we are very proud of you!

Several of our students and faculty attended the 133rd meeting of the Tennessee Academy of Science at
Rhodes College in Memphis, take a look!

Skylar Lowery, senior natural resources management major, won 1st
place in the Ecology and Environmental Science Section for her poster co-authored by Dr. Wilkins titled
“Does human activity impact provisioning and nesting success of Osprey at Reelfoot Lake?”.

Natalie Marques, senior cell and molecular biology major, won 1st place in the Zoology Section for her poster co-authored by Autumn Reeves, Dr. Linda Husmann, and Dr. Wilkins titled “Mortality of Eastern
Bluebirds following a severe winter storm: screening for clostridial enteritis.”.

Autumn Reeves, senior organismal biology major, won 2nd place in the Zoology Section for her poster
co-authored by Natalie Marques and Dr. Wilkins titled “Mortality of Eastern Bluebirds following a severe
winter storm: Did they starve?”.

Congrats to all our hard-working faculty and students, we are so proud
of you!!
(More pictures and stories coming soon!)

Attention Pre-Health Skyhawks 🩺
We will be having a seminar on Shadowing in the healthcare field, with all the information you might need to help you get some real world experience in your healthcare field of choice. The seminar is on Tuesday and will have a repeat presentation Wednesday of this week (11/14 or 11/15). The seminar(s) will be held in the Conference room of Laitmer-Smith at 5:15pm!
If you would like to learn more about the Shadowing experience, this seminar is a MUST ATTEND!

Thank you to our biology professors that came to speak with our GENS students yesterday! There was a good variety of subject backgrounds represented, professors spoke about the classes they teach as well as the research the work on with their students. If you have an interest in doing biology research don’t hesitate to ask!

🌺🌷Biology 130 Lab🌸🌹
Welcome to our Ecology, Evolution and Diversity lab! This week students were learning about Kingdom Plantae; specifically angiosperms, or flowering plants. Did you know that this type of plant dates back to the time of the dinosaurs like the T-Rex? 🦖 These types of plants specialize in being very attractive to animals, including us! 💐

🎃Happy Halloween Skyhawks!🎃
Have a fun and safe holiday today.

💧 More adventures from the Limnology class! 💧 The students were out investigating the ecosystem of Reelfoot lake.

🧬Upcoming Event🧬
Every year Murray State and UTM have a joint symposium where students and faculty can get together and discuss their research and answer questions and network with other science people. This year the party is at Murray State! I love talking to student from both MSU and UTM and other local experts, there is such a variety that scientists study! If you’ve never been to a conference before, this would be a perfect one to start with. The event will be Saturday October 28th from 8am-12:30pm at the Murray State engineering and physics building. I always look forward to these, and excited to attend!