Education

Degree	Institution	Major
BS	City College of CUNY	Chemistry
MS	Cornell University	Chemistry
PhD	Cornell University	Chemistry

Post-Graduate Training

Training	Institution	Specialty
Postdoctoral	Harvard University	Chemistry

Awards

Name of Award/Honor	Awarding Organization
University of Connecticut Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor	University of Connecticut
Biophysical Society Distinguished Service Award	Biophysical Society
Editor-in-Chief, Biophysical Journal	Biophysical Society
Elected to Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering (CASE)	CASE
Chair NIH MABS Study Section, 2004-2007	NIH
Boehringer Ingelheim Endowed Chair in Cell Sciences	University of Connecticut Health Center
NIH Research Career Development Award	NIH
Research Career Development Award	NIH
Phi Beta Kappa, Nehemiah Gittelson Medal	PBK

Foundations in Biomedical Sciences

Molecular Neurobiology of Excitable Membranes

Practical Microscopy and Modeling for Cell Biology

Biochem II: Biopphysical Methods

Name & Description	Category	Role	Type	Scope	Start Year	End Year
Biophysical Journal	Professional/Scientific Journal	Associate Editor	External	National	2022	2023
Biophysical Journal	Other		External	National	2022	2023
NSF Cellular Dynamics and Function	Study Section	Member	External	National	2022
Biophysical Society Sustainable Future Task Force	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2022	2023
NIH R24 Study Section	Study Section	Member	External	National	2021	2021
CCAM Faculty Search Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2020	2023
NIH Study Section R24 Scientific Review	Study Section	Member	External	National	2020	2020
NIH Review ZGM1 BBCB-8 (LG)	Study Section	Reviewer	External	National	2019	2019
SPARK Technology Commercialization Fund	Study Section	Reviewer	UConn-Storrs	University	2019	2019
NIH Review Meeting: IMST-H(15)	Study Section	Member	External	National	2018	2018
NCI Cancer Systems Biology Review	Study Section		External	National	2018	2018
Editorial Advisory Board, Biophysical Soc./Institute of Physics eBooks on Biophysics	Editorial Board	Member	External	International	2018	2020
Committee on Professional Opportunities for Women, Biophysical Society	Community Service		External	International	2018	2020
CanPathPro Advisory Board	Advisory Committee	Member	External	International	2017	2017
NMRBox Scientific Advisory Board	Advisory Committee		External	National	2016	2020
Deans Council	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	University	2014	2020
Biomedical Engineering Faculty Search Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	University	2014	2019
Biophysical Journal	Professional/Scientific Journal	Editor in Chief	External	National	2012	2017
Search Committee for Exec VP of UCHC and Dean of the Medical School	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2011	2012
Site visit review team for a NIH/NCRR Biomedical Technology Research Resource grant at U. Washington, Seattle, WA	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2011	2011
Computational Cell Biology Meeting, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Long Island, NY	Advisory Committee	Co-Organizer	External	National	2011	2011
Course & Curriculum Evaluation Subcommittee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2010	2011
NIH Director Pioneer Awards Reviewer	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2010	2010
Computational Cell Biology Meeting, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton UK	Advisory Committee	Co-Organizer	External	International	2010	2010
LCME Institutional Setting Self Study Committee, Research subcommittee	Research Committee	Chair	UConn Health	Local	2009	2009
UCONN Booth Engineering Center for Advanced Technology (BECAT) Oversight Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2009
Nanomedicine Faculty Search Committee	Education Committee	Chair	UConn Health	Local	2009	2010
Dept. of Surgery Chair Search Committee	Education Committee	Chair	UConn Health	Local	2009	2011
Vascular Biology Center Director Search Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2009	2010
Research Recruitment Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2009
Computational Cell Biology Meeting, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Long Island	Advisory Committee	Co-Organizer	External	National	2009	2009
Site visit review team for a NIH/NCRR Biomedical Technology Research Resource grant at UCLA	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2009	2009
Scientific Advisory Board, National Center for Multiscale Modeling of Biological Systems	Advisory Committee	Member	External	University	2009	2020
Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering	Professional/Scientific Organization	Member	External	Local	2008
UCONN Search Committee for VP Research & Dean of Grad School	Research Committee	Member	External	Local	2008	2008
UCHC Scientific Advisory Committee for the Clinical and Translational Science Institute	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2008	2009
Computational Cell Biology Meeting at Hinxton	Advisory Committee	Co-Organizer	External	National	2008	2008
NIH Biomedical Technology Research Resources Directors Meeting	Advisory Committee	Chair of Organizing Committee	External	National	2008	2008
Scientific Advisory Board, National Center for Multiscale Modeling of Biological Systems	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2008	2019
Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering	Professional/Scientific Organization		External	State	2008	2019
IET Systems Biology	Editorial Board		External	National	2007
School of Medicine Dean’s Council	Other	Member	UConn Health	Local	2007	2008
400 Farmington Building Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2007
Computational Cell Biology Meeting at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory	Advisory Committee	Co-Organizer	External	National	2007	2007
Biophotonics Faculty Search Committee	Research Committee	Chair	UConn Health	Local	2005
School of Medicine Research Council	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2005	2008
Biophysical Society Annual Meeting Program Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2005	2007
NIH Modeling and Analysis of Biological Systems Study Section	Study Section	Chair	External	National	2005	2007
External Scientific Advisory Board for National Resource for Biomedical Supercomputing	Advisory Committee	Chair	External	National	2005
External Scientific Advisory Board for National Biomedical Computation Resource	Advisory Committee	Member	External	National	2005
Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering	Professional/Scientific Organization	Member	External	State	2005	2020
NIH Modeling and Analysis of Biological Systems	Study Section	Chair	External	National	2004	2007
New Research Building Planning Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2004	2004
Research Building Planning Group	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2004	2005
Institutional Research Policy Advisory Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2004	2006
Research Computing Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2004
NIH Modeling and Analysis of Biological Systems Study Section	Study Section	Member	External	National	2004	2005
Research Services Enhancement Working Group	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2003	2004
Computational Cell Biology Faculty Search Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2003	2004
NIH Systems Biology Special Interest Group	Advisory Committee	Advisor	External	National	2003	2003
Ad Hoc Faculty Grievance Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2002	2002
Structural Biology Faculty Search Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	2002	2003
NCRR Computational Cell Biology Working Group	Advisory Committee	Chair	External	National	2002	2002
International Symposium on Computational Cell Biology, Lenox, MA	Advisory Committee	Organizer	External	National	2001	2005
NIH Center For Scientific Review, Bioengineering Sciences and Technologies (BEST) IRG Formation Committee	Professional/Scientific Organization	Member	External	National	2001	2001
MRC(London)/NIGMS Joint workshop on Computational Cell Biology	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	International	2001	2001
DSRC Workshop on Functional Integration of Cells and Materials	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	National	2001	2001
Biophysical Society Publications Committee on Interactive Electronic Publication	Advisory Committee	Chair	External	National	2000	2004
DARPA Focus 2000	Workshop/Conference	Co-Chair	External	National	2000	2000
NIDA Workshop on Cell Biology of Addiction	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	National	2000	2000
Workshop on Computational Cell Biology, Biophysical Society Annual Meeting, New Orleans	Advisory Committee	Chair	External	National	1999	1999
NIGMS Development of Interactive Databases	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	National	1999	1999
NIGMS Training in Computational Biology /Bioinfomatics	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	National	1999	1999
Neuroscience Chairperson Search Committee	Research Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1998	1999
Journal of Fluorescence	Editorial Board		External	National	1997	2002
Cell Biochemistry and Biophysics	Editorial Board		External	National	1997
Center for Science and Technology Commercialization	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1997
Special Task Force on Research Funding	Other	Member	UConn Health	Local	1996	1997
Health Center Research Advisory Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1995	2000
Information Systems Advisory Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1994	1996
Director, R. D. Berlin Center for Cell Analysis and Modeling	Other	Director	UConn Health	University	1994	2020
Senior Appointments & Promotions Committee	Advisory Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1993	2006
Interdepartmental Basic Sciences Seminar Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1992	1995
Medical School Council	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1990	1992
Interdepartmental Basic Sciences Seminar Committee	Education Committee	Chair	UConn Health	Local	1989	1992
NCRR Integrated Genomics Technologies	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	National	1988	1988
Graduate Programs Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1986	1990
Cell Biology Graduate Program	Education Committee	Chairman	UConn Health	Local	1986	1990
Cell Biology Graduate Program Steering committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	Local	1986	2001

My lab is focussed on the development of new experimental and computational technologies to help us understand the mechanisms underlying cell function. We have a longstanding effort aimed at developing and characterizing fluorescent probes of membrane potential. This effort is continuing, using organic chemical design and synthesis to develop better more sensitive voltage indicators. This work has led to a continual interest in the organization of signaling pathways along the cell membrane and within the cytoplasm. We are interested in the very general question of how the intricate spatial organization of molecules in cells is used to control cell function. This is especially true of neuronal cells and we are actively investigating the cell biology of dendritic spines in brain tissue. This motivated us to develop a very general computational modeling software platform called the "Virtual Cell", in which we have created a framework for using computer simulation to explore cell biological mechanisms. The models are built naturally from experimental images of cellular and subcellular structures combined with biochemical and electrophysiological data. We have used the “Virtual Cell” system to explain the pattern of electrical and signaling activity in neuronal and non-neuronal cells. Most recently, we have developed new software called SpringSaLaD that can model molecular interactions at the sub-cellular scale. This allows us to explaore how the shape of individual molecules control their interactions, leading ultimately to cell-level responses.

We have projects for organic chemists interested in applying their skill to the development of fluorescent sensors. We have projects for biomedical engineers interested in applying their skills to the measurement of cellular signaling through custom-designed microscope systems. We have projects for physicists, mathematicians and computer scientists who are interested in modeling the complex events underlying cellular responses to external signals.

Accepting Lab Rotation Students: Summer 2022, Fall 2022, and Spring 2023

Lab Rotation Projects
We have projects for biophysicists interested in the structure and cellular function of biomolecular condensates. We havve projects for neuroscientisits interested in the biophysical properties of dendritic spines. We have projects for organic chemists interested in applying their skill to the development of fluorescent sensors. We have projects for biomedical engineers interested in applying their skills to the measurement of cellular signaling through custom-designed microscope systems. We have projects for physicists, mathematicians and computer scientists who are interested in modeling the complex events underlying cellular responses to external signals.

Journal Articles

Books

Book Chapters

Book Sections

Conference Papers

Editorials

Letters

Reviews

Short Surveys

Title or Abstract	Type	Sponsor/Event	Date/Year	Location
In vitro and in silico exploration of the solubility product concept for formation of biomolecular condensates	Talk	International Conference on Systems Biology	2023	Hartford, CT
New Voltage Sensitive Dyes	Plenary Lecture	Marine Biological Lab	2022	Wood Hole, MA
Sensing and Imaging Membrane Potential	Plenary Lecture	Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities	2021
Voltage Sensitive Dyes	Plenary Lecture	Light Microscopy Resources Workshop	2021	On line
The Inner Space of Cells	Plenary Lecture	UCONN Provost's Distignuished Speakers Series	2021	On line
Biomedical Engineering Distinguished Lectureship	Lecture	Worcester Polytechnic Institute	2020	Worcester, MA
Keynote Speaker, 10th International Conference on Computational Advances in Bio and Medical Sciences	Plenary Lecture	10th International Conference on Computational Advances in	2020	Online Conference
New developments in voltage sensitive dyes	Lecture	Yale University Symposium	2019	New Haven, CT
The interplay of structural and cellular biophysics controls clustering of multivalent molecules	Lecture	Quantitative Life Sciences Department, McGill U.	2018	Montreal, Canada
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Scientific computing Institute, U. Utah	2018	Salt Lake City, UT
The interplay of structural and cellular biophysics controls clustering of multivalent molecules	Lecture	Department of Computational & Systems Biology, U. Pittsburgh School of Med	2018	Pittsburgh, PA
Computational Modeling for cell Biology	Lecture	Marine Biological Laboratory Physiology Course	2018	Wood Hole, MA
New technologies for analysis of cellular signals	Lecture	Bright Futures Symposium	2018	Alexandri, VA
Multiscale modeling of cell biophysics	Lecture	Biophysical Society	2018	San Francisco, CA
The Virtual Cell	Lecture	Biomedical Engineering Dept. Seminar, Washington University	2017	St. Louis, MO
Image-based modeling with VCell	Lecture	Morgridge Institute for Research, U. Wisconsin	2017	Madison, WI
Modeling for Cell Biologist with VCell	Lecture	NSF Workshop on "Finding Your Inner Modeler"	2017	Chicago, IL
Insights into actin dynamics from computational models	Lecture	Symposium Honoring Thomas Pollard, Johns Hopkins U.	2017	Baltimore, MD
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Boston U. Physiology and Biophysics Dept	2017	Boston, MA
The Virtual Cell	Lecture	CanPathPro Horizon2020 project - annual meeting	2017	Oslo, Norway
Computational Modeling of Molecular Clusters	Lecture	International Conference on Systems Biology	2017	Blacksburg, VA
Computational model of UBE3a	Lecture	Angelman Syndrome Foundation-Dup15q Alliance Joint Scientific Symposium	2016	Siver Spring, MD
Pleomorphic Molecular Ensmbles	Lecture	Molecular Biology and Biophysics Dept. Seminar, UConn	2016	Farmington, CT
Workshop on “How to get your paper published”	Panel Discussion	Biophysical Society	2016	Los Angeles, CA
The Virtual Cell Project	Plenary Lecture	DOE Office of Science Workshop on Exascale Computing	2016	Bethesda, MD
A community resource for models of dendritic spine morphological development	Lecture	Angelman Syndrome Foundation-Dup15q Alliance Joint Scientific Symposium	2016	Silver Spring, MD
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Molecular & Cellular Biology Department, U. Arizona	2015	Tuscon, AZ
Measuring and modeling cellular physiology	Lecture	Biomedical Engineering, U. Conn.	2015
Virtual Cell Tutorial	Lecture	Cellular Dynamics and Models Meeting, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory	2015
Dissemination of distributed software - the Virtual Cell model	Lecture	Technology Dissemination Workshop, BTRR Principal Investigators Meeting	2015	Bethesda, MD
The virtual Cell Project	Lecture	QCBnet workshop "Modeling Cell Biology: Scale and Granularity"	2015	San Francisco, CA
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon U., Pittsburgh, PA	2015	Pitsburgh, PA
Dendritic Spine Developmental Disorder	Lecture	DUP15q Alliance 2015 Scientific Meeting	2015	Orlando, FL
The VCell Database	Lecture	Human Quantitative Dynamics Workshop, NIH	2015	Bethesda, MD
Multiscale and Multiphysics Modeling within the Virtual Cell Environment	Lecture	Interagency Modeling and Analysis Group	2014	Bethesda, MD
Taming the Complexity of Cell Biology with Virtual Cell	Lecture	University of Kansas	2014	Lawrence, KS
How to get your paper published	Panel Discussion	Biophysical Society	2014	San Francisco, CA
Imaging Membrane Potential from Organs to Organelles	Plenary Lecture	Weber Symposium on Fluorescence Methodologies in Biochemistry and Medicine	2014	Kauai, Hawaii
Imaging Membrane Potential with Voltage Sensitive Dyes	Lecture	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory	2014	Long Island, NY
Modeling multimolecular cell systems	Plenary Lecture	Biophysical Society Thematic Meeting	2014	Istanbul, Turkey
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Department of Computational & Systems Biology, U. Pittsburgh	2014	Pittsburgh, PA
Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	NIMBios Workshop	2013	Knoxville, TN
Computational Cell Biology Course	Lecture	Cold Spring Harbor Lab	2013	Long Island, NY
Optical Electrophysiology with Voltage Sensitive Dyes	Lecture	Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine Seminar, Technion	2013	Haifa, Israel
Membrane Potential Imaging	Plenary Lecture	Israel society for Microscopy	2013	Tsfat, Israel
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Weizmann Institute of Science	2013	Rehovot, Israel
Taming the complexity of cellular biology with Virtual Cell	Lecture	Bar Ilan University	2013	Ramat Gan, Israel
Multiscale and Multiphysics Modeling with Virtual Cell	Lecture	Workshop on Spatial Modeling, Carnegie Mellon U.	2013	Pittsburgh, PA
Multiscale and Multiphysics Modeling with Virtual Cell	Lecture	Multiscale Neuronal Modeling Workshop, U. California San Diego	2013	San Diego, CA
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Chemistry Dept. Seminar, City College of CUNY	2013	New York, NY
The Virtual Cell Project	Lecture	Biomathematics Seminar	2012	Ohio State University, Columbus OH
Neuronal circuits - From molecules to oscillations	Talk	II Simpósio da PPG-Neuro	2012	Pipa, Brazil
Biophysics Seminar Series	Talk	MIT	2012	Cambridge, MA
Computational Cell Biology Course	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Lab	2012	Long Island, NY
Workshop on “How to get your paper published”	Talk	Biophysical Society	2012	San Diego, CA
Biophysics Seminar Series	Talk	Bar Ilan University	2012	Ramat Gan, Israel
The virtual Cell	Lecture	3D Virtual Cell Project	2012	San Diego, CA
Computational Cell Biology Course	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Lab	2011	Long Island, NY
Workshop on "single cell" analysis	Talk	NIH	2011	Bethesda, MD
Neuromechanics Workshop	Talk	Fields Institute	2010	Toronto, Ont., Canada
Biomedical Engineering Graduate Student Committee Research Seminar	Talk	University of Connecticut Health Center	2010	Farmington, CT
Computational Cell Biology Symposium	Talk	Wellcome Trust Genome Campus	2010	UK
National Biomedical Computing Center Seminar	Talk	University of California	2010	San Diego, CA
Biomedical Technology Research Meeting	Talk	NIH	2010	Rockville, MD
Biology Department Seminar Series	Talk	University of Texas	2010	San Antonio, TX
Computational Cell Biology Course	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Lab	2010	Long Island, NY
Forces in Biology Workshop	Talk	University of North Carolina	2009	Chapel Hill, NC
Workshop on Cell biology Ontology	Talk	NIH	2009	Bethesda, MD
Microscope Imaging Seminar	Talk	Sowers Institute	2009	Kansas City, KS
Cell Biology Seminar	Talk	Sowers Institute	2009	Kansas City, KS
Biomedical Engineering Seminar	Talk	John Hopkins University	2009	Baltimore, MD
Voltage Imaging Workshop	Talk	Howard Hughes Foundation	2009	Janelia Farm, VA
Computational Cell Biology Course	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Lab	2009	Long Island, NY
Systems Biology Seminar	Talk	University of North Carolina	2009	Chapel Hill, NC
Neuroengineering Workshop	Talk	Penn State	2008	State College, PA
Neuroscience Seminar	Talk	Penn State	2008	State College, PA
Frontiers in Cell Migration	Talk	NIH	2008	Bethesda, MD
Course on Computational Cell Biology	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory	2008	Long Island, NY
Bioelectrochemistry	Talk	Gordon Research Conference	2008	Biddeford, ME
Research Seminar	Talk	Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals	2008	Ridgefield, CT
Vascular Biology and Therapeutics Seminar	Talk	Yale University	2008	New Haven, CT
Biophysics Colloquium	Talk	Bar Ilan Universty	2007	Ramat Gan, Israel
Cyd Hassner Memorial Lecture	Talk	Bar Ilan Universty	2007	Ramat Gan, Israel
Center for Vascular Biology Retreat Keynote	Talk	University of Connecticut Health Center	2007	Farmington, CT
Workshop on Chemistry in Neuroscience	Talk	HHMI Janelia Farm	2007	Ashburn, VA
Proteomics Conference	Talk	NIH/NHLBI	2007	Washington, DC
Workshop on Biological Physics of Cellular Processes	Talk	Physics Dept. UCSD	2007	San Diego, CA
Wesleyan Hughes Seminar Series	Talk	Wesleyan University	2007	Middletown, CT
Michigan Alliance for Cheminformatic Exploration	Talk	University of Michigan	2007	Ann Arbor, MI
Methods in Clinical Research	Talk	University of Connecticut Health Center	2007	Farmington, CT
Computational Cell Biology Meeting	Talk	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory	2007	Long Island, NY
Tri-Institutional Computational and Systems Biology Seminar	Talk	Memorial Sloan-Kettering	2007	New York, New York
Biophysics Colloquium	Talk	Bar Ilan University	2006	Ramat Gan, Israel
Biological Networks and Pathways Symposium	Talk	John Hopkins University	2006	Baltimore, MD
Interdisciplinary Seminars on Complex Networks	Talk	University of Illinois	2006	Urbana, IL
Calcium and Cell Function	Talk	FASEB Summer Research Conferences	2006	Snowmass, CO
Macromolecular Organization & Cell Function	Talk	Gordon Research Conference	2006	Holyoke, MA
Infectious Disease Informatics Working Group	Talk	NSF	2005	Arlington, VA
Nanomedicine Meeting	Talk	NIH	2005	Gaithersberg, MD
Proteome Interest Group	Talk	NIH	2005	Bethesda, MD
Frontiers of Science Program	Talk	New York Academy of Sciences	2005	New York, NY
4th Annual Genomics and Bioinformatics Symposium	Talk	Yale University	2005	New Haven, CT