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Principal Investigator

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ELSTON, Timothy

Tim Elston I am interested in understanding the dynamics of complex biological systems, and developing reliable mathematical models that capture the essential components of these systems.

Graduate Student in the Department of Physics and Astronomy

Contact: jhouser@physics.unc.edu

JIN, Meng

Meng Jin I am interested in understanding the dynamics of intracellular signaling in time and space.

Graduate Student

email: indra007vsp@gmail.com

Postdoctoral Fellows

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ALLEN, Richard

My research is focused on modeling signaling pathways that control polarity and migration in animal cells. Certain cells establish distinct front and back signaling pathways either spontaneously or in response to external stimuli. The mathematical mechanism to generate this polarity has been widely hypothesized to be either based on a Turing instability or substrate depletion. Many proteins have been implicated in mediating this process, however the precise nature of their interactions remains an open question.

With experimental collaboration from the Hahn Laboratory I hope to further elucidate these cellular mechanisms.

Contact: richard.allen@ unc.edu

GARCIA, Guilherme

   Guilherme Garcia

   Postdoctoral Fellow

   Contact: guilherme_garcia (at) med.unc.edu

RESEARCH INTERESTS

We are building a mathematical model to describe the complex signalling network lung epithelial cells use to regulate water transport through cell membranes and thus control mucus hydration. This signalling network is essential for lung defense against inhaled pathogens because dehydrated mucus, characteristic of Cystic Fibrosis disease, impairs mucus clearance and leads to lung infection. The physiology-based mathematical model describes how epithelial cells utilize ion channels to manipulate osmotic gradients and control water transport. The model includes the transport and metabolism of extracellular nucleotides, cell-surface receptors, intracellular biochemical cascades, and ion channels. The parameters of the model are fitted to experimental data obtained from cell cultures of human bronchial epithelia.

It is our hope that, by understanding this complex biochemical network, we may contribute to the identification of a therapeutic target to restore proper mucociliary clearance in Cystic Fibrosis patients.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

Postdoctoral fellow in Biofluid Mechanics, September 2008
The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA

Ph.D. in Physics, January 2005
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte,

Brazil

M.S. in Physics, July 2001
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

B.S. in Physics, July 1999
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

PUBLICATIONS

1. Kokshenev VB, Silva JKL, Garcia GJM. Long-bone allometry of terrestrial mammals and the geometric-shape and elastic-force constraints of bone evolution. Journal of Theoretical Biology 224, 551-556 (2003).

2. Garcia GJM, Dickman R. On singular probability densities generated by extremal dynamics. Physica A 332, 318-336 (2004).

3. Garcia GJM, Silva JKL. On the scaling of mammalian long bones. Journal of Experimental Biology 207, 1577-1584 (2004).

4. Garcia GJM, Dickman R. On the thresholds, probability densities, and critical exponents of Bak-Sneppen-like models. Physica A 342, 164-170 (2004).

5. Garcia GJM, Dickman R. Asymmetric dynamics and critical behavior in the Bak-Sneppen model. Physica A 342, 516-528 (2004).

6. Dickman R, Garcia GJM. Absorbing-state phase transitions with extremal dynamics. Physical Review E 71, 066113 (2005).

7. Barbosa LA, Garcia GJM, Silva JKL. The scaling of maximum and basal metabolic rates of mammals and birds. Physica A 359, 547-554 (2006).

8. Garcia GJM, Silva JKL. Interspecific allometry of bone dimensions: A review of the theoretical models. Physics of Life Reviews 3, 188-209 (2006).

9. Silva JKL, Garcia GJM, Barbosa LA. Allometric scaling laws of metabolism. Physics of Life Reviews 3, 229-261 (2006).

10. Carey SA, Minard KR, Trease LL, Wagner JG, Garcia GJM, Ballinger CA, Kimbell JS, Plopper CG, Corley RA, Postlethwait EM, Harkema JR. Three-dimensional mapping of ozone-induced injury in the nasal airways of monkeys using magnetic resonance imaging and morphometric techniques. Toxicologic Pathology 35, 27-40 (2007).

11. Garcia GJM, Bailie N, Martins DA, Kimbell JS. Atrophic rhinitis: A CFD study of air conditioning in the nasal cavity. Journal of Applied Physiology 103, 1082-1092 (2007).

12. Garcia GJM, Tewksbury EW, Wong BA, Kimbell JS. Inter-individual variability in nasal filtration as a function of nasal cavity geometry. Journal of Aerosol Medicine 22, 139-155 (2009).

13. Garcia GJM, Schroeter JD, Segal RA, Stanek J, Foureman GL, Kimbell JS. Dosimetry of nasal uptake of water-soluble and reactive gases: a first study of inter-human variability. Inhalation Toxicology 21, 607-618 (2009).

14. Garcia GJM, Kimbell JS. Deposition of inhaled nanoparticles in the rat nasal passages: dose to the olfactory region. Inhalation Toxicology 21, 1165-1175 (2009).

15. Garcia GJM, Kimbell JS. Septal deviations and nasal resistance: An investigation using virtual surgery and computational fluid dynamics. American Journal of Rhinology, in press (2009).

16. Schroeter JD, Garcia GJM, Kimbell JS. A computational fluid dynamics approach to assess inter-human variability in hydrogen sulfide nasal dosimetry. Inhalation Toxicology, in press (2009).

KESSELER, Kevin

Contact: kesseler@math.duke.edu

TSYGANKOV, Denis

Denis Tsygankov (Tsee-Gun-Cough)

Post-Doctoral Research Associate

Contact: dtsygank (at) med.unc.edu

Alumni

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BEHAR, Marcelo

Marcelo Behar Former graduate student
Currently a post doc in Alexander Hoffmann's lab
UC San Diego

ON THE WEB: http://signalingsystems.ucsd.edu/

FRICKS, John

Former postdoctoral Fellow

Currently at Penn State University

On the WEB: http://www.stat.psu.edu/%7Efricks/index.html

GOEDEKE, Mike

Former graduate student

Currently at Research Triangle Institute, NC.

HAO, Nan

Nan Hao Former Postdoctoral Fellow
Currently ar Erin O'Shea's Lab
Harvard University
ON THE WEB: http://golgi.harvard.edu/O'Shea/

PIRONE, Jason

Former graduate student

Currently at EPA, Research Triangle Park, NC.

POULO, Joy

Former Postdoctoral Fellow

Currently at Harvard Medical School

On the WEB: http://hms.harvard.edu/

SEROHIJOS, Adrian

Former Graduate Student

Currently a post doc in Eugene Shakhnovich's lab at Harvard

On the WEb: http://www-shakh.harvard.edu/

Homepage: http://www.unc.edu/~awrs/
Contact: awrs@email.unc.edu

STRYCHALSKI, Wanda

Former Graduate Student

Current Position: Postdoctoral Fellow (Krener Assistant Professor)
University of California, Davis
Contact: wanda@math.ucdavis.edu
On the WEB:http://www.math.ucdavis.edu/~wanda/homepage/Welcome.html