Dr. Anna Edmondson

Congratulations to Dr. Edmondson!

CBA is pleased to announce that Dr. Anna Edmondson, Professor of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, was presented the Award for Mentoring Excellence during the MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony October 15, 2020. Dr. Edmondson is a fantastic mentor to both students and faculty and is most deserving of this honor.

Congratulations Dr. Edmondson!

 Added 10/15/2020

 

 


Dr. Zheng Dong

Congratulations to Dr. Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong, Regents' and Leon H. Charbonnier Endowed Chair of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, has been highlighted in the MCG Deans Diary for his recently published JCI paper regarding the kidney and autophagy.

Read the full article here.

Congratulations Dr. Hamrick!

 Added 10/15/2020

 


Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. McGee-Lawrence!

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence, Associate Professor, has been notified that her project "Osteocyte plasma membrane disruptions in skeletal adaption to loading and unloading" has been approved for funding by the Nationa Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and will be awarded effective October 1, 2020. Dr. Mark Hamrick is Co-I on the project for 5% FTE, as is Ms. Maribeth Johnson. Terrific Work!

 Added 9/21/2020

 

 


Dr. Anna Edmondson

Congratulations to Dr. Edmondson!

CBA is pleased to recognize Dr. Anna Edmondson, Professor of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, who has been invited by the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) to join the USMLE Gross Anatomy and Embryology Test Material Development Committee. The NMBE is the group that assesses medical student preparedness and develops a uniform examination for students across the US (the United States Medical Licensing Examination). The test was formerly known as Step I of the USMLE. It is most prestigious that a member of our faculty has been invited to serve on this committee.

Congratulations on this appointment!

 Added 9/18/2020

 


Dr. Anna Edmondson

Congratulations to Dr. Edmondson!

September is Women in Medicine Month. Celebrate with us by sharing the women at AU/MCG in medicine who inspire. Today, professor, educator and mentor extraordinaire, Dr. Anna Edmondson, has been recognized by the MCG Office of Faculty Success.

Congratulations to someone who inspires us during Women in Medicine month and everyday!

 Added 9/15/2020

 

 


Dr. McGee-Lawerence

Congratulations to Dr. McGee-Lawrence and Colleagues!

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence and colleagues have been awarded an R13 grant to support an upcoming conference entitled: Marrow Adiposity: Bone, Aging, and Beyond – The 6th International Conference of Bone Marrow Adiposity Society.

Congratulations!

 Added 8/25/2020

 

 


Dr. Chandler Goldman

Congratulations to Dr. Chandler Goldman!

We are delighted to share great news that our CBA graduate student, Chandler Goldman, successfully defended his PhD thesis entitled: “Determining the Mechanism of Egali1arian-mediacted mRNA transport in Drosophila” on July 20, 2020. His work was mentored by Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez and his committee members were Drs. Jian-Kang Chen, Yutao Liu, Meghan McGee-Lawrence, and Sylvia Smith. Dr. Mark Hamrick served as a reader for the thesis. We are very proud of Chandler’s accomplishment and wish him the best in his future endeavors. Chandler is pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Georgia.

Congratulations Dr. Goldman!

 Added 8/10/2020

 

 


 

Congratulations to the CBA Vision Research Group!

The vision research group on campus (which includes several of our CBA colleagues: Drs. Liu, Fan, Watsky, Zhang, Caldwell, Smith – and all of their hardworking lab members) have learned that the P30 (Core Grant for Vision Research) will be awarded. This is
a 5 year award from NIH/NEI (National Eye Institute) to provide resources and support for vision research.

Read the full article here.

Congratulations to all!

 Added 8/4/2020


Dr. Anna Edmondson

Congratulations to Dr. Anna Edmondson!

Dr. Anna Edmondson, Professor of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, has been selected as the 2020 recipient of the Medical College of Georgia Mentoring Award! This honor is well deserved. Dr. Edmondson has mentored 35 medical students for educational research projects and more in the 90 medical student teaching assistants. She has also helped establish the Pedagogy Interest Workgroup with graduate students interested in a career in medical Education.

Congratulations Dr. Edmondson!

 Added 7/31/2020

 

 


Zheng Dong

Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong's VA merit renewal award entitled “Ischemic Kidney Injury and Kidney Repair” has received notice that it will be funded! This award will continue Dr. Dong’s VA research project through 2025!

Congratulations Dr. Dong!

 Added 7/20/2020

 

 


Congratulations to Dr. McGee-Lawrence!

We are delighted to share with you great news! Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence has been notified that her multi-PI R01 grant titled “Age-Related Kynurenine Accumulation Impairs miRNA and Hdac Epigenetic Regulation of the SDF-1 Axis Resulting in Bone Loss” has been awarded by the National Institute on Aging. The project is a collaborative effort with Dr. William David Hill.

Added 7/15/2020


Welcome New CBA Faculty!

We are delighted to welcome Dr. Jerry Guillot, Associate Professor and Dr. Morganne Manuel, Assistant Professor as our newest colleagues in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy. Dr. Guillot joins us from Indiana University and Dr. Manuel recently completed her PhD training at Louisiana State University. Both of our new colleagues will be heavily involved in the teaching of medical students and will play key roles as the new curriculum is implemented.

Congratulations and welcome!

Added 7/6/2020


Promotions in CBA!

Dr. Anna Edmondson has been promoted to Professor and Dr. Ming Zhang has been promoted to Associate Professor. Dr. Edmondson plays a key role in the academic mission for the university and Dr. Zhang is a retinal virologist whose studies are supported by the National Eye Institute, NIH.

Congratulations on this exemplary accomplishment!

Added 7/6/2020


Dr. Carol Nichols

Congratulations to Dr. Carol Nichols!

Dr. Carol Nichols, Professor of Cellular Biology and Anatomy has also assumed the role of Assistant Dean for Curriculum: Foundations of Medicine. This duty, which is conducted through the Office of Academic Affairs, MCG, reflects Dr. Nichols considerable efforts in the design of the medical curriculum that is well underway. Congratulations Dr. Nichols, we look forward to your continued leadership of our medical education mission!

 Added 7/6/2020

 


Congratulations to drs. Yutao Liu and Meghan McGee-Lawrence!

Effective July 1, 2020, two associate professors in our department, Dr. Yutao Liu and Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence have been tenured. Dr. Liu is a geneticist whose work is supported by NEI, NIH. Dr. McGee-Lawrence is a bone biologist whose research is funded by National Institute on Aging, NIH. Both of these colleagues play key roles in the education of our graduate students as well.

Congratulations on this outstanding accomplishment!

 Added 7/6/2020


Dr. Anna Edmondson

Congratulations to Dr. Anna Edmondson!

The International Society of Medical Educators has just named Dr. Anna Edmondson as Chair of the IAMSE Nominating Committee. Dr. Edmondson is a long-time, active member of this society and we thank her for enhancing MCG’s reputation in medical education through her excellent leadership!

 Added 6/25/2020

 

 


Dr. Zheng Dong and lab members

Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong and his lab!

Dr. Zheng Dong and his laboratory have been notified that their manuscript entitled: p53/microRNA-214/ULK1 axis impairs renal tubular autophagy in diabetic kidney disease has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Dr. Zhengwei Ma is first author.

Congrats to all!

 Added 6/24/2020

 

 

 

 


Hannah Youngblood

Congratulations to Hannah Youngblood!

Hannah Youngblood has been notified that her F31 pre-doctoral grant will be funded by the NEI! Hannah is a graduate student in the laboratory of Dr. Yutao Liu, Associate Professor, CBA. Hannah’s project is entitled "Effects of estrogen on trabecular meshwork regulation of intraocular pressure.”

Great job Hannah!

 Added 6/18/2020

 


Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez

Congratulations to Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez!

Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez has received an Augusta University Intramural Grant (IGP) for his project “Using proximity ligation to identify the components of a localization complex.”  

Well done Dr. Gonsalvez!

 

Added 5/20/2020

 


Dr. Mark Hamrick

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Mark Hamrick has received a notice of grant award from NIH for his NIH R43 award titled “Novel small molecules for the treatment of sarcopenia.” This grant is an SBIR phase 1 award that seeks to commercialize discoveries that Dr. Hamrick and his collaborator Dr. Isales have made in aging research. Congratulations Dr. Hamrick!

Added 5/19/2020

 

 

 


Dr. Carol Nichols

Congratulations to Dr. Carol Nichols!

Dr. Carol Nichols is the recipient of this year's Distinguished Career Award for Excellence in Teaching and Educational Scholarship awarded by the International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE). This is an outstanding achievement and well-deserved recognition of the tireless efforts Dr. Nichols has made toward medical education at our institution and beyond.

Congratulations Dr. Nichols!

Added 5/14/2020

 


Ting Liu

Congratulations to Ting Liu!

Ting Liu successfully defended her PhD thesis entitled: “Role of class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase in the renal proximal tubule” on April 17, 2020. Ting has been a fine member of the department and secured a pre-doctoral award from AHA to support her studies. Her thesis work was mentored by Dr. Jian-Kang Chen and her committee members were Drs. Zheng Dong, Adviye Ergul, Graydon Gonsalvez and Patricia Schoenlein and Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon served as the reader for the thesis.

Added 5/6/2020

 

 


Helen Kaiser

Congratulations to Helen Kaiser!

Helen Kaiser successfully defended her PhD thesis entitled: “The role of kynurenine, a tryptophan metabolite that increases with age, in muscle atrophy” on April 16, 2020. Helen has been a great ambassador for the department and the university. Her thesis work was mentored by Dr. Mark Hamrick and her committee members were Drs. Carlos Isales, Yutao Liu and Meghan McGee-Lawrence and Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez served as the reader for the thesis.

Added 5/6/2020

 

 


Dr. Ellen LeMosy and Brooklyn Zwinklis

Congratulations to Dr. Ellen LeMosy!

Dr. Ellen LeMosy has mentored an undergraduate student Ms. Brooklyn Zwinklis, including serving as a mentor for the AU CURS program. Just this past week, Dr. LeMosy received the “High Five” Faculty Award for her exemplary guidance over the past year.

Congratulations Dr. LeMosy!

Added 4/23/2020

 

 

 


Congratulations to Drs. Gaddy, Gonsalvez, Hesse, Nichols, Schoenlein and Szymik!

Several CBA colleagues have been notified of their receipt of an Exemplary Teaching Award during the 2018-19 academic year: Dr. Carol Nichols, Dr. Patricia Schoenlein and Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez as well as Dr. Thom Gaddy, Dr. Brett Szymik and Dr. DeLoris Hesse from our MCG-UGA Athens partnership have been recognized for teaching excellence. Congratulations to all. We appreciate all that you do for our medical education mission!

Congratulations Colleagues!

Added 4/23/2020


Congratulations to Dr. Jing Wang!

Dr. Jing Wang, Assistant Research Scientist in the laboratory of Dr. Sylvia Smith, has been notified by Knights Templar Eye Foundation, Inc. of their intent to support her research proposal: “Sigma 1 Receptor: a novel therapy for Retinopathy of Prematurity.” ROP is a blinding disease of early childhood that damages the vasculature and neurons of the retina. Thanks to collaboration and guidance from Dr. Ruth Caldwell, Dr. Wang established a model of ROP in the lab. For her grant proposal Dr. Wang will be testing whether activation of a unique protein, Sigma 1 Receptor, can rescue the vascular disruption and loss of retinal neurons that characterize this devastating disease. Her preliminary data are quite promising and with this new grant support she will be able to continue these important studies.

Congratulations Dr. Wang!

Added 4/20/2020


Devi Boggupalli

Congratulations to Devi Boggupalli!

Devi Boggupalli successfully defended his thesis entitled “Defining the Role of Tropomyosin1C in Cargo Transport in Drosophila.” He completed this in the midst of our ramp down and so only his thesis committee members were permitted to attend in late March. We are very proud of Devi’s accomplishment and wish him the best in his future endeavors.

Devi’s thesis advisor is Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez. Congratulations to Devi and thanks to his thesis committee members and Dr. Gonsalvez!

Added 4/6/2020

 

 


Dr. Zheng Dong

Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong has been notified that his NIH/NIDDK Ro1 grant "Kidney Injury by Cisplatin and Renoprotective Strategies" has been renewed. This grant originated in 2010 and will be funded through 2024!

Congratulations on this terrific accomplishment!

Added 2/27/2020

 

 


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong has been notified that his VA Senior Research Career Scientist award has been renewed for seven years.

Added 2/3/2020


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Great News! Dr. Zheng Dong has been appointed Associate Editor for the American Journal of Physiology – Renal Physiology. His appointment is effective January 1, 2020.

Congratulations Dr. Dong on this notable achievement!

Added 1/8/2020


Helen Kaiser

Congratulations to Helen Kaiser!

Congratulations to Graduate Research Assistant Helen Kaiser (Dr. Mark Hamrick’s lab) who presented her 3 Minute Thesis today in Atlanta at the Board of Regents meeting. Helen’s presentation was well received by the Regents and others in the audience. She is an excellent representative of Augusta University and the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy.

Added 1/8/2020

 

 


Congratulations to our CBA Graduates!

Two of our graduate students successfully defended their thesis and received their diploma for the PhD degree at the Augusta University graduation ceremony on December 13, 2019.

Jingwen Cai presented a seminar describing her project “The Role of Glaucoma-Related Genes in Schlemm’s Canal Endothelial Cells” on August 27, 2019. Jingwen was mentored by Dr. Yutao Liu. She successfully defended her research project to her thesis committee, which included, Dr. Mitchell Watsky, Dr. Sylvia Smith, Dr. Mark Hamrick, and Dr. Kathryn Bollinger, Dr. Xingjun Fan served as a reader for the thesis.

Jessica Pierce presented a seminar describing her project “"Investigating the Role of the Hdac3 Co-Repressor Complex in Glucocorticoid Signaling-Mediated Bone Marrow Lipid Storage with Age" on October 24, 2019. Jessica was mentored by Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence. She successfully defended her research project to her thesis committee, which included, Dr. Wendy Bollag, Dr. William Hill, Dr. Mark Hamrick, and Dr. Xing-Ming Shi, Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez served as a reader for the thesis.

Congratulations Drs. Cai and Pierce!

Added 12/16/2019


Mackenzie Hagan (L), ASMBR 2019 President Bart Clarke, M.D. (R)

Congratulations to Mackenzie Hagan!

Graduate Research Assistant and Graduate SGA President Mackenzie Hagan (Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence lab) received an ASBMR Fund for Research and Education Young Investigator Award at the ASBMR 2019 Annual Meeting for the abstract, "Impaired pericellular matrix production and selection for enhanced cell membrane repair with aging may impair responses to mechanical loading in the aging skeleton." Mackenzie Hagan is pictured here receiving the award with the ASBMR 2019 President Bart Clarke, M.D. Congratulations Mackenzie!

Added 12/3/2019

 


Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon

Congratulations to Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon!

Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon has received a $1.7 million dollar grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to study the role of exosomes in kidney damage. Dr. Kwon is researching the role that exosomes play to repair damage and restore function in acute kidney injury. 

Congratulations on this wonderful achievement!

Added 11/5/2019

 


Jessica Pierce

Congratulations to Jessica Pierce!

CBA graduate student Jessica Pierce, successfully defended her thesis today and received a unanimous vote from her committee to graduate "With Distinction." The title of her dissertation is "Investigating the Role of the Hdac3 Co-Repressor Complex in Glucocorticoid Signaling-Mediated Bone Marrow Lipid Storage with Age." Jessica is a member of Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrences lab.

Congratulations Jessica on this wonderful accomplishment!

Added 10/25/2019

 


Dr. Mark Hamrick

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Mark Hamrick was presented the 2019 Augusta University Research Institutes (AURI) Distinguished Researcher Award at the research celebration held at Fat Man's Mill on Friday, October 18th, 2019.  

Congratulations on this very prestigious honor!

Added 10/21/2019

 


Congratulations to Drs. Mitchell Watsky and Wendy Bollag!

Congratulations to Drs. Mitchell Watsky and Wendy Bollag as they have received notice of award for their RO1 grant from National Institutes of Health, “Phosphatidylglycerol as a Therapy for Corneal Injury.”

This is a marvelous accomplishment!

Added 9/16/2019


Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon

Congratulations to Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon!

Congratulations to Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon as he has received notice of award for his R21 grant. This notice is from the National Cancer Institute for “A novel approach to detect exosome-localized proteins and its application in breast cancer detection.”

This is a fantastic accomplishment!

Added 9/10/2019

 


Congratulations to Jingwen Cai!

Congratulations to Jingwen Cai (laboratory of Dr. Yutao Liu) who successfully defended her thesis yesterday, August 27, 2019. The title of her dissertation is “The Role of Glaucoma-Related Genes in Schlemm’s Canal Endothelial Cells.”

Special thanks to her advisor, committee members and to all members of our department for their support of our student!

Congratulations Jingwen!

Added 8/28/2019


Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship Such a Success! Great Job CBA Students!

On Tuesday August 15th, Dr. Bruce Beutler was our keynote speaker at the third Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship Series.

Dr. Bruce Beutler and CBA Graduate Students

Dr. Bruce Beutler, Regental Professor and Director for the Genetics of Host Defense, UT Southwestern Medical Center, was the honored guest selected by our CBA Graduate Students. In 2011, Dr. Beutler was awarded the Nobel Prize in Immunology. He was a superb keynote speaker and the Lectureship a huge success! We are so very proud of the leadership of the graduate students in planning the visit and appreciate the faculty that participated in his visit and all those that attended the seminar.

Thanks to everyone for your efforts and for representing the department so positively!

Added 8/15/2019


Dr. Bruce Beutler 2019

Cellular Biology & Anatomy Hosts

Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Third Lectureship

Dr. Bruce A. Beutler is an American immunologist and geneticist. Together with Jules A. Hoffmann, he received on-half of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, for "their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity." This research was conducted at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, The Scripps Research Institute La Jolla, CA. Dr. Beutler was invited to present by the graduate students of the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy. Dr. Beutler presented "Discovery of gene function using random germline mutagenesis in mice."

The Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship is named after Dr. G. Lombard Kelly who was an Augusta native and 1924 MCG graduate. He was a faculty member in the Department of Anatomy, the first department of MCG. He rose though the ranks to become the chair of the department, then the dean of the medical school and eventually president of MCG, the nation's 13th oldest and 8th largest medical school. We are honored to have Dr. Beutler as the third G. Lombard
Kelly lecturer and applaud the students for selecting such a deserving candidate. 

We would like to thank our graduate students, faculty and staff for their considerable efforts in ensuring the success of the Kelly Lectureship. Special thanks are due also to Mrs. Heide Andrews and Mrs. Sharon Lever for their assistance.

Added 8/15/2019

 


Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon

Congratulations to Dr. Sang-Ho Kwon!

Exciting News! Dr. Kenneth Sang Ho Kwon has received notification of an R01 from the NIDDK (National Institutes of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases) effective July 1. This five year award will allow Dr. Kwon to understand the regulation of exosome release and its role in acute kidney injury.

Congratulations Dr. Kwon!

Added 7/8/2019

 


Dr. Yutao Liu and Hongfang Yu

Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Dr. David Hess acknowledged Dr. Yutao Liu's fantastic accomplishment in the Medical College of Georgia Deans Diary on June 14, 2019. Dr. Liu brings a $2.1 million dollar NIH grant to fight keratoconus.

Dr. Liu, vision scientist and human geneticist in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, just received a $2.1 million grant from the National Eye Institute to better understand what the disease and the gene mutations associated with it do to the cornea, which lets most of the light into our eyes so we can ultimately see. Like most of you, his long-term goals include finding better ways to treat or even prevent keratoconus and avoid results like extreme nearsightedness and double vision. He has even developed the first keratoconus mouse model to enable these studies that will also examine human corneal tissue. Like Steph Curry, Dr. Liu has great teammates like cornea specialist Dr. Amy Estes and collaborators at Duke University. Congratulations and thanks Dr. Liu and team – David Hess.

Read the full article here.

Added 6/18/2019


Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Dr. Yutao Liu

Great News!  Dr. Yutao Liu, Associate Professor of CBA, has been awarded an NIH 5 year R01
entitled: Cellular and Molecular Genetics of Keratoconus. Drs. Mitch Watsky, Sylvia Smith,
Amy Estes (Ophthalmology), and Hongyan Xu (Biostatistics) are co-investigators on this award.

Congratulations to all!

Added 4/25/2019

 

 


Congratulations to CBA Educator of the Year Recipients!

During the MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony on April 25, 2019, two members of our faculty were honored with Educator of the Year Awards. Dr. William (Bill) Pearson, Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, was presented by Christian Cullen, President, Class of 2022. Dr. Brett Szymik, AU/UGA Medical Partnership, was presented by Miller Singleton, President, Class of 2020 on behalf of Taylor Tabb, President, Class of 2022.

Congratulations on this well-deserved honor!

Added 4/25/2019


Graduate Research Day a Success for CBA Graduate Students !

Several CBA graduate students were recognized for EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH at last night’s GRD dinner:

Chandler Goldman (Cellular Biology and Anatomy Excellence in Research Award)
Mackenzie Hagan (Graduate School Excellence in Research Award)
Shannon Barwick (Culver Vision Discovery Institute Excellence in Vision Research Award)
Jessica Pierce (Fisher Scientific/Phi Kappa Phi Award for Excellence in Biomedical Research)

We acknowledge two students who were excellent ambassadors for CBA in the 3MT competition:
Helen Kaiser and Soumya Navneet

Congratulations to these students!

Added 4/25/2019


Congratulations to CBA Graduate Students!

CBA is celebrating the recent achievements of two students. Congratulations to Mariam Lofty Khaled, from Dr. Yutao Liu's lab, for successfully defending her thesis April 22, 2019. The title of her thesis, In Search of Genetic Mutations for Familial Keratoconus. Additionally, Congratulations are in order for Soumya Navneet, from Dr. Sylvia Smith's lab, for successfully defending her thesis April 24, 2019. The title of her thesis, Neuron-Glia Interaction and Role of NRFin Hyperhomocysteinemic Retina. 

Best wishes and congratulations on a job well done!

Added 4/24/2019


Great News!

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence’s 2nd year medical student (Medical Scholars Program participant, Summer 2018), Brooke Vinson, was awarded 1st place in the 2019 Langman Graduate Student Platform Presentation Award competition at the AAA meeting at the Experimental Biology meeting. Brooke’s presentation was titled, “Estrogen deficiency from ovariectomy enhances the formation of osteocyte plasma membrane disruptions from treadmill exercise in vivo.” Special thanks to Dr. Anna Edmondson and Dr. David Kozlowski for their feedback to shape Brooke’s presentation into its winning form!

Congratulations to all!

Added 4/15/2019


Graduate Research Day -  A Huge Success!

Congratulations to the CBA graduate students for their participation in the Graduate Research Day poster session. Anuj Sharma, Mackenzie Hagan, and Jessica Pierce from Dr. McGee-Lawrence’s lab, Ting Liu from Dr. Chen’s lab, Mariam Khaled and Jingwen Cai from Dr. Liu’s lab, Devi Boggupalli and Chandler Goldman from Dr. Gonsalvez lab, Helen Kaiser from Dr. Hamrick’s lab and Shannon Barwick from the Smith lab represented CBA very well. Congratulations to our students and their mentors for their contributions to science!!!

In addition to mentors who served as judges, there are several other CBA faculty members who participated in judging including Drs. Ming Zhang, Ellen LeMosy, Sangho Kwon, Xingjun Fan, Barbara Mysona, and Jing Wang. Thank you!

Finally, Dr. Hamrick, our CBA PhD program director served on the planning committee for GRD and also judged post-doctoral oral presentations and Dr. Watsky, Dean of the Graduate school is responsible for the success of this day. We thank him for his dedication to the Graduate School. Great effort by many! Bravo!

Added 4/2/2019


Dr. Ming Zhang

Congratulations to Dr. Ming Zhang!

Great News! Dr. Ming Zhang has been awarded a BrightFocus Foundation Macular Degeneration Research award “The role of cytomegalovirus in the development of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD)” beginning July 1, 2019.

Congratulations to Dr. Zhang on this fantastic news!

Added 3/26/2019

 


Dr. Sylvia Smith

Congratulations to Dr. Sylvia Smith!

Dr. Sylvia Smith received supplemental equipment funding on her NIH RO1 grant entitled, "Sigma 1 Receptor: a novel therapeutic target for retinal degeneration."

Congratulations Dr. Smith!

Added 2/12/2019

 


Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Dr. Yutao Liu

Great News! Dr. Yutao Liu, Associate Professor of CBA, has been notified by his program officer at the National Eye Institute that the competing renewal of his R01: Cellular and Molecular Genetics of Keratoconus will be funded for 5 years! This is great news for Dr. Liu and for our department!

Congratulations Dr. Liu and all of the lab members and colleagues who contributed to this important project!

Added 12/4/2018

 

 


Congratulations to Drs. Edmondson, Gonsalvez, Hryniuk, Lemosy, Nichols, Pearson, Gaddy, Hesse and Szymik! 

We are pleased to announce that several CBA faculty members have been recognized for their outstanding contribution to medical education. Individuals that have been selected to receive the MCG 2018 Exemplary teaching awards include Dr. Anna Edmondson, Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez, Dr. Alexa Hryniuk, Dr. Ellen LeMosy, Dr. Carol Nichols, and Dr. Bill Pearson

Our CBA colleagues at the Athens campus were also recognized including Dr. Thom Gaddy, Dr. Deloris Hesse and Dr. Brett Szymik.

Congratulations to all for this well-deserved recognition and thanks for the outstanding effort in educating the next generation of physicians!

Added 11/26/2018


Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Mark Hamrick

Dr. Mark Hamrick, Regents' Professor and long-time member of our faculty, was honored in the MCG Investiture Ceremony with the George G. Weiss Research Professorship. Mr. George Weiss was an Augusta newsman and entrepreneur. He was responsible for a number of broadcasting stations in our area, including WBBQ. He was a philanthropist who clearly valued basic science research. Dr. Hamrick acknowledged the generosity of Mr. Weiss in his remarks at the ceremony and also shared a very amusing story about his first microscope and his creative approach to using it! Indeed, that story captures Dr. Hamrick’s spirit . . . he is intrigued by the skeletal system and has a keen interest in improving bone strength, especially as impacted by aging. His work is funded by the NIH and the DOD. Dr. Hamrick is committed to research, but also to mentoring and advancing our educational mission. He brings his enthusiasm for research to his duties as the PhD graduate program director for CBA. CBA now has two endowed chairs (Drs. Zheng Dong and Mark Hamrick). Truly outstanding!

Congratulations on this exceptional distinction!

Added October 31, 2018


Congratulations to CBA Mentors and Co-Mentors!

The Medical Scholars Research Day was held on Monday, October 29, 2018. The Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy was well represented with 8 freshman medical students completing basic science and medical education projects that spanned over the course of the summer. Mentors and co-mentors for these students included Drs. Edmondson, Hamrick, Hryniuk, McGee-Lawrence, Nichols, Smith and Watsky

Thanks to all for contributing to the success of this summer research experience!

Added 10/30/2018


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong and his lab!

Dr. Zheng Dong and Lab Members

Dr. Zheng Dong and his lab members have been notified by the Journal of Clinical Investigation that their recently submitted paper has been accepted for publication. The title of the paper is "microRNA-668 represses MTP18 to preserve mitochondrial dynamics in ischemic acute kidney injury." This study builds upon the lab’s previous work published in 2007 (PNAS) and 2009 (JCI).

Congratulations for this important contribution to the field of kidney research!

 Added 10/16/2018

 

 

 


Mark Hamrick

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Mark Hamrick, Regents' Professor and long-time member of our faculty, has been selected to receive the endowed George G. Weiss Research Professorship. This wonderful news was announced at the State of the School address on September 21, 2018.

Congratulations on this exceptional distinction!

Added September 25, 2018

 


Congratulations to Drs. Yutao Liu and Graydon Gonsalvez!

Two of our CBA faculty received supplemental equipment funding on their grants. Dr. Yutao Liu on his NEI R21 entitled, "Long Noncoding RNA IncLOXL1 and Exfoliation Syndrome" and Dr. Graydon Gonsavlez on his NIH Ro1 entitled, " A Molecular Examination of mRNA Localization and Cell Polarization."

Congratulations Drs. Gonsalvez and Liu!

Added 9/20/2018


McGee Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence!

The Graduate School recently held a "Welcome Back" reception for new students, returning students and faculty. Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence was voted by the students to receive the Students Choice Award for Excellence in Teaching as the top lecturer in Cellular Biology and Anatomy.

Congratulations Dr. McGee-Lawrence and thank you for your commitment to TGS!

Added 8/27/2018

 


Congratulations to Jessica Pierce!

Jessica Pierce

Jessica Pierce has been selected to receive an ASBMR 2018 Annual Meeting Young Investigator Travel Grant for the abstract presentation “Conditional Deletion of the Glucocorticoid Receptor in Osteoprogenitors Reveals Complex Roles for Glucocorticoid Signaling in Caloric Restriction-Induced Bone Marrow Fat Accumulation”.  The Young Investigator Travel Grant is given to the top young investigators who will present at the annual meeting. The annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research will be held in September in Montreal, Canada. We are delighted that CBA will be well-represented at this conference! Jessica Pierce is one of our Graduate School students serving in Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawerences lab. 

Congratulations Jessica!

Added 8/2/2018

 


Khaled El Masry

Congratulations to Dr. Khaled Elmasry!

Our recent CBA graduate student, Dr. Khaled Elmasry, who defended his thesis this spring has accepted a post-doctoral position in the laboratory of Dr. Patricia D’Amore at Schepens Eye Research Institute, Mass. Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School at Boston, MA. Dr. Elmasry completed his thesis in the laboratory of Dr. Mohamed Al-Shabrawey, who holds a joint appointment in our department and is Professor of Oral Biology in the Dental College.

Congratulations Dr. El-Masry!

Added 7/30/2018

 

 


Dr. Ellen LeMosy

Congratulations to Dr. Ellen Lemosy!

Dr. Ellen LeMosy was selected by the students for the Pre-matriculation Faculty Choice Award for Teaching Excellence at the SEEP/Pre-matriculation banquet. The presenting student offered the following comments "Dr. LeMosy introduced us to the world of medicine, both in its challenges and wonder," the students greatly appreciate her efforts during the summer pre-matriculation program.

Congratulations and great work Dr. LeMosy!

Added July 23, 2018

 

 


Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Dr. Yutao Liu and Jingwen Cai

Dr. Yutao Liu has been featured in the news for his work on LOXL1 and Exfoliation Glaucoma! More information regarding the recent press release "Gene Regulator May Contribute to Protein Pileup in Exfoliation Glaucoma", may be found at the link here.

Congratulations to Dr. Liu and his team!

Added July 19, 2018

 

 


Congratulations to Ting Liu!

Ting Liu

Ting Liu has received the summer 2018 American Heart Association Pre-doctorial Fellowship Award entitled "Role of Class III Phosphatidylinositol-3 Kinase in Compensatory Nephron Hypertrophy." Ting Liu is one of our Graduate School students serving in Dr. Jiankang Chen's lab.

Congratulations Ting!

Added 7/19/2018

 

 


Carol Nichols

Congratulations to Dr. Carol Nichols!

Dr. Carol Nichols was recently promoted to Professor.

Congratulations Dr. Nichols!

Added 7/2/2018

 

 


Jian-Kang Chen

Congratulations to Dr. Jian-Kang Chen!

Dr. Jian-Kang Chen was recently awarded tenure.

Congratulations Dr. Chen!

Added 7/2/2018

 

 


McGee-Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence!

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence was recently promoted to Associate Professor. Congratulations Dr. McGee-Lawrence!

 Added 7/2/2018

 

 


Brett Szymik, PHD

Congratulations to Dr. Brett Szymik!

Dr. Brett Szymik, Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy AU/MCG Athens partnership campus was recently promoted to Associate Professor. Congratulations Dr. Szymik!

Added 7/2/2018

 

 


William Hill

Congratulations to Dr. William Hill!

Congratulations to Dr. William David Hill on his retirement from MCG at Augusta University following 26 years of service! Dr. Hill retired as professor of cellular biology and anatomy. Dr. Hill has been heavily involved in the research and education missions of our institution since he joined the faculty in 1992. Dr. Hill had strong research ties with several groups including the regenerative medicine group, orthopedics and neurology. Dr. Hill is joining the faculty of the Medical University of South Carolina and we wish him and his family the very best!

Congratulations to Dr. Hill!

Added 6/29/2018

 

 


Graydon Gonsalvez

Congratulations to Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez!

Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez has been awarded a National Institute of General Medicine Sciences/NIH/DHHS RO1 award entitled, "A Molecular Examination on mRNA Localization and Cell Polarization."

Congratulations to Dr. Gonsalvez!

Added 6/12/2018

 

 


Mark Hamrick

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Mark Hamrick has been awarded a three year grant from the Department of Defense entitled "Exosome Therapy for Stabilization of Extremity Injury" beginning June 1, 2018.

Congratulations to Dr. Hamrick on this fantastic news!

Added 5/18/2018

 

 


Mark Hamrick

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Mark Hamrick was selected to be the guest speaker at the Eighth Dr. Paul McDonough Lectureship & Symposium held on Friday, May 18th. Dr. Hamrick presented, "Extracellular Veiscles in the Pathogenesis of Human Disease."

Congratulations to Dr. Hamrick on this prestigious invitation!

Added 5/18/2018

 

 


Khaled El Masry

Congratulations to Khaled El-Masry!

Khaled El-Masry presented a seminar describing his project “Mechanism of 12/15 Lipoxygenase-Induced Retinal Microvascular Dysfunction in Diabetic Retinopathy” on April 26th, 2018. Khaled was mentored by Dr. Mohamed Al-Shabrawey, Professor of Oral Biology and Professor of Cellular Biology/Anatomy.  He successfully defended his project to his thesis committee, which included Dr. Ruth Caldwell, Dr. Amany Tawfik, Dr. Manuela Bartoli, Dr. David Fulton; Dr. Yutao Liu served as a reader for the thesis.

Congratulations Dr. El-Masry!

Added 5/3/2018

 

 


Larry Hicks

Lawrence Hicks, better known as Larry, presented a seminar describing his project “In vitro and in vivostudies demonstrate a role for Sh3px1 in lamellipodia formation” on April 19th, 2018. Larry was mentored by Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez. He successfully defended his research project to his thesis committee, which included Dr. Paul McNeil, Dr. Wendy Bollag, Dr. Albert Pan, Dr. Ellen LeMosy; Dr. William Hill served as a reader for the thesis. 

Congratulations Dr. Hicks!

Added 5/3/2018

 

 


Ellen LeMosy

Dr. Ellen LeMosy, Associate Professor, has been awarded a 3-year Re-Entry into Biomedical Research Careers Supplement to collaborate with the Princeton University Laboratory of Dr. Rebecca Burdine on their NIAMS RO1 titled, "Cilia Function in Spine Development and Disease." Dr. LeMosey will address relationships of ECM and Wnt signaling to ciclia function in zebrafish models of juvenile idiopathic scoliosis. For more detailed information about Dr. Burdine's research, please visit the featured NIH Directors Blog here.

Congratulations on a job well done!

Added April 30, 2018

 


Brett Szymik

Dr. Brett Szymik, Assistant Professor of Anatomy with the MCG/UGA Medical Partnership Campus, was awarded the Outstanding Educator Award presented by the MCG/UGA Class of 2021. The award was presented on April 19, 2018 at the MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony. 

Congratulations on this praiseworthy achievement!

Added April 19, 2018


 


Paul McNeil

Dr. Paul McNeil, Professor and Director of the Cell Imaging Core, was presented with the Outstanding Educator Award by the MCG Class of 2021 on April 19, 2018 during the MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony.

Congratulations on this laudable achievement!

Added April 19, 2018

 

 


MML

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence, Assistant Professor, received the Outstanding Young Faculty Award - Basic Science at the most recent  MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony held on April 19, 2018.

Congratulations on this most notable accomplishment!

Added April 19, 2018

 

 


Mark Hamrick

Dr. Mark Hamrick, Regents' Professor and Department Director of Graduate Studies, received the Outstanding Research Award at the MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony held on April 19, 2018.

Congratulations on this most distinguished award!

Added April 19, 2018

 

 


Shawn McCafferty MD 2018

Shawna McCafferty, MD Student Class of 2018, has been selected to co-lead a workshop, "Practice Makes Perfect: How to Engage Medical Students in Professionalism Discussions," at the 2018 International Association of Medical Science Educators meeting (IAMSE) to be held this June in Las Vegas, NV. Shawna also has received a travel award to present her work at the meeting. Her co-presenters are Matt Rivera-Bloodworth, MD Student Class of 2018 and Carol Nichols, PhD.

Congratulations on this wonderful accomplishment!

Added April 18, 2018

 


Khaled El Masry

Khaled El Masry, PhD Student in Dr. Mohamed Al-Shabrawey's lab, was recently honored at the 3 Minute Thesis and Research Day Award's Banquet (3MT). Developed by the University of Queensland, the 3 minute Thesis competition celebrates the exciting research conducted by Doctor of Philosophy students. The competition is driven by a students abilities to effectively explain their research in 3 minutes in a language appropriate to a non-specialists audience. Khaled El Masry was selected as the Peoples Choice Award winner and received $250.00 for his presentation, "New Target for Prevention of Diabetic Eye Complications." To read more about this exciting event, click here.

Congratulations on a job well done!

Added April 16, 2018

 


Jingwen Cai

Jingwen Cai, PhD Student in Dr. Yutao Liu's lab, was a recent finalist at the 3 Minute Thesis and Research Day Award's Banquet (3MT). Developed by the University of Queensland, the 3 minute Thesis competition celebrates the exciting research conducted by Doctor of Philosophy students. The competition is driven by a students abilities to effectively explain their research in 3 minutes in a language appropriate to a non-specialists audience.

Congratulations on a wonderful presentation!

 

Added April 16, 2018

 


Devi Boggupalli

Devi Boggupalli, PhD Student in Dr. Graydon Gonasalvez's lab, received the Excellence in Research Award at the 34th Annual Graduate Research Day event for his presentation "Tropomyosin1c Levels are Regulated by Slmb-Mediated Degradation." The Excellence in Research Award carried a prize worth $100.00. 

Congratulations on this wonderful award!

Added April 16, 2018

 

 


DR. G. LOMBARD KELLY LECTURESHIP SUCH A SUCCESS! - GREAT JOB CBA STUDENTS!

Grad stds Kelly Lecture 3

On Tuesday, April 10th, Dr. Christiaan Leeuwenburgh was our keynote speaker at the second Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship Series. Dr. Christiaan Leeuwenburgh is the Vice-Chair of Research and Professor in the Department of Aging from the University of Florida and the honored guest selected by our CBA Graduate Students. He was a superb keynote speaker and the Lectureship a huge success!  We are so very proud of the leadership of the graduate students in planning the visit and appreciate the faculty that participated in his visit and that attended the seminar.

Thanks to everyone for your efforts and for representing the department so positively!

Added April 11, 2018

 


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Dong April 2018

The search is on for a treatment target for acute kidney injury. Dr. Zheng Dong, principal investigator on a new $2.2 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases, is researching just how autophagy is hampered in diabetes and searching for targets to bolster autophagy in an effort to help patients and their kidneys better survive diabetes and to recover from an acute kidney injury. When you have diabetes then get an acute kidney injury, there is a multiplier effect that can worsen your prognosis and destroy your kidneys. To read more about this exciting research, click here.

Added April 10, 2018

 


Mark Hamrick

Dr. Mark Hamrick received the Graduate School 2018 Award for Outstanding Research. The award was presented on April 9, 2018 at the Annual State of the Graduate School Address and Awards Ceremony. Dr. Hamrick is a Regents' Professor of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Orthopedic Surgery. He also serves as the Director of the CBA PhD program and Co-director for the Center for Healthy Aging.

Congratulations!

Added April 10, 2018

 


Graduate Research Day - GREAT JOB CBA!

On Friday, March 23rd, the Graduate School held its annual Graduate Research Day. The participation by Cellular Biology and Anatomy was excellent. A number of our students presented posters including Ahmed Elmansi (Hill lab), Mackenzie Hagan and Jessica Pierce (McGee-Lawrence lab), Chandler Goldman and Devi Boggupalli (Gonsalvez lab), Jingwen Cai and Mariam Khaled (Liu lab), Helen Kaiser (Hamrick lab), Ting Liu (Chen lab), Khaled Elmasry (Al-Shabrawey lab) and Soumya Navneet (Smith lab). We are very proud of each of these students and congratulate them on developing posters that captured the hard work dedicated to their ongoing research projects. Congratulations also to their mentors in guiding these students in this endeavor. The faculty members whose students participated also served as judges for the posters. Thanks also to Dr. Hamrick for his role on the organizing committee and to Dr. Mitchell Watsky, Graduate School Dean, for his leadership!

Thanks to all for their efforts…it was a great day for research in the department!

Added March 26, 2018


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong's Lab!

Dr. Zheng Dong's lab has been notified of acceptance of manuscript in the journal "Nature Communications." Dr. Shixuan Wang is the lead author of this contribution entitled, "The CPLANE Protein Intu Protects Kidneys from Ischemia-reperfusion Injury by Targeting STAT1 for Degradation."

Congratulations to all in the Dong Lab for this excellent achievement!

Added March 5, 2018


Yutao Liu

Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Great News! Dr. Yutao Liu has been awarded an NIH R21 on his project exfoliation glaucoma entitled "Long Noncoding RNA IncLOXL1 and Exfoliation Syndrome."

Congratulations to Dr. Liu on this outstanding accomplishment!

Added February 21, 2018

 


Great News! MCG Students Honored!

This year at the annual meeting of the American Association of Anatomists there will be six MCG students presenting Anatomy Education Research. They have garnered the awards for their work and their names and poster/paper titles are listed below. Additionally, two other MCG students will be leading a focus session at the International Association of Medical Science Educators meeting in June.

We congratulate these students for their outstanding work and appreciate the recognition they bring to MCG in these national forums. We recognize also the excellent mentorship of the students by the CBA faculty, Drs. Anna Edmondson, Carol Nichols, Alexa Hryniuk and from the Department of Pathology, Dr. Barbara Russell.  

Harrison Houston - Effects of Exam Group Time on Academic Performance.  He is a platform award finalist for an AAA Educational Research Platform Presentation Award. Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson and Carol Nichols

Tommy Ng - Identifying Learning and Study Strategies as Predictors for Academic Performance in Gross Anatomy.  He is a platform award finalist for an AAA Educational Research Platform Presentation Award. Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson, Alexa Hryniuk, and Carol Nichols

Rachel Corbitt - Evaluation of Critical Thinking Skills in the Anatomy and Development Components of the First Year Medical School Curriculum.  She is a poster award finalist for an AAA/ASE Student/Postdoctoral Education Research Poster Award.  Rachel was also selected for an oral presentation in an Education Platform Session at the meeting  Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson, Alexa Hryniuk, and Carol Nichols

Dalton Sherwood - Early Identification of Factors Contributing to Allied Health Students’ Academic Difficulties in Gross Anatomy.  He is a poster award finalist for an AAA/ASE Student/Postdoctoral Education Research Poster Award Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson, Alexa Hryniuk, and Carol Nichols

Katherine Jennings - The Effectiveness of a First Patient Discoveries Project in Promoting Observational Medicine and Diagnostic Decision-Making.  She is a poster award finalist for an AAA/ASE Student/Postdoctoral Education Research Poster Award.  Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson, Alexa Hryniuk, and Carol Nichols

Briana Bennett - Identifying Predictors for Academic Performance in the MCG Pre-Clinical Curriculum.  She will be presenting a poster at the meeting.  Faculty Mentors: Anna Edmondson, Carol Nichols, and Barbara Russell

IAMSE Meeting Information

Shawna McCafferty and Matt Rivera Bloodworth Practice Makes Perfect: How to Engage Medical Students in Professionalism Discussions.  They will be leading a 1.5 hour Focus Session at the International Association of Medical Science Educators meeting in June in Las Vegas, NV.  Faculty Mentor: Carol Nichols

Congratulations to all!

Added February 14, 2018


Congratulations to Helen Kaiser!

Helen Kaiser

Graduate student Helen Kaiser, from Dr. Mark Hamrick's lab, has been selected as a platform award finalist for the AAA Graduate Student Platform Presentation Award. Helen will be recognized at the AAA Annual Meeting at EB 2018 in San Diego, CA this April during the closing ceremonies where the winners will be announced. Helen was among the top 6 highest scores chosen by the American Association of Anatomists (AAA) and the Committee for Early Career Anatomists (CECA) in the graduate student scientific category to compete in this award.

Congratulations and best of luck to Helen Kaiser!

Added February 13, 2018

 


Congratulations to the EM/Histology Core!

EM Histo Core

Our EM/Histology Core made the cover of the journal Cancer Prevention Research! The beautiful sectioning by Donna Kumiski was the cover art for "Cyclic-GMP-Elevating Agents Suppress Polyposis in ApcMin Mice by Targeting the Preneoplastic Epithelium." The EM/Histo Core Staff members, pictured left to right, include Libby Perry, Penny Roon, Donna Kumiski and Brendan Marshall.

Congratulations to Donna and the entire EM/Histology Core for their excellent work!

READ MORE ABOUT THEIR FEATURE

Added February 7, 2018


Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Dr. Carlos Isales, Regents' Professor in the MCG Department of Medicine, and Dr. Mark Hamrick, bone biologist in the MCG Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, were recently named co-directors of MCG's new Center for Healthy Aging. The Center for Healthy Aging will work to provide a comprehensive approach to patient care and science that enables aging Americans to maintain or regain there independence. Congratulations on your appointment!

Added February 6, 2018


Congratulations to Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence and Natasha Culpepper!

Good news! Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence has received notification from the American Diabetes Association that they will support a one-year Minority Undergraduate Internship allowing her to mentor Natasha Culpepper from the Summerville campus. Natasha's project is titled "Regulation of OPG by osteoblastic Hdac3 to control hepatic inflammation and systemic insulin sensitivity."

Added January 19, 2018


Congratulations to our Medical Education Faculty!

Several of our faculty members have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to medical education. Individuals who have received the MCG 2017 Exemplary Teaching Award include Drs. Anna Edmondson, Alexa Hryniuk, Carol Nichols, Tom Gale, William Pearson and Paul McNeil. Drs. Thom Gaddy, Greg Nagle, Deloris Hess and Brett Szymik, colleagues at the Athens campus, were also recognized. Congratulations to all for this well-deserved recognition and thanks for the outstanding effort in educating the next generation of physicians!

Added January 3, 2018


Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Liu 2Dr. Yutao Liu has been invited to be a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for The Glaucoma Foundation. Dr. Liu has been funded by this organization several times and this invitation is a clear indication of his contributions to the field of glaucoma research.

Congratulations!

Added October 23, 2017

 

 


Congratulations to Drs. Paul McNeil and Meghan McGee-Lawrence!

Congratulations to MML and Paul McNeilDr. Paul McNeil for the Lifetime Achievement award and Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence  for the Emerging Scientist award presented by the AU Research Institute! Our colleagues were honored at the AURI research happy hour on Friday evening, October 20th and what a happy event it was for these distinguished colleagues.

This is fantastic news!

Added October 23, 2017

 


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong, a cell biologist and Regents’ Professor at the Medical Dr. Zheng DongCollege of Georgia, was recognized as the Leon Henri Charbonnier Endowed Chair in Cellular Biology and Anatomy at the 9th annual investiture ceremony.

This is the first endowed chair in our department and is very well deserved recognition for the manifold contributions to kidney research made by Dr. Dong!  Dr. Dong received this honor in recognition for his outstanding contributions to research, his sustained extramural funding and his mentorship of post-doctoral fellows, research associates and students during the 15 years on our faculty. 

Added October 6, 2017

 

 


Congratulations to Dr. Smith's Lab!

Smith lab

Dr. Smith's lab has received a new R01 grant from the National Eye Institute (NIH) for the project entitled, "Sigma 1 Receptor: a novel therapeutic target for retinal degeneration." Drs. Jing Wang and Rachel Cui contributed significantly to the preliminary data for this award and will be actively engaged in the project. Co-investigators Drs. Graydon Gonsalvez, Alan Saul (Ophthalmology) and Bobby Thomas (Pharmacology/Toxicology) will be working collaboratively with the Smith group to execute this project.

Congratulations to all!

Added September 26, 2017

 

 

 


Congratulations to our Department Educators!

The 9th annual Medical Scholars Research Day was held in the Harrison Ed Commons building. It was a tremendous success and our department was very well represented! Special thanks to all faculty who mentored students and to the members of our terrific department who interacted with these students. Students were engaged in cell biological research, educational research and anatomical research. Included among CBA faculty who served as mentors were Drs. Anna Edmondson, Patricia Schoenlein, Meghan McGee-Lawrence, Hill, Nichols, Hamrick, Bill Pearson.

Great job! Thanks to all!

Added September 26, 2018


j chen

Dr. Jian-Kang Chen was awarded funding by the National Institutes of Health for his proposal, "Mechanisms Underlying the Susceptibility and Severity of Acute Kidney Injury". Congratulations Dr. Chen!

Added August 15, 2017

 

 


M. Watsky

Dr. Mitchell Watsky, dean of The Graduate School, was recently recognized in an Augusta University News Release for his research "Too LIttle Vitamin D May Hinder Recovery of Injured Corneas". Congratulations Dr. Watsky!

READ MORE ABOUT DR. WATSKY'S RESEARCH

Added July 24, 2017


CONGRATULATIONS TO STAR STUDENTS AND MENTORS!

Congratulations to all StaR students and their mentors! This summer the CBA department had a total of SEVEN undergraduate students participate in this outstanding summer research experience. The STaR poster session this morning demonstrated the high degree of engagement of these students in exciting projects. There were a total of 21 students in the STaR program so CBA was very well represented!

Thanks to all mentors: Drs. LeMosy (Mr. A. Feather), Schoenlein (Ms. A. Liu), McGee-Lawrence (Mr. E. Stokes and Ms. N. Del Mazo), Liu (Ms. S. Yablonski, Hill (Mr. E. De Miranda) and Hamrick (Mr. L. Martinez).

Added July 20, 2017


McGee Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan E. McGee-Lawrence, biomedical engineer, in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy. Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence was asked to join the Editorial review board for the Journal of Orthopaedic Research. This is the official journal of the Orthopaedic Research Society and a well-respected journal in the field of Orthopaedics.

Added July 6, 2017

 

 


CBA SUPPORTS STAR SUMMER STUDENT WORK SHOP IN BONE & REGENERATIVE MEDICINE

As part of the College of Graduate Studies, the Summer STAR (Student Training And Research) Program provides a biomedical research experience for undergraduate students interested in pursuing a graduate education in the biomedical sciences. On June 15th the Cellular Biology & Anatomy Department had an opportunity to lead one of the STAR research workshops highlighting research approaches in CB&A, with a focus on Bone Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Drs. Meghan McGee-Lawrence and Dave Hill led a discussion and laboratory tours with the able assistance of CB&A graduate students (Mackenzie Hagan, Jessica Pierce, & Ahmed Elmansi), Post-doctoral Fellow Dr. Khaled Hussein, and other lab staff. Students toured and experienced equipment/technique demonstrations in Dr. McGee-Lawrence’s lab (Digimus bone densitometry and body composition, exercise studies, bone histomorphometry), the CB&A Electron Microscopy & Histology Core with demonstrations by Donna Kumiski and Libby Perry (electron microscopy and histology techniques, including specialized bone techniques), as well as Core facilities that support their NIH P01 Grant Projects: Dr. Mohammed Elsalanty’s lab (3D bone imaging, biomechanical testing), and the Stem Cell Core run by Dr. Xingming Shi where Dr. Hill’s lab demonstrated culturing stem cells under normoxic and hypoxic conditions.

Added June 20, 2017

 


CONGRATULATIONS TO DRS. MARK HAMRICK, WILLIAM HILL, MEGAN MCGEE-LAWRENCE AND CARLOS ISALES!

Major research initiative explores how our bones and muscles age, new ways to block their decline. Our investigators are dissecting just what happens to the stem cells that make the tissues, which help keep us upright, with an eye on improving healthspan. Congratulations to our investigators on their Program Project.

READ MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAM PROJECT

Added June 6, 2017

 


s smith

We are happy to announce that Dr. Sylvia Smith received the notice of award for the Foundation Fighting Blindness grant entitled: "Targeting Sigma 1 Receptor in Retinitis Pigmentosa". Congratulations Dr. Smith!

 

Added June 1, 2017

 

 


MML and Paul McNeil

Congratulations to Drs. Yutao Liu, Mark Hamrick, William Hill and Meghan McGee-Lawrence received notice of award from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging for their research entitled: Age Induced Impairment of Nutrient Signaling Results in Bone Loss.

Congratulations on this fantastic accomplishment!

Added May 1, 2017

 


Zheng Dong

CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. ZHENG DONG!

The MCG Faculty Senate recognized Dr. Zheng Dong for his exceptional accomplishments by awarding him with the Basic Science Research Award. Congratulations for this well-deserved recognition at the recent MCG Faculty Awards Ceremony!

Added April 21, 2017

 


Mark Hamrick

CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. MARK HAMRICK!

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick, Regents' Professor in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Drs. Meghan McGee-Lawrence, William Hill, Yutao Liu for their Notice of Award for their Research Program Project beginning May 1, 2017 from The National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging entitled: Age Induced Impairment of Nutrient Signaling Results in Bone Loss.

Added April 12, 2017

 


Dave Hill

CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. WILLIAM HILL!

Congratulations to Dr. Dave Hill, Professor in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Drs. Meghan McGee-Lawrence, Mark Hamrick, Yutao Liu for their Notice of Award for their Research Program Project beginning May 1, 2017 from The National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging entitled: Age Induced Impairment of Nutrient Signaling Results in Bone Loss.

Added April 12, 2017

 


yutaoliu

CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. YUTAO LIU!

Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu, Associate Professor in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Drs. Meghan McGee-Lawrence, Mark Hamrick, William Hill for their Notice of Award for their Research Program Project beginning May 1, 2017 from The National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging entitled: Age Induced Impairment of Nutrient Signaling Results in Bone Loss.

Added April 12, 2017

 


McGee Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan E. McGee-Lawrence!

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan E. McGee-Lawrence, biomedical engineer in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Drs. Yutao Liu, Mark Hamrick, William Hill for their Notice of Award for their Research Program Project beginning May 1, 2017 from The National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging entitled: Age Induced Impairment of Nutrient Signaling Results in Bone Loss.

Added April 12, 2017

 


McGee Lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan E. McGee-Lawrence!

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan E. McGee-Lawrence, biomedical engineer in the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy and Dr. Alexis M. Stranahan, neuroscientist from Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine for their paper describing benefit of whole body vibration in the face of obesity and diabetes. This is a terrific demonstration of research collaboration as these two scientists from different fields examined a model whereby whole body movement could improve problems like insulin resistance and weaker muscle and bone. (These benefits were similar to 20 minutes daily on a treadmill.) Their work garnered great international interest from TIME and Forbes as well as science and media sites internationally.

Added March 28, 2017

 


Mitchell Watsky

Congratulations to Dr. Watsky!

Dr. Watsky received the notice of award from the National Institute of Health/NEI for hs R01 grant entitled “Vitamin D Metabolism and Function in the Cornea and Anterior Segment.” Congratulations to Dr. Watsky!

Added March 21, 2017

 


CELLULAR BIOLOGY & ANATOMY HOSTS DR. G. LOMBARD KELLY LECTURESHIP

The Department of Cellular Biology & Anatomy hosted its inaugural Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship on March 16, 2017.

Dr. Andrew Fire, shared the Nobel prize for Physiology or Medicine in 2006 with Dr. Craig Mello for their work in RNA interference. Dr. Fire was invited to be the inaugural Kelly lecturer by the graduate students of the Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy.

andrew fire
The Dr. G. Lombard Kelly Lectureship is named after Dr. G. Lombard Kelly who was an Augusta native and 1924 MCG graduate. He was a faculty member in the Department of Anatomy, the first department of MCG.  He rose through the ranks to become chair of the department, then dean of the medical school and eventually president of MCG. His passion for education and clinical care were exception and he played a key role in the foundation and future of MCG, the nation’s 13th oldest and 8th largest medical school.  We are honored to have had Dr. Fire as the inaugural G. Lombard Kelly lecturer and applaud the students for selecting such a deserving candidate for this honor.   

We would like to thank our graduate students, Dr. Jiankang Chen, and Dr. Mark Hamrick for their considerable efforts in ensuring the success of this first Kelly Lectureship.  Special thanks are due also to Mrs. Heide Andrews and Mrs. Sharon Lever for their assistance.

Added March 17, 2017


CONGRATULATIONS TO THE HISTOLOGY CORE!

Dr. Brendan Marshall and Libby Perry have co-authored an article published in Science Advances! The article outlines the interaction between two proteins, steroidogenic acute regulatory protein and glucose regulatory protein 78. Brendan and Libby contributed by doing a series of co-localization experiments of both proteins. Congratulations to Dr. Brendan Marshall and Libby Perry!

Added March 1, 2017

 


Zheng Dong

Dr Zheng Dong has been successful in renewing his Veterans Administration grant entitled "Ischemic Kidney Injury and Kidney Repair." Congratulations!

Added February 3, 2017

 

 


CONGRATULATIONS!

Dr. Anna Edmondson, Carol Nichols, Paul McNeil,Bill Pearson, and Brett Szymik have all been recognized with the 2016 Exemplary Teach Award! Congratulations and thanks to each of these faculty members for their efforts!

Added February 3, 2017

 


Meghan McGee-Lawrence

Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence's recent proposal titled "Effects of osteoblastic Hdac3 expression in hepatic inflammation and insulin sensitivity via OPG," submitted to the Minority Undergraduate Internship Award through the American Diabetes Association's Research Program has been approved for funding. Congratulations Dr. McGee-Lawrence!

Added January 3, 2017

 


Graydon Gonsalvez

Dr. Graydon Gonsalvez has published a paper in the Journal of Cell Science elucidating the flexibility of the protein Tropomyosin. His research was also highlighted on the JagWire News page.

READ MORE ON JAGWIRE

Added December 8, 2016

 


Samuel Herberg

Samuel Herberg, a former student of Dr. Hill's lab, has been selected to receive one of the two WFIRM young investigator awards that will be presented at the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society - Americas (TERMIS-AM) meeting in San Diego in December. "The award is designed to recognize outstanding achievements by members of the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS) who are in the early stages of a career in regenerative medicine."

Congratulations Dr. Herberg!

Added November 14, 2016

 


DR. JING WANG PRESENTED RESEARCH

Dr. Jing Wang (Assistant Research Scientist - Sylvia Smith’s lab) presented research at the Neuroscience Retreat hosted by the Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine. Her presentation “Sigma 1 receptor: rescue of retinal photo-receptor cells” won the best intramural presentation award. Congratulations Dr. Wang!

Congratulations Dr. Wang!

 


Mark Hamrick

Dr. Yao-Liang Tang and Dr. Mark Hamrick received a $2.6 million grant for research to combat the muscle-wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Congratulations Dr. Hamrick!

READ MORE ABOUT THEIR RESEARCH

 


Mark Hamrick

Dr. Mark Hamrick will represent Augusta University and present research at the National Institute on Aging workshop on Advances and Gaps in Musculoskeletal Biology Meeting in Bethesda, MD.

Great job Dr. Hamrick!

 


CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. ZHENG DONG!

"Dr. Zheng Dong, a cell biologist and Regents’ Professor in Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy at the Medical Dr. Zheng DongCollege of Georgia at Augusta University, has been named the first Leon Henri Charbonnier Endowed Chair in Cellular Biology and Anatomy.

Dong, whose research focuses on the molecular mechanism of cell injury and death, protection and subsequent regeneration, particularly in the kidneys, joined the faculty at MCG in 2002. He also serves as a senior research career scientist and director of research development for the Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Augusta."

READ MORE ABOUT DR. ZHENG DONG

 


Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Yutao Liu

Dr. Yutao Liu was recognized this week in an article titled "High Expression of short gene appears to contribute to destructive eye pressures in glaucoma". We would like to congratulate Dr. Yutao Liu for his hard work!

READ MORE ABOUT HIS RECOGNITION

 


Congratulations to Dr. Ming Zhang!

Dr. Ming Zhang received the notice of award from The National Institutes of Health/NEI for his R01 grant entitled “Mechanism of death of bystander retinal cells during MCMV infection.” Congratulations Dr. Zhang on the important discoveries you have made and for garnering support to continue this work!

 


Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

Mark Hamrick

Dr. Mark Hamrick was awarded an Augusta University - UGA Seed Grant. This program was jointly created to stimulate new collaborative research projects between AU and UGA that subsequently will lead to new external grants. Applications were received from a broad range of disciplines as well as from interdisciplinary and translational research. Dr. Hamrick will collaborate with Dr. John Peroni from the Department of Large Animal Medicine. Title: “Large Animal Model of Acute Arthritis for Stem Cell-Based Regenerative Medicine.” 


Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Zheng Dong

Very recently Dr. Zheng Dong, Leon Henri Charbonnier Endowed Chair for Cellular Biology and Anatomy, was featured in a story published by the Augusta Chronicle. Congratulations Dr. Dong and  your research team  on the  important discoveries you have made related to cisplatin-induced kidney injury and garnering support to continue this work! 

READ MORE ABOUT HIS FEATURE

 


Congratulations to Dr. Mark Hamrick!

The Board of Regents of the University of Georgia has appointed Dr. Mark Hamrick to Regent's Professor at Augusta University effective May 10, 2016. Dr, Hamrick contributes substantively to all three missions of the department, the college and the university. Congratulations Dr. Hamrick on this well-deserved honor.

 


Congratulations to Dr. Sylvia Smith!

sylvia smith

Dr. Smith has been appointed to the National Advisory Eye Council where she will serve a four-year term as one of the 12 voting council members appointed by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to advise the secretary, Sylvia M. Burwell, and Dr. Paul A. Sieving, director of the National Eye Institute.

READ MORE ABOUT DR. SMITH'S APPOINTMENT


Congratulations to Jasmine Fuller!

The Augusta University Graduate School Student Government Association honored Ph.D. student Jasmine Fuller (Dr. Zheng Dong’s Lab) with its award for compassion. The criteria for the award is reflected in caring, empathy, and social responsibility. Congratulations Jasmine for this wonderful honor for your volunteer work and the compassion towards your fellow classmates.
Congratulations!


yutaoliu

Congratulations to Dr. Yutao Liu!

Dr. Yutao Liu just received notice from The Brightfocus Foundation that his Glaucoma grant application entitled "miR-182 and TM Dysfunction in High Tension Glaucoma" has been approved for funding. This is terrific news and we are delighted that his exciting project will move forward.

 


pmcneil

Congratulations to Dr. Paul McNeil!

The Office of Faculty Development and Teaching Excellence recognized Dr. Paul McNeil this morning with the “Caught in the Act of Great Teaching” award where faculty members are nominated, by students, for their acts of great teaching. Congratulations to Dr. McNeil for this well-deserved recognition!

 


Congratulations to our CBA Graduate Students!

Congratulations to all of our students and post-doctoral fellows who presented their research at Graduate Research Day. This was a terrific showing for the department. One aspect that is a particular point of pride is that several of the students are very early in their training, yet have already completed sufficient work on their projects to have a story to present. That is fantastic! Thanks to our mentors for their manifold efforts in guiding these cell biologists-in-training! Thanks also to all who gave their time in judging posters.

Recognition is due for Jingwen Cai, Mariam Khaled, Inas Helwa (Liu Lab), Khaled El-Masry (Al-Shabrawey Lab), Jasmine Fuller, Chunyuan Guo (Dong Lab), Ting Liu (Chen Lab), Soumya Navneet (Smith Lab), Jessica Pierce (McGee-Lawrence Lab), Alexendra Aguilar (Hill Lab), Lawrence Hicks (Gonsalvez Lab). Thanks to judges Jing Wang, Z. Dong, D. Hill, P. Schoenlein, J. Brittain, J-K Chen, G. Gonsalvez, Y. Liu, M. McGee-Lawrence, P. Schoenlein, M. Hamrick.

 


hill

Congratulations ot Dr. Zheng Dong!

Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong, Leon Henri Charbonnier Endowed Chair for Cellular Biology and Anatomy! He has just received notice of his grant award from NIH. The competing renewal of his grant entitled "Acute kidney injury by cisplatin and renoprotective strategies" will be funded for four years! This is terrific news and we are very proud of Dr. Dong and his terrific research team!

 

 


hill

Congratulations to Dr. Anna Edmondson!

Dr. Anna Edmondson was recognized with the Distinguished Basic Science Teaching Award from MCG. Anna works very diligently and consistently at being an outstanding educator, this is a well-deserved honor!

Congratulations!


 


hill

Congratulations to Dr. Zheng Dong!

Dr. Zheng Dong, Leon Henri Charbonnier Endowed Chair for Cellular Biology and Anatomy, has received a Carlos and Marguerite Mason Trust Grant award for $1,000,000 for Innovative Approaches to Prevent Transplant Rejection and Prolong Allograft Survival. The project titled “Developing Cutting Edge Research and Personalized Medicine for Transplant Patients” is a collaborative effort with Drs. Michael Madaio and Stanley Nahman.

This is fantastic news!

Congratulations Dr. Dong!

 


hill

Congratulations to Dr. William Hill!

Dr. William Hill whose patent application entitled “Compositions and Methods for Treating Musculoskeletal Diseases and Disorders” was approved by the Patent Office. The application focuses on methods to inhibit the age related anti-osteogenic miRNA, which Dr. Hill’s laboratory identified as a novel miRNA target in mesenchymal stem cells to improve bone formation in osteoporosis and bone defects.

 

 


mcgee-lawrence

Congratulations to Dr. McGee-Lawrence!

Congratulations to Dr. Meghan McGee-Lawrence on the intent to fund her Junior Faculty Development Award from the American Diabetes Association entitled "Role of osteoblastic Hdac3 in the regulation of systemic energy metabolism."

Fantastic news!