News

Dr. Paul Gignac’s new paper in Scientific Reports reveals that that cassowary casques—the bony, keratin-covered cranial ornaments of these large flightless birds—exhibit biofluorescence under ultraviolet light. Click to read more..

Congratulations to Molecular Medicine PhD candidates Garrett Hauck and Catherine (Katie) Hoover on being awarded prestigious NIH F31 fellowships! Click to read more.

Donata Vercelli, MD, Regents Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, has been selected as the honoree for the 2025 College of Medicine – Tucson Founders Day Lecture. Established to commemorate the founding of the College and to celebrate outstanding scientific achievements by faculty, Founders Day is one of the College’s most prestigious annual events. Click to read more

Donata Vercelli, MD, Regents Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, is researching why Amish experience a dramatically lower rate of allergies, aiming to uncover insights that could help protect the broader population. Click to read more

Kelvin Pond, PhD, Assistant Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, received the 2025 Project Cure CRC Young Investigator Accelerator Award from the Colorectal Cancer Alliance. The awards consists of a total grant of $188K to support his project titled, “Dissection of PI3K and MAPK Dynamics in Patient-Derived Colorectal Cancer Organoids for Accelerating Therapeutic Development.”

Curtis Thorne, PhD, Associate Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, co-founded a drug discovery company aimed at developing treatments for colorectal and other types of cancer. Click to read more

Faye McGechie, PhD, Assistant Professor (Educator Scholar Track) of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, started the Functional Anatomy and Visualization Lab Vertically Integrated Project Team. The Lab focuses on innovative ways to research and communicate complex anatomy in primate systems. They use medical and biological imaging techniques to answer questions pertaining to form, function, and evolution in living and fossil organisms. Dr. McGechie was awarded a VIP Catalyst Seed Funding Award from Research, Innovation, and Impact to support the creation of the VIP Team.

Haley O'Brien, PhD, Associate Professor (Educator Scholar Track) of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and Jared Alvarado, Funeral Director/Embalmer for the Willed Body Program, were honored at the University of Arizona Health Sciences 2025 Awards Ceremony. Dr. O'Brien received the 2025 Excellence in Access, Community and Belonging Award, celebrating her commitment to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment. Jared received the 2025 Recognizing Excellence in Professionalism Award for his outstanding dedication and service. Congratulations, Dr. O'Brien and Jared!

Congratulations to Greg Rogers, PhD, Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, on the successful renewal of his R35 award for Established Investigators! His project entitled "Characterizing the molecular mechanisms of centriole duplication and elongation" is a $3.3M 5-year award to study centriole assembly using cultured Drosophila melanogaster cells.

Congratulations to Shanna Hamilton, PhD, Assistant Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, on receiving the American Heart Association Transformation Project Award! Her project will receive $100,000 annually for three years in support of this important research. Dr. Hamilton also received a Research, Innovation, and Impact Core Facilities Pilot Program grant in the amount of $10,000. Click for more