Volume 7, Issue 4 | Fall 2022

Biophysics Welcomes New Leadership

Meet New Biophysics Chair, Francesca Marassi, PhD

Francesca's research focuses on understanding the structures and functions of proteins embedded in cellular membranes or bound to lipids. Many of these proteins play important roles in host-pathogen interactions, ectopic deposit formation in degenerative diseases, and cancer-related programmed cell death, and their dysfunctions are linked with devastating diseases. A major goal of Francesca's biomedical research is to understand how these proteins function at the molecular level, as these represent principal targets for therapeutic drug development.

"I am proud and delighted to have joined the Department of Biophysics at MCW," said Francesca. "This Department has a long history of fundamental scientific accomplishments and a tradition of innovation through research and technology. I look forward to working with everyone and contributing to its success."

We are certain that Francesca's leadership will inspire new developments in foundational and translational research, instrumentation, and technology.

Meet New Biophysics Administrator, Christine Zeller, MA

After years of progressively increasing her responsibilities, and then completing the Leadership Academy in May 2022, she knew she had the foundational knowledge to be a successful department administrator. “When I learned of the opening in Biophysics,” Christine said, “I was very excited about the chance to step in at a time when a new chair would be coming on board with new technology and growth on the horizon.”

As department administrator, her goal is to facilitate the research and education that is taking place within the department and ensure that everyone has the support, tools, and resources they need to successfully do their jobs. She will make sure that each individual feels valued and recognized, particularly while we are adjusting to a hybrid work environment with many changes taking place.

Thank You for Your Leadership, Raman!

He has served on numerous MCW and scientific society committees, and study sections; reviewed countless grants and manuscripts; and served on journal editorial boards.  He is a true role model in achieving grant success through seeking collaborations with scientists of diverse expertise. In addition to advising numerous postdoctoral fellows in his lab, he has provided mentorship to underrepresented undergraduate students, as well as research scientists, junior faculty, and anyone who came to his door seeking guidance.

Thank you, Raman, for your years of leadership, commitment to science, and unwavering support!

Thank You for Your Leadership, Linda!

Additionally... Thank You to Our Past Administrators!

Prior to 2013, Christopher Felix, PhD, served as scientific administrator for the Biophysics Research Institute and then Department of Biophysics, and Kristin Nines, MBA, as business administrator. Chris and Kristin helped set the tone for the department, ensuring research and operations ran smoothly. They were highly respected for their willingness to help others, resourcefulness, and dependability.

Thank you, Chris and Kristin, for efforts in support of the department! 

Biophysics Mourns the Passing of James S.
Hyde, PhD

We remember fondly—among many treasured moments—his animated scientific discussions, his pacing the hallways deep in thought, his love of celebrating with champagne (in real glasses!), his incredible publication record, his front-row seminar seat, and his wife’s calm and knowledgeable 30-year service to the department. Jim will be deeply missed but his impact and legacy will be long remembered.

Read more about Dr. Hyde’s life in his MCW obituary or his JSOnline obituary. Members of the IEPRS can look for In Memoriam remembrances in the next issue of the IEPRS Newsletter (Vol 32/3). Also, look for future details of a symposium to be held in spring 2023 that will honor Jim’s scientific legacy here at MCW.

–Candice Klug, PhD, & Lydia Washechek, BA

Alumni Q&A

Learn about the diverse career paths our alumni have pursued after graduating from the Biophysics Graduate Program.

Aaron Kittell, PhD, Manager, Regional IT PMO and IT Quality Compliance, at Eurofins Scientific

As a graduate student at MCW, Aaron Kittell studied under the mentorship of James Hyde, PhD, professor in the Department of Biophysics. Aaron received his PhD in 2012 with his dissertation titled "The Development and Application of Non-Adiabatic Rapid Sweep Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (NARS EPR) Spectroscopy." Today, Aaron is manager, regional IT PMO and IT quality compliance, at Eurofins Scientific.

Q: What inspired you to pursue a career in science? 

A: The most inspiring thing about science for me was the idea of understanding how complex things work. The basics of science and math are the foundation of everything, but the details and interdependencies of systems drive a complete understanding of how things work and how they can be leveraged to grow. This idea of discovery and understanding really motivated me and pushed me to challenge myself, like pursuing a biophysics PhD with a bachelor's degree in chemistry or following a career into IT with a biophysics PhD.

Q: Since completing your PhD in Biophysics in 2012, share with us your career progression to your current role as manager, regional IT PMO and IT quality compliance, at Eurofins Scientific.

A: During my postdoc at MCW, I came to the realization that I didn't want to stay in academia, so I joined a group there called the Postdoc Industry Consultants (PICO; now known as Catalyst BioConsulting). The focus of this group is to teach young scientists how to adapt their skills to business by introducing them to entrepreneurs and businesses in the region and giving them small projects to apply those new skills. PICO was vitally important for me learning where I added value, and presented me with the opportunity to start my first post-academic job as an active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturing project manager at Cambridge Major Laboratories (CML; now Sterling Pharma). There, I learned that the best thing I had to contribute was the ability to translate complex ideas and systems to different groups and levels within the business. With this in mind, I moved on from CML and joined Covance Food Solutions (CFS) as an M&A project manager. After facilitating the acquisition and integration of two companies, CFS was sold to Eurofins Scientific. It was here where I found myself moving toward IT, as the integration of CFS into Eurofins required translation of scientist needs and business processes to IT engineers. Following a successful integration, I transferred to IT infrastructure and was promoted to manager of IT quality compliance, IT Project Management Office and Workspace Management.

Q: Tell us about your major responsibilities, and the types of projects, committee service, or other activities you might work on in a typical week.

A: As I oversee the management of three different departments within the IT organization, my weeks differ depending on who needs the most attention. One week, I may be working on supporting the onboarding of employees joining the organization via acquisition, and the next week I may be responding to customer inquiries related to an FDA or EU health inspection at their facility. I spend a lot of time trying to build standard processes and systems to fill gaps and improve our efficiency. Overall, my team is responsible for supporting 76 locations and 10,000 end points across North America.

Q: What aspect of your current job do you find most rewarding, and why?

A: I get the chance to influence change at a macro level by applying the skills I've learned over the last 15 years. This allows me to make a positive impact on my employees and the people they support. There's no greater feeling than to walk in a room and hear a customer say, "Good, I'm glad we have your team on this."

Q: What advice do you wish you had been given as a graduate student?

A: Understanding science is your primary responsibility, but do not lose sight of the soft skills you're learning and how important they will be in your career. Think about all the things you're doing that aren't “sciencey,” like managing inventory, writing proposals, and monitoring and planning experiments (that's a project). All these things are directly applicable to your future career, whether in academia or industry. Pay attention to them.

Q: What would you look for if you were in the position to hire a Biophysics alumnus?

A: I’d be most interested in someone who can connect what they’re doing to the big picture. I love your project about metalloenzymes or understanding how your brain changes during the learning process, but why does it matter? Having the ability to understand how your study fits into a larger frame of reference suggests you can adapt your skills to anywhere.

Q: How do you continue learning and growing as a professional? What are some of your habits aside from reading/listening?

A: I like to ask A LOT of questions and remind myself that I don't know what I don't know. The majority of things I learn today are the result of me understanding when I'm making assumptions. Taking a step back, questioning those assumptions, and asking the person on the floor to start from the beginning often does wonders.

Seminar Series

Our Fall 2022 Biophysics Graduate Seminar Series takes place virtually most Fridays throughout the semester, typically from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. For details on joining these virtual events, please visit the Biophysics Events page.

Department News

Welcome

• Jennifer Gavina (Research Technologist I, Zielonka Lab)
• Francesca Marassi, PhD (Department Chair)
• Kyungsoo Shin, PhD (Assistant Professor)
• Gopinath Tata, PhD (Assistant Professor)
• Christine Zeller, MA (Department Administrator)

Farewell

• Linda Skeris (Department Administrator)

Congratulations

• Samuel Bobholz successfully defended his dissertation, titled “Radio-Pathomic Mapping and Validation of Glioma Pathology Using Autopsy Tissue Samples as Ground Truth,” for his PhD (advisor: Peter LaViolette).
• Samuel Bobholz received the Graduate School Association Awards Committee's Paper of the Season award for his paper, titled “Radio-Pathomic Maps of Cell Density Identify Brain Tumor Invasion beyond Traditional MRI-Defined Margins.”
• Neil Hogg was inducted into the MCW Society of Teaching Scholars.
• Roger Johnson published an article in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, an article in American Heart Journal Plus, and an article in PLOS Computational Biology.
• Roger Johnson is an inventor of US Patent 11,327,004, “Live-Cell Computed Tomography [System],” and US Patent 11,315,292, "Live-Cell Computed Tomography [Method]."
• Candice Klug was preselected as the 2023–2024 Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) fellow.
• Balaraman Kalyanaraman published an article in Redox Biology.
• Katie Schultz and Candice Klug published a chapter in Lipopolysaccharide Transport – Methods and Protocols, which is part of the book series Methods in Molecular Biology.
• Karol Subczynski published an article and a review in Membranes.
• Jia-Qing "Tony" Tong successfully defended his dissertation, titled "An embodiment account of event concept representation in the brain," for his PhD (advisor: Jeffrey R. Binder).
• Jia-Qing "Tony" Tong published an article in The Journal of  Neuroscience.
• Jacek Zielonka published an article in Chest Journal.
• Jacek Zielonka and Balaraman Kalyanaraman published an article in Frontiers in Chemistry.

Years of Service

Congratulations to Candice Klug on her 20 years of service to MCW! Thank you, Candice, for your commitment and hard work. 

Outstanding Graduate School Educators

Outstanding Graduate School Educator Pins are awarded annually to honor faculty who have made a significant contribution to graduate education. This year, pins were awarded to the following Biophysics graduate faculty. Thank you for your dedication to our students!

• Jeffrey Binder
• Matthew Budde
• L. Tugan Muftuler
• Kathleen Schmainda

Recipe

Dark Chocolate Halloween Cookies

Makes ~24 cookies

Recipe by Simply Happy Foodie

Directions

Note: Use a stand mixer for this recipe as the dough is very thick.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars.
3. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder, if using. Mix well.
5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well.
6. Mix in the dark chocolate chips.
7. Gently mix in the M&M's, so they don't break.
8. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
9. Scoop two-tablespoon balls of dough onto the cookie sheets. Don't press them down. Make three rows of four on each sheet.
10. If needed, gently press extra M&M's into the cookies before baking so the bright orange candies show.
11. Bake for 8–10 minutes, or until the cookies are done/firm around the edges when pressed. They will still be soft in the middle and just a little puffed up.
12. Cool cookies on the sheets for five minutes, and then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Biophysics News is a quarterly MCW departmental newsletter aimed at enhancing departmental engagement through information and good news sharing. Do you have information you’d like to share—news, a photo, a recipe? Send it to Lydia.

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