Comparative Biology: Animal Models Strut Their Stuff
Scientists at the MDI Biological Laboratory use the comparative model approach to understand the basic biology of tissue regeneration and aging. Thanks to evolution and common ancestry, we humans actually share a large portion of our DNA with fish, worms, and salamanders. Humans and zebrafish, for example, share 70% of the same genes; 84% of human genes known to be associated with human disease have a zebrafish equivalent. That’s a lot of similarity.
Continue ReadingNew Research by Aric Rogers, Ph.D., Sheds Light on the Effects of Dietary Restriction on Muscle Tissue
Consider the following scenarios: In the first, a thin young woman who exercises excessively develops athletic amenorrhea, or stops menstruating, rendering her incapable of bearing children. In the second, a sedentary, overweight girl undergoes menarche at a precociously early age. Aric N. Rogers, Ph.D., who studies aging at the MDI Biological Laboratory, believes these scenarios...
Continue ReadingMeet Our Postdocs: Dilawar Mir, Ph.D.
Dilawar Mir, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral researcher in the Rogers Lab, working the animal model C. elegans. He focuses on dietary restriction and extending lifespan in the short-lived worm.
Continue ReadingMeet Our Postdocs: Emily Spaulding, Ph.D.
Emily Spaulding, Ph.D. is a postdoctoral researcher in the Updike Lab.
Continue ReadingAnother Successful Summer at MDIBL
Walking through the MDI Biological Laboratory courtyard on a sultry August afternoon, you couldn’t help but be inspired by the depth and breadth of research from our 2021 student fellows. 45 undergraduate and high school students from institutions across the country, working with mentors at MDIBL and other INBRE institutions around Maine, spent 10 weeks...
Continue ReadingThis Is Why: Jaspreet Kohli
MDI Biological Laboratory’s summer fellowship programs strive to offer a well-rounded, unique research experience for students. Working on real-world, meaningful science alongside avid and invested mentors, and the chance to make long-lasting friendships in a stunning coastal location, make a summer at MDIBL what it is: a fun, educational, memorable, and in many cases, a...
Continue ReadingAric Rogers, Ph.D., promoted to Associate Professor
The Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory is pleased to announce the promotion of Aric Rogers, Ph.D., to Associate Professor, effective January 10, 2021. Rogers joined the MDI Biological Laboratory as an Assistant Professor in early 2013. He and his research team are working to understand not only how dietary restriction works to increase health and...
Continue ReadingWomen In Science Day 2021 – Margaret Reed Lewis
To mark Women in Science Day on February 11, 2021, we’re sharing the stories of female scientists, past and present, at the MDI Biological Laboratory. Margaret Reed Lewis, Ph.D.: A Pioneer in Tissue Culture In 1908, Margaret Reed was working in a laboratory in Germany when she explanted a small piece of tissue from a...
Continue ReadingThe Aging Mind: A Team Approach to Understanding the Relationship Between Aging, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease
If there is a threat with the potential to overwhelm the health care system on a scale comparable to that of COVID-19, it is Alzheimer’s disease. We are on the brink of an epidemic of this deadly disease: the number of people with Alzheimer’s is expected to more than double by 2050, from 6 million...
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