Dr. Esteban Fernandez-Juricic, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences

What birds see, and what they make out of it?

How perception shapes behavior is a fundamental question given the variability in the sensory systems of vertebrates living in different environmental conditions. Among vertebrates, birds can be considered “visual machines”. Birds have lateral vision besides binocular vision and they can see more colors and process images faster than humans can. I will explain how the configuration of the avian visual system (e.g., visual acuity, color vision, etc.) influences their anti-predator behavior. This research has implications for understanding how predators and prey coevolved sensory adaptations to enhance detection. Additionally, this knowledge can be applied in the development of novel methods to attract and repel birds, which has practical implications for reducing the frequency of collisions between birds and airplanes (e.g., bird-strikes).

Bio: Dr. Fernández-Juricic got his undergraduate degree at Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina. He received his Ph.D. in animal ecology at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain. He was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Oxford (United Kingdom), and the University of Minnesota (USA). Before his current position, he was an Assistant Professor at California State University Long Beach. He has published over 100 scientific papers and co-authored a book (A Primer of Conservation Behavior). He has been associate editor of the Journal of Applied Ecology and Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, and an editor of Animal Behaviour. His research interests include behavioral ecology, sensory ecology, and conservation biology.

Through photosynthesis, plants, algae and bacteria convert sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into chemical energy stored in the membrane of special cells, a process similar to charging a battery, said William A. Cramer, the Henry Koffler Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences and research team leader.

“The key to photosynthesis is the movement of electrical charge from a positive to a negative pole, just as in a battery,” Cramer said. “In this case, the electrical charge is in the form of electrons and protons passed along by amino acids and water molecules in a ‘bucket brigade’ through the cellular membrane. We identified and found the structure and orientation of the individual bucket carriers.”

His team looked at the pathway through the cytochrome complex, a group of eight proteins responsible for transporting two-thirds of the protons that energize the plant cell “battery.” The proteins are made up of different sequences of amino acids, including those that participate in the “bucket brigade” of proton transfer.

Cramer credits S. Saif Hasan, a graduate student in his research group who will receive his doctoral degree in May, with leading the project.

The team used X-ray crystallography to describe the molecular structure of the cytochrome complex isolated from cyanobacteria, the most primitive photosynthetic organism.

A paper detailing the National Institutes of Health-funded work was published in theProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Although a mechanism for energy storage involving transfer of protons across biological membranes was the subject of the 1978 Nobel Prize in chemistry and advances had been made in its understanding, the amino acids involved and how they are connected for proton transfer in the photosynthetic protein complex was unknown, Cramer said.

In addition to Cramer and Hasan, team members include E. Yamashita of the Institute for Protein Chemistry in Osaka, Japan, and D. Baniulis of the Lithuanian Research Institute for Agriculture and Forestry.

Understanding details of the process of photosynthesis aids work toward the development of artificial photosynthesis, which could allow for the conversion of solar energy into alternative environmentally friendly sources of biofuels.

The findings also contribute to the understanding of membrane proteins, which regulate all traffic into and out of the cell and are important for drug delivery and structural biology.

Membrane proteins are fat-soluble, which makes them especially difficult to isolate and crystallize for examination, Cramer said.

“Membrane proteins dissolve only in fat, not water, and if you pull them out of the cell membrane they tend to congeal like grease on a frying pan dipped in cold water,” he said. “Scientists have only been able to determine the structure of relatively few of this group of proteins, and we have much more to learn.”

Writer: Elizabeth Gardner, 765-494-2081, ekgardner@purdue.edu

Source: William Cramer, 765-494-4956, waclab@purdue.edu

Related website:
Cramer research group

Top row (from left to right): Katey Einterz-Owen, Jennifer Ruby, Katerina Damjanoska, Richard Kuhn, Kathy Spindler, Julie Overbeck
Bottom row (from left to right): Bruce Kidd, Mark Effron, Herman Houin, Joe Ruhl

The Biological Sciences Alumni Advisory Committee met for the spring meeting April 19-20 to discuss “Enhancing the Value of a Biology Degree” which centered around both undergraduate and graduate student issues.  Thank you to our members for your loyalty and dedication!

BioDefense

Are we prepared for a biological weapons attack?   How does a biological weapon differ from other weapons of mass destruction?   In what form would a potential attack appear?   What would be the objective of a biological-weapon attack?   Is preparation mainly a scientific or a societal issue?   What can we do to prevent and prepare for a biological-weapon attack?   The speaker will share his experience of traveling to inspect the formerly secret virus laboratory, Vector, in Siberia.

Not that slimy at all – Daniel Suter’s daughter Leandra holding a sea slug

Large sea slugs as well as their large neurons shown live under the microscope, Zebrafish embryos, and an instructional video were part of the Suter lab outreach activity during the 2013 Purdue Spring Fest, April 13-14. The lab uses advanced microscopy techniques to investigate biochemical and biomechanical signals that regulate directional neuronal growth during normal nervous system development as well as during regeneration. Research in the Suter lab is currently supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.

This is the fifth time the Suter lab participated in the Spring Fest activities organized by the Department of Biological Sciences. Other demonstrations included chick embryos by the Fekete lab, electrocardiogram measurements by Dr. Walls as well as a marine animal exhibit by Dr. Gedney.

Dr. Daisuke Kihara, Associate Professor of both Biological Sciences and Computer Science has been named University Faculty Scholars from the College of Science for 2013.

The University Faculty Scholar designation is to recognize faculty members who hold the rank of tenured associate professor or professors who have been in the rank for no more than five years at the time of the designation.  The term of appointment is five years.  University Faculty Scholars receive a discretionary allocation in accordance with University policy. These appointments will be effective July 1, 2013.

Dr. Michael Rossmann and Dr. Hao Wu

Dr. Hao Wu PhD ’92 is being honored as the 2013 Distinguished Science Alumni award for Biological Sciences on Friday, April 12th.  Dr. Wu is at the Harvard Medical School and became the Springer Family Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology. Her research has made important contributions to elucidating the molecular mechanism of immune receptor signal transduction. Her pursuit of the macromolecular interactions in these pathways revealed the formation of high-order signaling assemblies, or “signalosomes”, which are critical for caspase activation, kinase auto-phosphorylation and other oligomerization-driven processes.  While at Purdue, she was a student of Professor Michael Rossman who will also be attending the award ceremony with Dr. Wu.  She has also been elected a Fellow of American Association for the Advancement of Science.

We are thrilled to be honoring Dr. Wu for her wonderful achievements in the world of Science—congratulations!

Annwesa’s major advisor is Dr. Nancy Pelaez.

Cory’s major advisor is Dr. Daniel Suter.

Congratulations to Annwesa Dasgupta and Cory Weaver,  graduate students in the Department of Biological Sciences, who were selected to receive the Committee for the Education of Teaching Assistants (CETA) Teaching Award.

The CETA award is presented by the Committee for the Education of Teaching Assistants (CETA), and the Office of the Provost. Students selected for this award must have demonstrated excellence in teaching and mentoring at the undergraduate and/or graduate level. In addition, recipients should have accomplishments in service/outreach and scholarly publications.

Winners will be presented this award on April 23^rd 2013 at the annual banquet for the Celebration of Graduate Student Teaching Excellence and each will receive an engraved plaque in recognition of their excellence in teaching.

(From left) Anna McCullough, Kristin Zabrecky and Jennifer Franks — all Biological Sciences students — swept the Life Science category at the 2013 Undergradute Research Poster Symposium.

In an event it originated more than a decade ago, the College of Science fared well at the 2013 Undergraduate Research Poster Symposium March 26.

With more than 140 large posters on display in the Purdue Memorial Union ballrooms, students from the College of Science as well as undergrads from Engineering, Liberal Arts, Agriculture and Technology interacted with judges throughout the day. The young scholars were critiqued on their research and how they explained their findings. The posters were tacked on large boards and each student was eager to discuss their research.

Dennis Minchella, the College of Science’s Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, was impressed overall with the 31 submissions from Science, and as a biologist, he was especially thrilled to see three Biological Sciences students sweep the event’s Life Science awards: Kristin Zabrecky placed first for her work in “Age-Related Changes in GAD 65/67 in the Dorsal and Ventral Lateral Lemniscus” while Anna McCulllough won second and Jennifer Franks got third for their projects on “Age-Related Changes in Neuronal Expression of GAD 65/67 in the Rat Inferior Colliculus” and “Mutations Changing Transcriptional Control of the proU Transport Operon in Salmonella typhimurium.”

Winners received up to $200 with their award certificates.

Other College of Science winners included:

• Samuel Childs, Honors College Physical Science Award for “An Assessment of Climate Change Impacts on the USA Corn Belt Region”
• Chris Cole and Daniel Roberts, Honors College Mathematical Science Award for “A Bandwidth-Efficient Reliable Broadcast Algorithm”
• Tyler Heckstall, Brandon Owen and Victoria Tyler, Physical Science Second Place for “Public Awareness of Severe Weather Alerts”
• Samuel Egle, Mathematics/Computational Science Award for “Computational Studies of Solvation Shell Influence on Heme Ruffling in Nitrophorin 4″
• Britney Harris, College of Science Dean’s Choice Award for “The Therapeutic Effects of 15-Methylene-Eburnamonine on Cancer Stem Cells in Breast to Brain Tumors”
• Eric Boone, College of Science Students’ Choice Award for “Aircraft-based Measurements of Atmospheric Aerosol Size Distributions and Transport near Barrow, Alaska in Spring 2012”

This article was originally published on Purdue’s College of Science webpage.