College of Arts & Sciences Biology

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Research

Research in our department is organized primarily into three areas:

  • Evolutionary and Ecological Genetics and Informatics
  • Integrative Stress Physiology
  • Conservation Biology

Each of these programs includes faculty active in the research area listed. Individual faculty members have research labs with specialized equipment supporting their research programs.

This year, our building will be undergoing a major renovation to create two state-of-the-art teaching laboratories as well as several other newly-created research facilities with specific research foci:

  • Shared Genomics Facility
  • Shared Molecular Biology Facility
  • Shared Ecology and Conservation Facility
  • Shared Proteomics/Neurobiology Facility
  • Shared Collections Facility

Along with these new shared facilities, the department recently received a Major Research Instrumentation grant from the National Science Foundation that will equip the Genomics Facility with over $300,000 of state-of-the-art genetic instrumentation.

Additionally, we maintain several research collaborations with the USD School of Medicine and frequently has access to additional instrumentation (SEM, confocal microscope, etc.).

Seminar Series

Our department hosts a weekly seminar for researchers, both within the department and from across the country, to present results on their latest research. See a list of this semester's invited guests.

Affiliated Research Centers

  • Great Plains Center for Conservation Genetics-promotes research, education and public awareness of the conservation efforts and unique natural biota of the Great Plains, which has suffered from habitat loss and conversion on a massive scale.
  • Missouri River Institute-develops and promotes research, education and public awareness related to the natural and cultural resources of the Missouri River basin. The institute's work is crucial, as the Missouri River system faces increasing demand on its resources.
  • Neuroscience Group-promotes research of motor control, learning and memory, cellular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity, functional recovery from stroke, neural control of respiration, computational neuroscience and neuroendocrine control of behavior.

Opportunities

flower Our faculty conduct research on both Hawaiian and Californian island flora species.