Events

Isaac Fianu, PhD - Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Caltech, Pasadena, CA

 Nov 18, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | k307 (3-6408)

Host: Grad student MarieClaire Haseley and Dr. Eric Wagner (co-sponsored by Graduates Working in Science (GWIS)

Michael Neugent, PhD - Assistant Professor, Departments of Urology and of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

 Nov 11, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Josh Munger

Paul Whitford, PhD - Professor, Department of Physics, Northeastern University, Boston, MA

 Nov 04, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Dmitri Ermolenko (co-sponsored by the Bioinformatics Cluster and the Protein Synthesis Cluster)

Sarah E. J. Bowman, PhD - Associate Professor and Director of the National Crystallization Center, Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY

 Oct 28, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | k307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Joseph Wedekind

Ute Kothe, PhD - Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

 Oct 21, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Yi-Tao Yu (co-sponsored by the Protein Synthesis Cluster and the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Kaavya Krishna Kumar, PhD - Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY

 Oct 14, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Mitch O’Connell

Hua Lou, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH

 Oct 07, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Yi-Tao Yu and Dr. Peng Yao (co-sponsored by the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Joel McManus, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Melon University, Pittsburgh, PA

 Sep 30, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Dmitri Ermolenko (co-sponsored by the Protein Synthesis Cluster and the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Lucas Farnung, PhD - HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar; Assistant Professor, Department of Cell Biology, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA

 Sep 23, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Clara Kielkopf

Matthew Sieber, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Physiology, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX

 Sep 16, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Gaëlle Talross

Xueyang He - PhD Candidate

 Sep 08, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

Host: Advisor: Paul Boutz, PhD

Katsura Asano, PhD - Professor of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS

 Jul 31, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Stotz (3-7423) or K307 if needed

Host: Center for RNA Biology

Mert Koka - PhD Candidate

 Jul 17, 2026 @ 12:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S. Wing Aud. (3-7619)

Host: Mitchell O'Connell, PhD - Advisor

Nicholas Rugelis - PhD Candidate

 Jun 30, 2026 @ 10:00 a.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Advisor - Jeffrey Hayes, PhD

Lucas Simpson - PhD Candidate

 Jun 05, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K-207 (2-6408)

Host: Advisor: Joshua Munger, PhD

David Tremethick, BSc (Hons) (Syd), PhD (Macq) - Professor, Division of Genome Sciences and Cancer, Australian National University, College of Science and Medicine, Canberra, Australia

 May 26, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Aud (3-7619)

Host: Dr. Jeffrey Hayes

Katrin Karbstein, PhD - Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Biochemistry, University, Nashville, TN

 May 15, 2026 @ 11:00 a.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (co-sponsored by the Protein Synthesis Cluster)

Nicole Waild - PhD Candidate, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

 May 04, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Ryan Case Method Room (1-9576)

Host: Advisor: Joshua Munger, PhD

Andrew Varble, PhD - Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

 Apr 29, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Mitch O’Connell and Dr. Lynne Maquat

Harri Itkonen, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Molecular Biology, EpiGen, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; EpiGen, Medical Division, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway; Department of Biochemistry and Developmental Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

 Apr 23, 2026 @ 2:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Paul Boutz

Seychelle Vos, PhD - Associate Professor of Biology, HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar; Department of Biology, MIT, Cambridge, MA

 Apr 16, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: T32 past trainee, Abby Manning and Dr. Eric Wagner (cosponsored by the NIH NIGMS T32 in CBMS)

Seychelle Vos, PhD - Associate Professor of Biology, HHMI Freeman Hrabowski Scholar; Department of Biology, MIT, Cambridge, MA

 Apr 15, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: T32 past trainee, Abby Manning and Dr. Eric Wagner (co-sponsored by Dr. Lynne Maquat, PI & Dr. Jeffrey Hayes, Co-PI; Graduates Working in Science (GWIS), and the RNA Society & Lexogen)

Jill Dowen, PhD - Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, and of Biology; Associate Director, Curriculum in Genetics and Molecular Biology (GMB); Member, Integrative Program for Biological & Genome Sciences (iBGS); Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC

 Apr 08, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Jeffrey Hayes

Ling-Ling Chen, PhD - Professor, and Director, State Key Laboratory of RNA Innovation, Science and Engineering (RISE), Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

 Apr 06, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (co-sponsored by the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Leemor Joshua-Tor, PhD - HHMI Investigator; W. M. Keck Professor of Structural Biology; Director of Research, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY

 Mar 19, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (cosponsored by the NIH NIGMS T32 in CBMS)

Leemor Joshua-Tor, PhD - HHMI Investigator; W. M. Keck Professor of Structural Biology; Director of Research, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY

 Mar 18, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | Class of '62 Aud. (G-9425)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat and Dr. Jeffrey Hayes (co-sponsored by Graduates Working in Science (GWIS))

 Mar 15, 2026 @ 9:00 a.m.

Host: The RNA Institute, U. of Albany & Center for RNA Biology, U. Rochester

Philip Bevilacqua, PhD - Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

 Mar 11, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: T32 trainee, Olivia Hiltke and Dr. David Mathews (co-sponsored by Dr. Lynne Maquat, PI & Dr. Jeffrey Hayes, Co-PI and by the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Nicole Michmerhuizen, PhD - Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Hematology and Oncology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

 Mar 04, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Eric Wagner and Dr. Josh Munger

Seth Jones - Graduate Student

 Mar 03, 2026 @ 1:30 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: Seth Jones

Rahiim Lake - Graduate Student

 Mar 03, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: Advisor: P. Brookes)

Tiana Rohe - Graduate Student

Biodegradable plastics have been developed to combat plastic pollution on land; however, these plastics typically show exceedingly slow degradation in marine environments. A marine bacteria, Bacillus sp. NRRL B-14911 (Bacillus sp.), is known to natively depolymerize the bioplastic poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and metabolize it as a carbon source. Taking advantage of the PHB degrading properties of Bacillus sp., I am developing synthetic biology solutions for end-of-life and triggerable PHB degradation. 3D bioprinted hydrogels with Bacillus sp., termed biostickers, have previously been shown by our lab to degrade PHB. Using desiccation, I have been able to extend the shelf life of these biostickers for a month. The viability and PHB degradation rates are on par with the non-desiccated biostickers and, excitingly, the mechanical toughness has improved with desiccation. This extended shelf life and toughness will allow biostickers to stay intact when stored on oceanography vesicles, where they can then be used for end-of-life PHB degradation onsite. I am also developing a solid-state Engineering Living Material (ELM) with desiccated Bacillus sp. embedded within PHB. When placed in an ocean-like environment, I have observed up to 20% mass loss in just 7 weeks of incubation. When placed in ocean seawater, a 5-fold increase in the degradation rate was observed. This novel solid-state ELM technology is the first of its kind for marine bioplastics and allows for embedded cells to survive and be specifically triggered when placed in an ocean environment, decreasing the lifespan of plastic in our fragile ocean ecosystems.

 Feb 24, 2026 @ 1:30 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Auditorium (1-7619)

Host: Advisor: A. Meyer

Abby Manning - Graduate Student

The Integrator complex (INT), a substantial 17-subunit, modular assembly, plays a pivotal role in the transcription of all RNA Polymerase II (RNAPII) genes. Its functions are well-established in two key areas: 3′ end processing at small nuclear RNA (snRNA) genes and the orchestration of premature termination at the promoter-proximal pause of protein-coding genes. A key unanswered question is whether unique subcomplexes of INT subunits occupy the promoters of different RNAPII biotypes. While the Little Elongation Complex (LEC) is known to associate with RNAPII at snRNA genes to facilitate transcription and recruit Integrator—enabling INTS11 to mediate 3′-end cleavage—the precise structural and mechanistic basis of this recruitment remains unclear. Through co-immunoprecipitation experiments, we have found that the LEC subunit ICE2 forms a previously uncharacterized complex with the INT Tail module, which we term the ‘ICE Tail’ complex.

AlphaFold modeling and comparison with existing cryo-EM structures reveal that the INT Tail module adopts a distinct conformation when bound to ICE2, forming the ICE-Tail complex. This complex appears structurally distinct from and mutually exclusive with the canonical full INT and LEC complexes, suggesting that ICE-Tail may function as a transient intermediate required for snRNA biogenesis. My preliminary data show that ICE2 interacts robustly with the INT Tail module. To define the constituency of the ICE-Tail complex, I will use an established auxin-inducible degron (AID) system, which also enables probing of transcriptional changes upon targeted depletion of ICE-Tail members. Structural characterization of ICE-Tail involves cryo-EM and mutational co-immunoprecipitation analysis. This work will fill critical knowledge gaps by identifying functionally essential interactions and generating novel structural models of this intermediate assembly. It also provides a key first insight into how INT may assemble and function differently across distinct RNA biotypes, suggesting that transcriptional machinery may customize its composition to regulate coding versus noncoding loci

 Feb 24, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Auditorium (1-7619)

Host: Advisor: E. Wagner

Jonathan Herington, PhD - Assistant Professor, Departments of Health Humanities and Bioethics, and of Philosophy, University of Rochester

 Feb 19, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat

Chuan He, PhD - John T. Wilson Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Chemistry, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL

 Feb 18, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | K307 (3-6408)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat (co-sponsored by RNA Society & Lexogen and the RNA Structure & Function Cluster)

Akshara Sharma - Graduate Student

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are a leading drug delivery platform for mRNA or other nucleic-acid based therapeutics. LNP platforms like those used in the COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech are typically composed of ionizable aminolipids, phospholipids, sterols, and PEG lipids. These ionizable aminolipids are typically protonated at low pH, allowing them to encapsulate negatively charged mRNA. The pHs used during the different stages of LNP formulation strongly regulate how efficiently the mRNA is encapsulated in a composition-dependent manner. This makes understanding the pKa of aminolipids in the context of an LNP or membrane crucial to rational refinement of the encapsulation process. In this study, we use molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with alchemical free energy perturbation to calculate the free energy to deprotonate an ionizable aminolipid in an LNP-like membrane bilayer, allowing us to calculate the apparent pKa of the system. We do this for membranes of aminolipid compositions ranging from 10% to 45% ionizable lipid and represent various pH environments by varying the fraction of charged aminolipids from 20-80% to quantify the apparent pKa of the system over a wide range of physiological conditions. We calculate the pKa shifts, study the electrostatic environment of the various systems, and derive insights into the structural properties of the membranes at different compositions

 Feb 17, 2026 @ 1:30 p.m.

 Medical Center | Lower Adolph Auditorium (1-7619)

Host: Advisor: A. Grossfield

Matthew Law - Graduate Student

 Feb 10, 2026 @ 1:30 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | SMD Large Auditorium (2-6424)

Host: Advisor: J. Wedekind

Megan Miaro - Graduate Student

 Feb 10, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | SMD Large Auditorium (2-6424)

Host: Advisor: D. Mathews

Thomas Ossevoort - Graduate Student

The 5ʹ untranslated region (UTR) of mRNA is known to be a key contributor to translational 
regulation. However, many of the mechanisms by which the 5ʹUTR regulates translation are poorly 
understood. To delineate contributions of UTR length and secondary structure, we use non-repetitive 
unstructured sequences (NUSs) designed by the Mathews lab. We show that variation in 5ʹUTR length 
has a modest impact on cap-dependent translation in plant and human cellular extracts, indicating that 
scanning of the 5ʹUTR by the 40S in search of the start codon is not rate limiting. Inhibition of the 
main translational RNA helicase eIF4A by hippuristanol equally decreases cap-dependent translation 
of mRNAs with unstructured 5ʹUTRs of various lengths in WGE. Therefore, our data suggests that 40S 
scanning is a helicase-independent, diffusion-driven process. In collaboration with the Mathews lab, 
we also explored conserved elements of 5ʹUTR secondary structure that regulate translation initiation 
in human cells. We focus our studies on a non-canonical cyclin, CCNI, and demonstrate that the 
computationally identified, evolutionary conserved stem-loop of CCNI 5ʹUTR is involved in 
translation mediated by a non-canonical initiation factor eIF4G2. The removal of upstream Open 
Reading Frames (uORFs) combined with the deletion of the stem-loop completely abrogates 
dependence of CCNI mRNA translation on eIF4G2. Our data is consistent with a model suggesting 
that the presence of uORFs and elements of secondary structure in the 5ʹUTR enables eIF4G2-
mediated translation. Taken together, our studies reveal new roles of 5ʹUTR length and secondary 
structure in translational control.

 Feb 03, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: Advisor: D. Ermolenko

Keegan Proctor - Graduate Student

Staphylococcus aureus permanently and asymptomatically colonizes ~30% of the human population and acts as a commensal member of the human skin and nasal microbiome. However, S. aureus is also an opportunistic pathogen and a leading cause of serious hospital acquired infections. The ability of S. aureus to overcome host barriers and successfully infect their host relies on a diverse array of virulence factors, many of which are present on mobile genetic elements. Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) of these mobile elements is therefore a major driver of S. aureus pathogenicity, and my project seeks to better understand the factors which influence the transmission of mobile genetic elements.

Conjugation and mobilization of plasmids is a widespread mechanism of HGT in S. aureus, and these plasmids encode numerous virulence factors which benefit S. aureus during infection. However, Transfer of a representative conjugative plasmid into a collection of clinically isolated S. aureus samples revealed highly varied rates between different strains. Using a bioinformatic approach to identify potential determinants of this difference in conjugation rate identified a narrow range of canonical and noncanonical RM systems which impact conjugation in the impacted clinical strains. Given this small subset of factors which inhibit conjugation, further work seeks to develop methods to overcome these barriers in order to leverage conjugation as a genetic tool for manipulating the otherwise experimentally intractable clinical strains of S. aureus. Further understanding of bacterial factors involved in HGT could aid in predicting or potentially controlling the spread of antibiotic resistance as well as rational design of mobile genetic elements as tools.

 Jan 27, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Aud. (3-7619)

Host: A. Varble - Advisor

Marlene Belfort, PhD - Distinguished Professor, Department of Biological Sciences; Senior Advisor, The RNA Institute, SUNY University at Albany, NY

 Jan 22, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Adolph Lower Aud (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat

Jeff Gabell - PhD Candidate

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a monogenic autosomal recessive disorder caused by loss-of-function mutations in the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) gene. Several classes of the disease exist with various susceptibility to therapeutic intervention. The Lueck Lab explores how tRNAs can be harnessed as a therapeutic tool to target nonsense readthrough or to manipulate elongation efficiency of translation. Class I CFTR mutations, which result from nonsense mutations, account for ~10% of CF cases and are associated with severe CF phenotypes. Previous work has demonstrated that Anti-Codon Edited (ACE-) tRNAs are a promising therapeutic for nonsense diseases. Here, we demonstrate an in vivo reporter mouse for premature termination codon (PTC) readthrough we call Stop-Go-Glow. This model allows for fluorescent and luminescent quantification of PTC readthrough that can be used to evaluate the efficacy, durability, and delivery efficiency of ACE-tRNA technologies in a disease-agnostic manner. Additionally, tRNA pools are a major determinant in translation elongation rates, yet they are highly variable between cell types and are often not considered in available algorithms that determine codon optimality. We have developed screening reporter(s) for identifying specific codon usage within a gene of interest to determine which specific tRNA isodecoders are limiting translation elongation. The goal is to explore the efficacy of natural and non-natural tRNA supplementation targeting elongation bottlenecks and to inform the creation of a ‘functionally optimized’ CFTR transcript by identifying specific codons susceptible to optimization. From these screens, we have determined a list of tRNAs and codons in the CFTR transcript that are promising targets, which we are currently evaluating through functional assays. Importantly, what we learn here can be adapted to other transcripts for generations of therapeutics.

 Jan 20, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Auditorium (3-7619)

Host: J. Lueck - Advisor

Jeff Gabell - Graduate Student

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a monogenic autosomal recessive disorder caused by loss-of-function mutations in the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) gene. Several classes of the disease exist with various susceptibility to therapeutic intervention. The Lueck Lab explores how tRNAs can be harnessed as a therapeutic tool to target nonsense readthrough or to manipulate elongation efficiency of translation. Class I CFTR mutations, which result from nonsense mutations, account for ~10% of CF cases and are associated with severe CF phenotypes. Previous work has demonstrated that Anti-Codon Edited (ACE-) tRNAs are a promising therapeutic for nonsense diseases. Here, we demonstrate an in vivo reporter mouse for premature termination codon (PTC) readthrough we call Stop-Go-Glow. This model allows for fluorescent and luminescent quantification of PTC readthrough that can be used to evaluate the efficacy, durability, and delivery efficiency of ACE-tRNA technologies in a disease-agnostic manner. Additionally, tRNA pools are a major determinant in translation elongation rates, yet they are highly variable between cell types and are often not considered in available algorithms that determine codon optimality. We have developed screening reporter(s) for identifying specific codon usage within a gene of interest to determine which specific tRNA isodecoders are limiting translation elongation. The goal is to explore the efficacy of natural and non-natural tRNA supplementation targeting elongation bottlenecks and to inform the creation of a ‘functionally optimized’ CFTR transcript by identifying specific codons susceptible to optimization. From these screens, we have determined a list of tRNAs and codons in the CFTR transcript that are promising targets, which we are currently evaluating through functional assays. Importantly, what we learn here can be adapted to other transcripts for generations of therapeutics.

 Jan 20, 2026 @ 1:00 p.m.

 Medical Center | Upper S-Wing Aud. (3-7619)

Host: Advisor: J. Lueck

Lainie Friedman Ross, MD, PhD - Mark and Lois Taubman Distinguished Professor and Chair, Dept of Health Humanities and Bioethics, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry; and Director, Paul M Schyve MD Center for Bioethics, University of Rochester

 Jan 15, 2026 @ 3:00 p.m.

 School of Medicine and Dentistry | Adolph Lower Aud. (1-7619)

Host: Dr. Lynne Maquat