BSC Faculty Retirements: Dr. Dan Evans and Dr. Frank Binder The Department of Biological Sciences bids a fond farewell to two of our longtime faculty, Dr. Dan Evans, our plant systematist, and Dr. Frank Binder, one of our microbiologists. Dr. Frank Binder began teaching at Marshall in 1971, the year after the plane crash, for a total of 41 years of service to Marshall. Over his many years here, he has taught General Bacteriology, Readings in Immunology, Microbiology and Human Disease, Advanced Microbiology, and microbiology for second-year medical students during the early years of Marshall's School of Medicine. Dr. Binder also directed the medical and cytotech programs at Marshall in the late 1970s. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Dr. Binder and (recently retired BSC faculty member) Dr. Gain worked with private industries like Ashland Petroleum and local pharmaceutical manufacturers concerning their microbiological problems, which led to the development of their consulting firm, Microbiological Consultants, Inc. Their company has been very successful, and employs seven people. After his retirement from Marshall, Dr. Binder will continue to work at Microbiological Consultants, directing the microbiology section of the company. He also hopes to maintain ties with the College of Science, and looks forward to developing interactions with BSC, whether through using their company's facilities or setting up student internships with the company. Dr. Binder's 41 years at Marshall are full of memories. Throughout his years here, he has made many friends, some whom have left Marshall or passed on, and many whom are still in the department. In addition to his ongoing work at his company, Dr. Binder also hopes to play a lot more golf! Dr. Dan Evans is retiring after 37 years of service at Marshall. During the time he has been on the faculty, he has taught General Botany, Plant Taxonomy, Advanced Plant Taxonomy, Wetlands, Medicinal Plants, Economic Botany, Dendrology, and Independent Study, as well as having supervised both Capstone undergraduate research and MS thesis research. He is also the Curator of the Marshall University Herbarium, which houses specimens from locations as diverse as West Virginia to South America, particularly Ecuadorian plants. Dr. Evans has also been digitizing images of the herbarium collection for an online database. Dr. Evans received the Elizabeth Ann Bartholomew Award for Distinguished Service to Botany and the Public, has been President of the Society of Herbarium Curators, co-editor of Castanea, and just completed a year as Marshall's 18th Drinko Academy Fellow. In Dr. Evans' words, "Marshall was a good match for me. I have taught the courses that I always wanted to teach, enjoyed my colleagues, mentored 22 graduate students, and engaged in community service." Dr. Evans will continue some of his research as a Professor Emeritus, travel, spend time with his grandchildren, and, yes, clean out his garage and attic! We wish Drs. Evans and Binder much happiness in retirement, and will miss them both. Other Faculty Departures from BSC For those of you who are not already aware, the Department lost a colleague this past fall. Dr. James Brumfield, who, with 48 years of service, had been the longest-serving current faculty member at Marshall University, passed away in October 2011. His well-attended memorial service was held on campus, with family, friends, faculty, staff, and students paying their respects. In addition, Dr. Eric Blough has resigned from the Department to take a position at Marshall's new School of Pharmacy as the Director of Pharmacology and Toxicology in the Department of Pharmaceutical Science and Research. Good luck to him in his new position! Stuffed Cells
The scientifically-correct adventures of an archaean, a plant cell, and an animal cell.
 by Zedmalia Wolfe
Congratulations to Former BSC Majors Who Are New MDs The Department is pleased to congratulate the following former BSC majors who have just earned their MDs from the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine at Marshall University: Lauren Bevins, Heather Butts, Jeremy Cumberledge, Joshua Ferrell, Zachary Grambos, Alyssa Kraynie, Nitisha Mulpuri, Reema Patel, Jodi Pitsenbarger, Daniel Poole, Ryan Skeens, and Johnny Walker, III. We wish you each a successful and happy career! What’s New in Biological Science:A Dash of Marrow Helps Kidney Transplant (ScienceNews March 7, 2012, Nathan Seppa) By giving kidney transplant patients a dose of donor bone marrow, researchers have for the second time enabled a majority of recipients to stop taking immune suppressants despite having received poorly matched organs. The new study, in the March 7 Science Translational Medicine, accomplished the feat in five of eight transplant recipients who weren't spot-on matches with their donors. The five tapered off suppressants designed to prevent organ rejection and have stayed free of the drugs for at least six months. One is nearly two years out since quitting the medicines. For more on this story, visit the ScienceNews website. Job Opportunities Selected BSC Contact Information
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2012