Author: Vining, Susan

MCB welcomes new department head

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Adam Zweifach has agreed to serve as head of the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology for a five-year term, starting Jan. 1, 2026.  Adam Zweifach

Adam earned his BA in biology from the University of Pennsylvania, his Ph.D. in physiology from Yale University, and completed his postdoctoral training at Stanford University. Before joining UConn in 2006, he was an assistant and associate professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Most recently, he served as interim head during the fall 2025 semester

In Memoriam: Professor Hallie Krider

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Professor Hallie Krider, a former member of the MCB faculty, passed away at his home in Arizona on May 31.  A Wisconsin native, Hallie received his PhD in Genetics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1971 and began working at UConn in the Genetics and Cell Biology section of the former Biological Sciences Group.  He retired from MCB in 2005 after a distinguished 34-year career of teaching and research.  His primary scientific interests lay in Drosophila and Gypsy moth developmental genetics, and practical aspects of disease diagnosis, particularly Lyme Disease.  He helped organize the first versions of the biotechnology resource centers in MCB and was instrumental in bringing up-to-date microscopy methods to UConn.  His avocational interests involved sailing, golfing, singing with an amazing voice, and conversing with good natured enthusiasm. View his obituary.

First-Ever Sequencing of Great Ape X and Y Chromosomes

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UConn researchers helped complete nationwide effort to understand ape genome. Tor the first time, researchers have assembled a complete “end-to-end” reference genome for the sex chromosomes of five great ape species and one lesser ape species. The findings shed light on the evolution of sex chromosomes and inform understanding of diseases related to genes on these chromosomes in both apes and humans. Read full story in UConn Today

Dr. Jelena Erceg receives R35 MIRA Award to Fund Research on Genome Folding and Regulation

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Assistant Professor Jelena Erceg (Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, CLAS & Institute for Systems Genomics, joint appointment also with the Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, UConn Health) has received a prestigious R35 Maximizing Investigator’s Research Award (MIRA) for Early Stage Investigators from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). This award will support research in the Erceg Lab on genome folding and regulation over the next 5 years.

The title of the funded project is “Genome Folding and Regulation in Diploid Multicellular Organisms”

About the research and why it is important

MIRA provides support for the research in an investigator’s laboratory that falls within the mission of NIGMS. The goal of MIRA is to increase the efficiency of NIGMS funding by providing investigators with greater stability and flexibility, thereby enhancing scientific productivity and the chances for important breakthroughs. The program will also help distribute funding more widely among the nation’s highly talented and promising investigators.