BYU Cell Biology and Physiology, Provo, UT Videos

Wishing all of you a Happy Easter Week! “He lived, died, and lived again. Just like Jesus Christ, we can live again. #BecauseofHim we can have second chances. Hear his voice. Hear his teachings.” -Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints We hope you are able to feel the Savior’s love that he has for you! ❤️

Dr. Yorgason Lab
Faculty Friday! So exciting to see all the leaves changing and making Provo even more beautiful! Today we are happy to introduce Dr. Jordan Yorgason! The Yorgason laboratory is interested in understanding the neural correlates of reward and reinforcement learning. Using functional microscopy, electrophysiology, electrochemistry and behavioral approaches, we examine the neurobiology of reinforcement learning and drug-induced changes in neural activity in reward related brain regions. For more information visit https://cell.byu.edu/yorgason-lab

Dr. Woodbury
Happy Monday! We hope you had an uplifting and inspiring weekend. We are cheering you on extra as you are entering into the heavy weeks of midterms! Today we are happy to hightlight our amazing professor Dr. Dixon Woodburry. His "research is in cellular and molecular physiology and focuses on membrane biophysics, particularly vesicle/membrane fusion and its regulation by SNARE proteins and alcohols." For more info visit https://cell.byu.edu/woodbury-lab

Dr. Sudweek's Lab!
You made it through the first week of school! Congrats Cougars! Today we are happy to introduce Dr. Sterling Sudweeks and his Lab. This research is focused on "Characterization of ligand-gated ion channels in neurotransmission. Ligand-gated ion channels are involved in normal synaptic communication and also in pathological conditions (e.g., epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, motor disorders, and schizophrenia). They are also the pharmacological targets in many therapeutic situations (e.g., general anesthetics, sedatives, antiemetics, and some novel analgesics). These ion channels are multi-subunit protein complexes that act as neurotransmitter receptors in the central and peripheral nervous systems." For more information visit https://cell.byu.edu/sudweeks-lab #cellbiology #BYU #byucougars

Happy Faculty Friday! Congrats on making it through the week! Dr. Paul Reynolds is one of our amazing faculty that focuses his research on breathing! LAB FOCUS: 1. Developmental role of autocrine/paracrine signaling in the lung during branching morphogenesis 2. Pulmonary remodeling induced by interactions between mesenchymal/epithelial compartments 3. Mechanisms of pulmonary injury and disease related to environmental tobacco or oxidative stress For more information visit: https://cell.byu.edu/reynolds-lab

Happy Friday! What's been the best part of your week? Dr. Dario Mizrachi is excited to share about the research going on in his lab! "Our bodies are unique. Few times we stop to think how all the cells in our bodies are connected to maintain unity and function. Our lab studies the membrane proteins responsible for cell-to-cell interactions through their adhesive properties. Understanding these processes is very important to treat disease like Inflammatory Bowel Syndrome where cells in the intestine are less tightly connected. Our research has relevance to drug delivery as well." For more resources visit: https://cell.byu.edu/mizrachi-lab

Happy Friday! Dr. Jenkins and his students are studying DNA methylation as a means to determine the cells from which the DNA originated. This has many applications in diagnostics and in forensics. One example currently being developed in the Jenkins lab is a tool that uses DNA sequencing and DNA methylation analysis to determine if cell free DNA originated from sperm which has important applications in the treatment of a subset of men with severe forms of infertility. For more information visit: https://cell.byu.edu/jenkins-lab

Dr. Jonathon Hill teaches us more about the heart! "We are interested in how genes are regulated during heart formation. The heart begins as a linear tube and then loops to form the ball-like shape of the adult heart. Our lab combines bioinformatics and bench biology to study how gene expression drives this process. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying heart development will help improve diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart disease."

Dr. Jason Hansen! "A birth defect is a functional, structural, or metabolic abnormality present at birth that can lead to severe disabilities or even postnatal death... Neural tube defects (NTDs) are the second most common type of birth defect, comprising defects of the brain, spine, or spinal cord. Approximately 300,000 children worldwide are born each year with NTDs, resulting in approximately 88,000 deaths. While genetic factors contribute to NTDs, environmental influences have been a central focus of NTD research due to the potential to improve outcomes through intervention. Thus, our lab currently focuses on elucidating whether Nrf2 induction protects against teratogen-induced oxidative stress and therefore decreases the prevalence of NTDs in the developing embryo." For more information: https://cell.byu.edu/jason-hansen (Video: embryo heartbeat)

Diving into the brain with Dr. Jeffrey Edwards: "We study synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus, the primary region involved in learning and memory, and the ventral tegmental area, which is the reward pathway of the brain. The goal is to understand normal brain function and as a result apply this to abnormal states such as epilepsy and Alzheimer’s in the hippocampus, and addiction in the ventral tegmental area." Fore more information visit: https://cell.byu.edu/edwards-lab

Stepping into Dr. Benjamin Bikman's Lab! "The purpose of our lab is twofold. First, we aim to identify the molecular mechanisms that explain the increased risk of disease that accompanies weight gain, with particular emphasis on the etiology of insulin resistance and disrupted mitochondrial function. Second, we hope to reveal novel cellular processes that are responsible for fat development." For more information visit: https://cell.byu.edu/bikman-lab

Introducing Dr. Jeffery Barrow and some little buddies that his lab gets to work with! "Our research interest centers around using various molecular techniques to introduce genetic modifications to chicken primordial germ cells (cPGCs, the embryonic precursors to the cells that will become sperm or eggs). We introduce genetically modified cPGCs into chick embryos where they colonize the gonad. We allow these embryos to develop, hatch out and grow to sexual maturity. These chickens which possess genetically modified gametes can pass these genetic alterations to their offspring where we can observe the consequences in developing chick embryos." For more information visit his website at: https://cell.byu.edu/barrow-lab