Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

Jacek Koziel, Professor Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Quantification of emissions of volatile organic compounds, odor, NH3, H2S, and particulate matter from livestock operations, chemical and sensory analysis of odors from confined animal feeding operations using solid phase microextraction, multidimensional gas chromatography, mass spectromety, and olfactometry (SPME, GC, MS, O); development and testing of odor control technologies; environmental analysis; biotechnology; plant-aphid-insect interactions, human breath and oral malodor, polyphenolic compounds in grapes and wines.

Animal Science

Stephanie Hansen, Professor, Department of Animal Science
Website: https://www.ans.iastate.edu/hansen-ruminant-nutrition-lab
My research focuses on molecular mineral metabolism in domestic livestock and issues related to sulfur toxicity in cattle.

Aileen Keating, Professor and Director of Graduate Education for Toxicology, Department of Animal Science
Website: https://faculty.sites.iastate.edu/akeating/
Reproductive physiology. My research focuses on how environmental chemicals affect ovarian physiology and function. Specifically, (1) investigating the mechanisms by which ovotoxic chemicals destroy follicles, (2) examining how the ovary metabolizes these chemicals, and (3) identifying therapeutic approaches to protect the ovary from such exposures.

Stephan Schmitz-Esser, Associate Professor, Department of Animal Science
Website: https://faculty.sites.iastate.edu/sse/
Metagenomics. Area of interest is the interaction of eukaryotes and bacteria. These interactions have spanned model eukaryote and bacterial symbiont systems to microbiomes of farm animals. For understanding the genetic mechanisms underlying these interactions, genetics and genomics are key technologies I am using in my laboratory. We use various sequencing approaches as a hypothesis-generating tools and apply a variety of molecular genetics and molecular microbiological approaches to test these hypotheses.

Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology

Marit Nilsen-Hamilton, Professor, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow, Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
Regulation of gene expression by growth factors in animal cells, Imaging of gene expression in vivo, Applications of aptamers to medical technology

Baoyu (Stone) Chen, Assistant Professor, Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
My broad research interests are to understand the fundamental mechanisms of cell morphogenesis and migration, with a specific focus on how these processes are regulated by interactions between surface receptors and the actin cytoskeleton.

Walter Moss, Assistant Professor, Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
Website: http://www.mosslab.org/
Noncoding RNA discovery; RNA structure and function

Julien Roche, Assistant Professor, Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
Website: https://www.rochelab.org/
The research projects in my group are focused on the study of protein folding, design and evolution using solution Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy and a variety of complementary biophysical methods. 

Eric S. Underbakke, Assistant Professor, Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology
Website: https://www.underbakkelab.org/
We study the architecture and assembly of scaffolded signaling complexes.

Biomedical Sciences

Josh Beck, Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences

Chandrashekhar (Chandru) Charavaryamath, Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences.
Focused on understanding swine barn workers lung inflammation (using animal models). Occupational toxicology/inhalational toxicology and bacterial toxin research. Website at ISU in development but you can look here for previous institutional information:

Michael Cho, Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
The primary focus of my laboratory is development of a vaccine against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1), the virus that causes AIDS. In connection with this research, we characterize biochemical and immunological properties of viral envelope glycoprotein, develop and evaluate novel vaccine vectors, and examine virus-host interactions at various levels.

M. Heather Greenlee, Professor and Director of Graduate Education for Biomedical Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences
In my lab we study changes in retinal function and morphology to understand the pathogenesis of and develop diagnostic approaches for protein misfolding diseases. Currently we are working with several prion diseases and a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease.

Richard Martin, Distinguished Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
My research activity stems from an interest in the electrical properties of cells and their responses to drugs. I have developed the Ascaris suum, Oesophagostomum dentatum & Schistosoma mansoni preparations for electrophysiological recording and the examination of the mode of action of anthelmintics which exert their effects on membrane ion-channels.

Jonathan Mochel, Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
My research, which falls under the scope of the One Health initiative, pertains to the analysis of clinical data obtained from spontaneous animal models of human diseases to bridge the knowledge gap between experimental (i.e rodent) models and patients.

Alan Robertson, Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Nematode ion channels as anti-parasitic drug targets. Electrophysiology of ligand- and voltage-gated ion channels in nematode parasites and C. elegans. Identifying anti-nematodal modes of action and mechanisms of resistance to anthelmintics. Modulation of ionotropic acetylcholine receptors at the nematode neuromuscular junction. Characterization of novel ion channels and validation as potential drug targets.

Ravindra Singh, Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Singh group works on the interface of fundamental and translational biology. General interest of his group has been to understand the mechanism of alternative splicing, a vital process that increases the coding potential of genome in all higher eukaryotes. Alternative splicing is also associated with a growing number of diseases including neurological and neuromuscular disorders, cardiovascular disorders and cancer. Particular focus of his group has been to understand the molecular basis of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a debilitating genetic disease of infants and children. His award-winning discovery relates to finding a unique regulatory element located within the non-coding region (or intron) of Survival Motor Neuron (SMN) gene. He has termed this novel regulatory element as Intronic Splicing Silencer N1, which is abbreviated as ISS-N1. Currently, his group is working on the mechanistic details of how ISS-N1 could be used as a therapeutic target. His other interests include RNA-protein interactions and isolation of RNA aptamers as detection and diagnostic tools.

Thimmasettapp Thippeswamy, Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Epileptogenic events in mouse model of epilepsy. Lithium chloride regulation. Behavioral and electroencephalographic studies.

Chemical and Biological Engineering

Laura Jarboe, Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Website: https://jarboe.cbe.iastate.edu/
Transcriptomic analysis in Escherichia coli; Detoxification of pyrolytic Sugar Syrup for Direct Fermentation of Levoglucosan to Ethanol, Biocatalyst inhibition by carboxylic acids.

Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology

Boris Jovanovic, Assistant Professor, Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology
Dr Jovanovic's main research focus is in the area of Nanotoxicology and Aquatic Ecotoxicology. Primarily he is interested in non-soluble suspended materials of anthropogenic origin - mainly nanoparticles and microplastics and their effects on the environment. He conducts his research in both freshwater and marine environment.

Food Sciences and Human Nutrition

Ruth MacDonald, Professor, FSHN Department Chair, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Identifying factors in foods that reduce the incidence or progression of cancer.

Aubrey Mendonca, Associate Professor, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Microbial food safety and quality; survival, injury and destruction of foodborne pathogens as influenced by chemical, heat, or irradiation treatment of foods; stress adaptation in foodborne pathogens; detection of pathogens sublethally injured by food processing methods.

Manju Reddy, Professor, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Role of iron in Parkinson's and cardiovascular disease. Cell culture model to assess food iron bioavailablity fo identifying novel enhancing factors and developing new food fortification strategies to reduce the prevalence of anemia.

Kevin Schalinske, Professor, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Nutritional and hormonal regulation of folate/ methyl group metabolism relevant to health and disease. Role of dietary components that affect iron metabolism on preventing these diseases.

Elizabeth McNeill, Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Website: https://emcneillbolstad.wixsite.com/mcneilllab
The goal of my research is to elucidate the function of miRNAs in development, and to understand their contribution to certain human disease conditions. 

Peter Clark, Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
The impact of nutrition and physical activity status on neural plasticity, mood, and cognitive performance. Brain metabolic adaptations to exercise that buffer the harmful consequences of stress. The effects of acute stress on diet choice and willingness to engage in physical activity. The functions of exercise-enhanced adult hippocampus neurogenesis

Genetics Development and Cell Biology

Jo Anne Powell-Coffman, Professor and Associate Dean for Research in CALS, Genetics, Development and Cell Biology
The Powell-Coffman Lab employs a powerful genetic model system, the nematode C. elegans, to study how animals sense and adapt to their environment. Currently, the labs research is focused on two biomedically important transcription factors: the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and the hypoxia- inducible factor (HIF).

Hua Bai, Assistant Professor, Genetics, Development and Cell Biology
Website: https://faculty.sites.iastate.edu/hbai/
The Bai lab is interested in one of the most fascinating, yet poorly understood phenomena in biology: How animals age? 

Raquel Espin Palazon, Assistant Professor, Genetics, Development and Cell Biology
Our goal is to improve human health by identifying targets and novel therapies that will advance regenerative medicine to treat blood disorders such as myelodysplasia and leukemia.

Natural Resource Ecology and Management

Steven Bradbury, Professor, Natural Resource Ecology and Management
Environmental Toxicology, Pesticide Risk Assessment, Environmental Policy. Dr. Bradbury is contributing to research and extension in University-wide toxicology, environmental, agriculture and natural resource science and policy programs. Areas of emphasis include pesticide resistance management, pollination services, monarch butterfly conservation and sustainable agriculture, including the role of integrated pest management within nested layers of governance. Steve's areas of teaching include toxicology, pesticide and chemical risk assessment and related policy topics.

Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology

Gary Munkvold, Professor and Seed Science Endowed Chair, Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology
My research program has two foci: diseases that affect the production and utilization of seeds; and epidemiology and management of mycotoxigenic fungi in corn.

Silvina Arias, Assistant Professor, Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology

Keri Carstens, Collaborator Assistant Professor, Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology. Environmental Safety Assessment Lead at Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc.
Dr. Keri Carstens is Senior Manager, Integrated Product Research & Stewardship for DuPont Pioneer's Seed Treatment Enterprise, where she coordinates stewardship assessments and integrated product development testing of new seed treatment active ingredients.

Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine

Qijing Zhang, BVsc, Professor and Frank Ramsey Endowed Chair, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, College of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine
Food safety; antibiotic resistance; bacterial genetics; pathogen-host interactions; prevention and control of infectious diseases. Research in our laboratory focuses on foodborne human pathogen, Campylobacter jejuni. We are using fundamental and contemporary approaches to i) investigate the ecology of Campylobacter in animal reservoirs, ii) examine the molecular mechanisms associated with the development and persistence of antibiotic resistance in Campylobacter and the effect of antibiotic resistance on Campylobacter pathogenesis, iii) define the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in Campylobacter-host interactions, and iv) develop effective means for the control of Campylobacter infections.