Happy New Year! And the end of an era

This new year brought the Dyer Lab a new, yet familiar face, as Alexia joins the lab as a graduate research student. Following her tenure as an undergrad in the group, she will be continuing her work on protein-membrane interactions, examining the requisite dynamics for viral entry and propagation. 

The arrival of 2018 also marked the exit of Erin, our beloved group member-turned-postdoc, who has moved on to take a prestigious clinical chemistry fellowship at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine’s Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.  The move embraces her past clinical experience, current chemical and biophysical expertise, and love of thoroughbred horses. 

Best of luck to both of you!

Rotation Students

As the third rotation period begins, we say goodbye and good luck to Rui, who worked with Gokul on the expression of supercharged GFP. We also welcome Sara, who will spend the next five weeks working with Monica and Bryant, team energy. Glad to have you here, Sara!

Busy Weekend for the Dyer Lab

Last weekend, Monica and Bryant traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah, to help with Emory Chemistry recruiting at SACNAS. While they were there, Monica also presented her research in a talk, titled “Events in Photocatalysis: Probing the Electron Transfer Mechanism at the Quantum Dot-Mediator Interface.”

Monica presenting her recent work at SACNAS in Salt Lake City.

Meanwhile, Brooke, Morgan, and Rachel (Team Enzyme) traveled to Tucson, Arizona with Dr. Dyer to participate in the annual NIH Program Project Review. At the meeting, each presented their work during a poster session at the University of Arizona alongside collaborators from the labs of Dr. Steve Schwartz (U of AZ), Dr. Robert Callender (Albert Einstein College of Medicine), and Dr. Vern Schramm (Albert Einstein College of Medicine). 

(Left to right) Morgan, Brooke, and Rachel enjoying dinner with colleagues in collaborating labs.

In addition to the updates on the enzyme research, the group also received a private tour of the University’s Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab, where the seven 8.4 meter honeycomb glass mirrors are currently being created for the Giant Magellan Telescope in Chile.

Student Teacher

Morgan Vaughn, entering her fifth year here in the Dyer lab, has also begun teaching a section of general chemistry at Emory as part of the prestigious Dean’s Teaching Fellowship. The advanced student fellowship is a competitive award, granted to those who have an established record of outstanding teaching and aspire to pursue a career in education. Morgan’s course, CHEM 150, is also unique, as this semester is the first to fully implement a revamped chemistry curriculum, “Chemistry Unbound,” where material is presented in a more conceptual, non-traditional order, and group work and student interaction are strongly emphasized.  

In addition to completing the necessary experiments and writing of her dissertation, Morgan designs and delivers lectures, hosts office hours, and writes her own exams. After completing her Ph.D., she hopes to pursue a teaching career at a predominantly undergraduate university, where her experience at Emory will undoubtedly prove valuable.

Best of luck for a great year, Morgan!

Day One of Rotations!

The Dyer lab welcomes Alexia and Aimee for their first rotation of the semester. Both will be working on protein folding, with postdoc Erin and senior graduate student Sam as mentors. Best of luck to both of you!