Several School of Biology faculty have recently received funding from the Georgia Tech Fund for Innovation in Research and Education (GT FIRE). The GT FIRE program was created in order to inspire innovation in research and education at Georgia Tech. "The program is off to a great start," said Rafael L. Bras, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. "The submitted proposals mesh well with our strategic plan, and that was our hope." "Innovation in research is critical for us to lead and set the science, technology and policy agenda for the United States and the world," said Steve Cross, executive vice president for research. "I am happy to support GT FIRE in stimulating faculty thinking and creativity."

School of Biology faculty did extremely well in this competition, receiving two of the three awards for research, and one of the four awards for education:

Dr. Francesca Storici received an award for "Development of Aptamers for Gene Targeting." This award will enable her to explore the potential of DNA aptamers to be used as versatile molecular vectors to facilitate genetic engineering of live cells via gene targeting. Aptamers are short peptides or short single-stranded RNA or DNA oligonucleotides capable of binding a ligand (small molecule, protein, sugar, or even living cells) with high affinity and specificity. Dr. Storici’s lab has hypothesized that DNA aptamers can be exploited for genetic engineering. The GT-FIRE funding will be used 1) to standardize a procedure using capillary electrophoresis to rapidly identify DNA aptamers for a reference protein and 2) to generate specific aptamers that can promote gene targeting in human cells. Dr. Storici's hope is that the use of the aptamer technology in gene targeting can significantly improve efficiency and safety of gene delivery and gene modification.

Dr. Soojin Yi received an award to study "Epigenomic Divergence between Primates and Evolution of Human Disease." The goal of this study is to investigate molecular mechanisms of species divergence between humans and other primates. Dr. Yi's lab will use genomic, epigenomic and transcriptomic methods to map changes that occurred in human and chimpanzee lineages since their divergence. The FIRE award will be used to fund initial experiments to pinpoint molecular changes that distinguish humans from chimpanzees.

Drs. Cara Gormally and Joe Montoya received funding for a project on "Advancing Science Process Skill Development through Inquiry-based Biology Laboratory Classes." They will study student learning outcomes the inquiry-based labs in introductory biology. More specifically, they will look at students' development and long-term retention of science process skills, including quantitative skills such as interpreting data, graphing, identifying and using correct statistical tests, and aspects of experimental design. In addition, they will determine which training practices best support teaching assistants in learning to teach these skills.