I am interested in prometaphase of female meiosis I in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster.  I am specifically studying the mechanisms of chromosome movement during prometaphase and the effects of mutants in the cell cycle control protein altered disjunction (ald), the fly homolog of the yeast protein mps1.  These experiments can give all kinds of interesting results...

The main techniques I use in my research are genetics (doing experimental matings and examining the progeny to draw inferences about the underlying biology) and cytology (fixing tissue samples and labeling them through various techniques, then examining the cells through fluorescent microscopy).  The Biological Sciences Department now has a confocal microscope, which I will make use of in my research.

I joined the DePaul faculty in Fall, 2009.  The courses I teach are Introductory Biology (Bio 101), Focal Point Seminar on Cloning and Biotechnology (LSP 112), Applied Bioinformatics for Bench Scientists (Bio 362) and Genetics (Bio 260).  I will be on research leave for the 2013-2014 academic year.