As teachers and scientists, the faculty of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology subscribe to the following missions:

• Provide up-to-date and high-quality classroom and laboratory instruction in the discipline of biochemistry and molecular biology to students at the University.
• Conduct and publish research or other scholarship in areas that advance knowledge within the discipline, contribute to improving the human condition, or contribute to teaching.
• Train students and post-doctoral fellows in biochemical research.
• Encourage and enhance the professional development of faculty colleagues, especially junior faculty.
• Serve as a resource for information on biochemistry and molecular biology for the University and the community at large.
• Contribute to the orderly and smooth functioning of the University by serving on committees, and participating in advising, policy-making and administrative activities.
• Serve as role models for students, fellows, staff and colleagues with regard to integrity, fairness, collegiality, and civility.
• Perform service that advances and enhances the discipline of biochemistry and molecular biology.
• Advocate the benefits of science and the scientific method to society.
• Speak out when ideals of honesty and integrity within the academic workplace are violated.

Student Support

Every applicant will be considered for IPIBS Fellowship support. Support after the first 23 months is the responsibility of the individual student's dissertation advisor. Students are also encouraged to seek extramural support.

Guidance For The Student

The Director of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program will serve as the first year advisor to all incoming graduate students until a disserta­tion advisor is selected. During the first year, all students will meet with all available faculty to discuss research projects. After completion of lab rotations and before beginning the second year, the student will select a preceptor, subject to the approval of the Graduate Executive Committee and the Chairman.

After a preceptor is approved, the preceptor must initial the student's registration form each semester and the Director of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program must sign it.

Drop/add of courses must be approved by the student's advisor and the Direc­tor of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program in consultation with the instructor.

At the end of the first year, a Dissertation Committee will be formed which will serve as the Reading Committee and Examining Committee. This Committee will consist of the preceptor, three other faculty of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (at least three of the Committee members must be primary faculty in the Department), and one member outside of the Department, and must be approved by the Graduate Executive Committee.

Each student must meet regularly with his/her Dissertation Committee. There must be at least one formal meeting per year. This meeting may occur immediately after the student presents his or her annual research conference. After each meeting, the advisor will complete the "Student Meeting Form" and provide copies to the Committee members, the student and the Director of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program. If deficiencies are identified at the annual meeting, a second meeting of the student and committee will be held that year to determine whether the student has remediated the deficiencies. The first formal meeting of a Ph.D. student with the committee will probably be to present the Preliminary Proposal.

Students who do not have at least one committee meeting per year (every 12 months) will be given an incomplete in Research. This will become an F if the deficiency is not made up within one semester.

Program Admission Procedure

Criteria and Mechanism for Selection

In addition to the Graduate School requirements, the following criteria will be used as the basis for formal acceptance of students to the Ph.D. program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Acceptance of each student requires approval unanimously by the Graduate Executive Committee or by a majority of the Graduate Committee.

1. Transcript of course work. A two-semester course in organic chemistry is required.

2. Grade point average: The Department requires an overall 3.0 grade point average (4.0 system) with an average of 3.0 in science courses.

3. The Graduate Record Examination general test.

4. At least two letters of recommendation, preferably from faculty in biology and/or chemistry.

5. A personal or phone interview with members of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is encouraged for all applicants.

6. A personal statement of interest.

Students entering the Ph.D. program should have taken two semesters of organic chemistry and earned satisfactory grades.

The courses required for the Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, are the core IPIBS requirement, and a minimum of 24 credit hours of classroom instruction (not including research, rotations or seminars), of which 17 credit hours must be in BIOC courses. The Biochemistry and Molecular Biology courses that can be used to satisfy these requirements are listed below.

Fall Semester:

• Biochemistry I 545/645 (3/4) (IPIBS-required course)
• Biochemical & Mol Biol Methods 611 (3) (IPIBS requires a departmental Methods course)
• Molecular Biology 668 (4)
• Advanced Eukaryotic Genetics 641 (4)
• Molecular Endocrinology 660 (2)
• Special Topics in Biochemistry 603 (1-3)

Spring Semester:

• Cell Biology 667 (3) (IPIBS -required course)
• Biochemistry II 547/647 (3/4) (fulfills the IPIBS elective requirement)
• Protein Structure and Function 670 (4)
• Special Topics in Biochemistry 603 (1-3)
• Ethics 603-03 (1)
• Advanced Techniques in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 603 (2)
• Biomolecular Interactions 603-04 (2)
• Biochemistry of Cancer 675 (4) (offered in alternate years)
• Molecular Toxicology 661 (3)

The selection of courses to complete the credit requirements should be made in consultation with the student's Dissertation Committee and require approval of the Graduate Executive Committee. Course descriptions may be found in the current edition of the Graduate Bulletin.

In addition, Biochemistry 606 (Seminar) is required each year of residence. In the first year, students are required to attend (but not present at) a seminar. After the first year, students will present seminars, with a total of three seminar presentations required. The first two seminars will be graded. Only one seminar may be on a topic related to the student's research. Attendance is required at all Biochemistry Seminars and Research Conferences.

All classes should be taken before the end of the student's second year and must be taken before the student enters candidacy. For students with previous graduate training, documented graduate level courses may be accepted to fulfill credit requirements. This requires approval by the Graduate Executive Committee when the student is admitted.

All Ph.D. students are required to assist in teaching 8-10 hours per week for one semester during their 2nd or 3rd years. The 2nd year is preferable. This requirement is normally met by serving as a teaching assistant in Biochemistry I or II.

Students are expected to maintain a B (3.0) average in their course work. A student who fails to maintain a B average will be placed on academic probation and will be subject to dismissal from the program.

Examinations and Proposal

(If a mentor ascertains that the following schedule is not in the best interest of a student, the mentor may petition, in writing, the Graduate Executive Committee for a change in the schedule.)

Ph.D. Qualifying Exam (Exam I). The purpose of this exam is to evaluate the student's ability to interpret literature, independently develop a research plan, integrate material from the graduate curriculum, write clearly, organize a proposal, and orally defend their ideas. It will help the student to develop the tools necessary for preparation and defense of their doctoral dissertations. Successful completion of Exam I will be a strong indicator for successful completion of the Ph.D. Details about the format for exam I can be found in appendix A.

Exam I will usually be taken in May - June of the second year in the Ph.D. program.  Students must have completed their core graduate courses, have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater, and selected a mentor approved by the Graduate Executive Committee to be eligible for Exam I. Successful completion of this exam will allow the student to enter Ph.D. candidacy.

Preliminary Dissertation Proposal. The purpose of this preliminary proposal is to allow the Dissertation Committee to assess whether the proposed project is appropriate for Ph.D. research and whether the student is prepared to develop a written proposal for oral examination. The student will meet with his/her Ph.D. Committee to discuss the student's academic progress, get advice on electives and discuss the research project during the third quarter of the second year. The student will provide the Committee with a 1 to 2-page summary of research proposed for the Ph.D. dissertation one week prior to this meeting. The write-up may be in outline format and must include a hypothesis, a list of the specific aims, the general methodology that will be used, and the experiments that will be performed for the next few months in preparation of the formal research proposal. The candidate will give a 15-30 minute oral presentation to the Committee emphasizing the hypothesis, specific aims and feasibility of the proposed project and demonstrating knowledge of the literature. The completed “Student Meeting Form" will indicate whether or not an additional meeting is required.

Written Dissertation Proposal and Oral Examination (Exam II) - The purpose of this written proposal is for the Dissertation Committee to examine the student's ability to develop and defend a research project. A formal written proposal of the student's dissertation work and oral defense should be completed before December of the student's third year. The proposal, typed single-spaced, will not exceed one page for hypothesis and specific aims, two pages for background (significance), three pages of preliminary results, and three pages for proposed experimental plans. The proposal will also include a listing of major equipment required, a proposed time frame for the conduct of experiments, and literature citations. See instructions for NIH proposal Guidelines (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/section_1.html#b_general). The student is responsible for the literature search, specific experimental design and preparation of the proposal. Students may format the dissertation proposal in the form of a thesis, and submit it to the graduate school for an M.S. degree. In this case the oral presentation and examination will serve as the M.S. thesis defense. Committee members must receive the proposal two weeks prior to the date of the oral examination. During the oral examination, the student will present a formal research conference open to the department. This will be followed by an oral defense with the student's Committee. The dissertation advisor should coordinate the proposal process and officiate at this examination, but should not dominate the questioning. A written report stating the outcome of the examination and signed by each examiner will become a part of the student's record. Failure to perform at an adequate level will result in the student being placed in Master's degree candidacy and may result in their being dismissed from the graduate program.

Dissertation and Defense

The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology defines a dissertation as a complete and coherent body of work resulting in a significant, substantial, and novel contribution to the field of biochemistry and molecular biology. It is expected that the work will result in first author peer-reviewed publications.  At a minimum, one peer-reviewed, first author publication should result from a student's dissertation.   The absence of such a publication will require a specific review by the Dissertation Committee addressing why a publication has not resulted from the work and confirming that the dissertation indeed represents a significant advance of the field. This review must be approved by the Chair of the Department in consultation with the Graduate Executive Committee.

Ph.D. students may choose between a traditional dissertation format or one consisting of manuscript(s) ready for submission for publication in a refereed journal. In addition to the manuscript(s), the latter format must contain an introduction that includes a literature review and an overall discussion tying the manuscripts together. The option of a traditional dissertation as opposed to the manuscript form needs the approval of the student's advisor. The number of manuscripts required and their quality will be left to the judgment of the Dissertation Committee. The Dissertation Committee must receive a completed copy of the dissertation at least two weeks prior to the date scheduled for the defense and shall complete the review of the dissertation at least one week before the oral defense. Consult the current "Standards for the Preparation of Theses and Dissertations," published by the Graduate School. A copy is available in the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Departmental Office.

Change in Guidelines

When requirements change, a student has the option of satisfying either the requirements in effect when he/she entered the program or the current requirements.

Kenneth S. Ramos, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair

Mark D. Brennan, Ph.D.
Professor

Barbara J. Clark, Ph.D.
Associate Professor

William L. Dean, Ph.D.
Professor

Jaydev N. Dholakia, Ph.D.
Associate Professor

Steven R. Ellis, Ph.D.
Professor

Richard C. Feldhoff, Ph.D.
Professor

Pamela W. Feldhoff, Ph.D.
Associate Professor

Thomas E. Geoghegan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor

Robert D. Gray, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus

Ronald G. Gregg, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Associate Professor of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences

Chuan Hu, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Carolyn M. Klinge, Ph.D.
Professor

Yong Li, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Nancy C. Martin, Ph.D.
Professor

Amy Massey, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Shin Murakami, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Russell A. Prough, Ph.D.
Professor

Vilius Stribinskis, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Eugenia Wang, Ph.D.
Professor

Stephanie J Webb, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

James L. Wittliff, Ph.D.
Professor

Joint Faculty

Paula J. Bates, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Aruni Bhatnagar, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine

Douglas Borchman, Ph.D.
Professor of Opthalmology & Visual Sciences
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Jason Chesney, Ph.D., M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Douglas S. Darling, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Biological & Biophysical Sciences
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

H. Leighton Grimes, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Marcia M. Jumblatt, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Opthalmology & Visual Sciences
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Sham Kakar, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine.

Jon B. Klein, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Andrew N. Lane, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Endowed Chair in Biochemistry and Structural Biology

Herbert A. Lassiter, Ph.D., M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Mark Linder, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Pathology
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Kenneth R. McLeish, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Donald H. Miller, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
Director of James Graham Brown Cancer Center

Robert A. Mitchell, Ph.D.
Professor of Medecine
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
James Graham Brown Cancer Center

Madhavi Rane, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry

C.V. Rao, Ph.D.
Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Greg Rempala, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Mathamatics
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

John O. Trent, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Roland Valdes Jr., Ph.D.
Professor of Pathology
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Brian W. Wattenberg, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
James Graham Brown Cancer Center

Stephen J. Winters, M.D.
Professor of Medicine

William W. Young, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor of Biological & Biophysical Sciences
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology