Branch Activities
WELCOME QUINNIPIAC STUDENT BRANCH!
There is a new student branch of the ASM at Quinnipiac University, sponsored by Dr. Lisa Cuchara. They are working on gaining official approval as a student organization at the university, and have several great ideas for activities in the upcoming school year. They have set up a community forum on the ASM website for their members to use, and are brimming with enthusiasm. The officers of the new club got the idea of forming a student branch from attending the Regional Meeting sponsored by the CT Valley Branch back in October of 2009. We hope that other schools will follow their lead - the future of ASM is truly in the hands of these upcoming professionals.
Spring Meeting, April 18, 2012
Liise-ann Pirofski, M.D. will speak on "From Black Death to AIDS: Epidemics and their Impact on Culture" Manchester Community College
April 18, 2012 6 p.m.
Sponsored by the CT Valley Branch of the American Society of Microbiology
Spring Meeting, April 7, 2010
Spencer V. Nyholm, Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of CT was the keynote speaker at Manchester (CT) Community College, on the topic of counterillumination theory.
"Shedding Light on a Squid/Bioluminescent Bacterial Symbiosis" explored the relationship between the bobtail squid's light organ and Vibrio fischeri. The bacteria provides luciferase, which causes the squid to glow with the same intensity as moonlight, disguising it from predators lurking below. The evolution and maintenance of the symbiotic relationship between these two organisms was explored in detail.
Spring Meeting, April 29, 2009
"Emerging Infectious Agents of Environmental Import" was the topic at Manchester (CT) Community College.
Dr. Marian Johnson-Thompson, Professor Emeritus of Biology and Environmental Science at UDC discussed how environmental influences, whether natural or man-made, significantly impact the emergence and re-emergence of infectious agents. Understanding factors involved in emergence can enable individuals and communities to mitigate harmful public health threats. Some of the more prominent emerging and re-emerging diseases that occur locally, nationally and globally will be discussed.
Spring Meeting, April 2, 2008
Manchester (CT) Community College was the location for a talk by Dr. Terry C. Hazen from the Center for Environmental Biotechnology at E. O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
"New Frontiers for Environmental Biology" was the topic under discussion. Environmental biotechnology encompasses a wide range of characterization, monitoring and control or remediation technologies that are based on biological processes. Recent breakthroughs in our understanding of biogeochemical processes and genomics are leading to exciting new cost-effective ways to monitor and manipulate the enironment. State-of-the-art techniques such as enzyme probes, functional genomic microarrays, metabolomics, proteomics and quantitative PCR were covered, as well as examples from field studies and lab simulations to demonstrate how these technologies are being used.
Spring Meeting, April 18, 2007
Dr. Charles Gerba spoke at Manchester (CT) Community College on "Hygiene in the 21st Century - Do We Need It?"
Is the current use of consumer anti-microbial products really warranted? Does it result in the reduction of disease? Does the average person need new anti-microbial products? If so, which ones, and why? Does too much hygiene result in a greater risk of illness? Do we have to worry about the development of super-bugs resistant to disinfectants? A review of hygiene from the 19th to the 21st century was presented, along with the benefits.
Spring Meeting, April 27, 2006
In a season of record rainfall, we had a beautiful spring evening and a record crowd for our branch's annual meeting at the Manchester (CT) Community College's Fireside Commons.
Our speaker, Steven D. Brown, Ph.D, Director of the Clinical Microbiology Institute, began his presentation with comments about his good fortune at catching southern New England at its best. Dr. Brown had traveled all the way from Wilsonville, Oregon to speak to us on "Why Big Pharmaceutical Companies Are Leaving The Antibiotic Market And Why Small Companies Are Picking Up The Slack".
The Clinical Microbiology Institute has provided critical pre-market testing and analysis for nearly every antibiotic currently in use, and Dr. Brown's expertise gave insight into the reasoning and significance behind recent changes in antibiotic research and development, a shift from large pharma to smaller biotechs and start-ups, a change seen in our own region.
Not only is Dr. Brown an expert on antibiotic research, he also lectures at the University of Oregon on infectious disease and laboratory medicine and is a distinguished lecturer in the ASM’s Wakesman Foundation for Microbiology Lecture series. His skill as a lecturer and discussion leader was evident by the numerous questions and enthusiastic discussion that followed the presentation continuing long into the evening.
Ya' shoulda been there!
WELCOME UMASS Students!
January 2006. The Connecticut Valley Branch is happy to announce the sponsorship of a student chapter at UMASS, Amherst.
Forty microbiology graduate students at UMASS, in the fall of 2004, formed a Graduate Student Group and are now applying for recognition by the American Society of Microbiology as an official Student Chapter.
We would like to do all we can to foster the next generation of microbiologists and agreed to serve as their sponsor.
Their faculty advisor is Dr. Jim Holden (jholden@microbio.umass.edu), who is also the Graduate Program Director in the Microbiology Department. If you would like to see more, you can also check out their web site at
http://www.bio.umass.edu/micro/nusslein/MGSG/about.htm
Spring Meeting, May 4, 2005
With new leadership, the CT Valley Branch met this spring at the Library Fireside Commons of the Manchester Community College. Theodore G. Andreadis, Ph.D, Chief Medical Entomologist of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station presented a seminar encompassing virology, entomology, ecology and public health, entitled:
"West Nile Virus, a Six-Year Perspective on the Introduction and Spread of an Emerging Infectious Disease."
Dr. Andreadis presented the good news that in 2004, in the state of CT, there were no human cases nor any equine cases of West Nile encephalitis, unlike 2003, when there were 17 and 13, respectively. However, Dr. Andreadis suggested it is too soon to conclude the disease is disappearing in the northeast.
His data on 25 different species of mosquitos, some lab stocks but mostly field isolates, allowed him to distinguish between species that can maintain the virus in birds and those, so called bridge vectors, that are likely to transmit the disease to humans.
To read more about it, click here for the link to Dr. Andreadis' publication list at the CAES.
There is a new student branch of the ASM at Quinnipiac University, sponsored by Dr. Lisa Cuchara. They are working on gaining official approval as a student organization at the university, and have several great ideas for activities in the upcoming school year. They have set up a community forum on the ASM website for their members to use, and are brimming with enthusiasm. The officers of the new club got the idea of forming a student branch from attending the Regional Meeting sponsored by the CT Valley Branch back in October of 2009. We hope that other schools will follow their lead - the future of ASM is truly in the hands of these upcoming professionals.
Spring Meeting, April 18, 2012
Liise-ann Pirofski, M.D. will speak on "From Black Death to AIDS: Epidemics and their Impact on Culture" Manchester Community College
April 18, 2012 6 p.m.
Sponsored by the CT Valley Branch of the American Society of Microbiology
Spring Meeting, April 7, 2010
Spencer V. Nyholm, Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of CT was the keynote speaker at Manchester (CT) Community College, on the topic of counterillumination theory.
"Shedding Light on a Squid/Bioluminescent Bacterial Symbiosis" explored the relationship between the bobtail squid's light organ and Vibrio fischeri. The bacteria provides luciferase, which causes the squid to glow with the same intensity as moonlight, disguising it from predators lurking below. The evolution and maintenance of the symbiotic relationship between these two organisms was explored in detail.
Spring Meeting, April 29, 2009
"Emerging Infectious Agents of Environmental Import" was the topic at Manchester (CT) Community College.
Dr. Marian Johnson-Thompson, Professor Emeritus of Biology and Environmental Science at UDC discussed how environmental influences, whether natural or man-made, significantly impact the emergence and re-emergence of infectious agents. Understanding factors involved in emergence can enable individuals and communities to mitigate harmful public health threats. Some of the more prominent emerging and re-emerging diseases that occur locally, nationally and globally will be discussed.
Spring Meeting, April 2, 2008
Manchester (CT) Community College was the location for a talk by Dr. Terry C. Hazen from the Center for Environmental Biotechnology at E. O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
"New Frontiers for Environmental Biology" was the topic under discussion. Environmental biotechnology encompasses a wide range of characterization, monitoring and control or remediation technologies that are based on biological processes. Recent breakthroughs in our understanding of biogeochemical processes and genomics are leading to exciting new cost-effective ways to monitor and manipulate the enironment. State-of-the-art techniques such as enzyme probes, functional genomic microarrays, metabolomics, proteomics and quantitative PCR were covered, as well as examples from field studies and lab simulations to demonstrate how these technologies are being used.
Spring Meeting, April 18, 2007
Dr. Charles Gerba spoke at Manchester (CT) Community College on "Hygiene in the 21st Century - Do We Need It?"
Is the current use of consumer anti-microbial products really warranted? Does it result in the reduction of disease? Does the average person need new anti-microbial products? If so, which ones, and why? Does too much hygiene result in a greater risk of illness? Do we have to worry about the development of super-bugs resistant to disinfectants? A review of hygiene from the 19th to the 21st century was presented, along with the benefits.
Spring Meeting, April 27, 2006
In a season of record rainfall, we had a beautiful spring evening and a record crowd for our branch's annual meeting at the Manchester (CT) Community College's Fireside Commons.
Our speaker, Steven D. Brown, Ph.D, Director of the Clinical Microbiology Institute, began his presentation with comments about his good fortune at catching southern New England at its best. Dr. Brown had traveled all the way from Wilsonville, Oregon to speak to us on "Why Big Pharmaceutical Companies Are Leaving The Antibiotic Market And Why Small Companies Are Picking Up The Slack".
The Clinical Microbiology Institute has provided critical pre-market testing and analysis for nearly every antibiotic currently in use, and Dr. Brown's expertise gave insight into the reasoning and significance behind recent changes in antibiotic research and development, a shift from large pharma to smaller biotechs and start-ups, a change seen in our own region.
Not only is Dr. Brown an expert on antibiotic research, he also lectures at the University of Oregon on infectious disease and laboratory medicine and is a distinguished lecturer in the ASM’s Wakesman Foundation for Microbiology Lecture series. His skill as a lecturer and discussion leader was evident by the numerous questions and enthusiastic discussion that followed the presentation continuing long into the evening.
Ya' shoulda been there!
WELCOME UMASS Students!
January 2006. The Connecticut Valley Branch is happy to announce the sponsorship of a student chapter at UMASS, Amherst.
Forty microbiology graduate students at UMASS, in the fall of 2004, formed a Graduate Student Group and are now applying for recognition by the American Society of Microbiology as an official Student Chapter.
We would like to do all we can to foster the next generation of microbiologists and agreed to serve as their sponsor.
Their faculty advisor is Dr. Jim Holden (jholden@microbio.umass.edu), who is also the Graduate Program Director in the Microbiology Department. If you would like to see more, you can also check out their web site at
http://www.bio.umass.edu/micro/nusslein/MGSG/about.htm
Spring Meeting, May 4, 2005
With new leadership, the CT Valley Branch met this spring at the Library Fireside Commons of the Manchester Community College. Theodore G. Andreadis, Ph.D, Chief Medical Entomologist of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station presented a seminar encompassing virology, entomology, ecology and public health, entitled:
"West Nile Virus, a Six-Year Perspective on the Introduction and Spread of an Emerging Infectious Disease."
Dr. Andreadis presented the good news that in 2004, in the state of CT, there were no human cases nor any equine cases of West Nile encephalitis, unlike 2003, when there were 17 and 13, respectively. However, Dr. Andreadis suggested it is too soon to conclude the disease is disappearing in the northeast.
His data on 25 different species of mosquitos, some lab stocks but mostly field isolates, allowed him to distinguish between species that can maintain the virus in birds and those, so called bridge vectors, that are likely to transmit the disease to humans.
To read more about it, click here for the link to Dr. Andreadis' publication list at the CAES.
