Annual Congress on
Mycology and Fungal Infections

Dr. Zhang recently joined the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology as Professor and Head, coming from Columbia University, where she was professor of Environmental Health Sciences. Dr. Zhang also holds the Cecil H. and Ida Green Distinguished Chair in Systems Biology Science.

Dr. Li Zhang has made major contributions to understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying heme signaling in eukaryotic cells. Heme is central to oxygen sensing and utilization in virtually all living organisms. In mammals, heme is critical for erythroid, hepatic, and neuronal functions. Oxygen sensing is directly related to many fundamental physiological and pathological processes, including angiogenesis, tumor development, and ischemia. Investigating the molecular mechanism of oxygen sensing and heme signaling is the main objective of Dr. Zhang′s lab. Furthermore, Dr. Zhang's lab is interested in investigating the molecular mechanisms by which common neurotoxicants act in neural cells, because studies of neurotoxicants should facilitate the understanding of many neural functions and neurological diseases. Dr. Zhang′s lab combines approaches of molecular and cellular biology with genomics and computational approaches to elucidate the global molecular mechanisms underlying cellular responses to environmental stressors, including hypoxia and environmental toxicants.

He is an Assistant Professor at The University of Texas at San Antonio

Dr. Chaturvedi’s primary research interests lie in fungal proteomics, fungal biofilm, and immunology.

Director Center for Biomedical, Behavioral and Envir. Health Research Professor Ph.D (Botany/Medical Mycology)The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH M.Sc. (Botany ,Microbiology, Medical Mycology The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH B.Sc (Biology Education) Fort Valley State University, Fort Valley, GA Current Courses taught: Undergraduate Biology Internship Introduction to Health Careers Mycology Biological Seminar/Research Graduate ( Coordinator graduate studies) Medical Mycology Special Topics

The Effects of Chlorination on the Survival of Cells of Candida albicans, an endogenous human pathogen The Growth and Morphology of Piedraia hortae/Loculoascomycete Isolation and Characterization of Enzymes Produced by Fungi that are Potential Human Pathogens. Environmental degradation and decontamination, technologies The Effects of Testing Frequency on Learning Biological Concepts. STEM Education

Director, Mycology Laboratory Assistant Professor, Biomedical Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany Ph.D., Fungal biology and pathogenesis (1990), Faculty of Medicine, University of Delhi, Delhi, India Postdoctoral training: Fungal pathogenesis and parasite cell biology University of Cincinnati Postdoctoral training: Yale University

Fungal pathogenesis, protein transport, & secretion mechanisms. The focus of my laboratory is to understand fungal pathogenesis with special emphasis on Cryptococcus species (Cs). Cs, encapsulated yeast, causes infections in both healthy and immunocompromised individuals. Central to this investigation is an understanding of what gene products are required and expressed during infection and how this expression changes over time (from initial colonization to causation of disease) and space (in different cells or tissues within the host). We thus endeavor to understand, what selective pressures are acting on the pathogen in each microenvironment, what fungal factors are responsible for the host damage, and how the immune system is evaded. Another focus of my laboratory is to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying the non-classical release of oxidative proteins. Major aim of this investigation is to define how non-classically exported proteins pass through the cell membrane and cell wall, and which membrane and cell wall proteins facilitate these processes.