The Biology Department offers a balanced curriculum. Students study life at all levels - from molecules to cells, from microorganisms to plants and animals, and from individuals to populations. With the help of faculty advisors, students choose courses that fulfill both the degree requirements and their individual goals. The biology curriculum comprises slightly more than twenty-five percent of the course work required for graduation.
Biology majors begin with a five quarter sequence of required biology courses two of them with laboratories. The first three quarters focus on ecology,evolution physiology & genetics. The last two quarters students have "hands on" opportunity to learn about these subjects in a laboratory environment. After completing the core courses, students choose seven or more upper-division courses from a long list of electives.
Courses include strong writing components, experiments with modern equipment, and the critical analysis of data and scientific literature. Laboratory sections enroll twenty-four or fewer students, promoting close interactions between students and their professors. Assignments often require students to present their findings utilizing styles of professional scientific meetings or journals. Such activities prepare students for their future careers by developing the critical thinking and language skills needed by scientists.
Submissions from 2025
Gene expression and DNA methylation changes in response to hypoxia in toxicant-adapted Atlantic killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus), Neelakanteswar Aluru, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Christopher S. Murray, and Veronica DePascuale
Protect US racial affinity groups, V. Bala Chaudhary, Sora Kim, Mónica Medina, Diane S. Srivastava, Nikki Traylor-Knowles, Marlene Brito-Millan, Alejandra Camargo-Cely, Snehanjana Chatterjee, Nancy Chen, Yolanda H. Chen, Kiyoko M. Gotanda, Samniqueka J. Halsey, Chandra N. Jack, Rosa M. McGuire, Cassandra M. L. Miller, Alex C. Moore, Suegene Noh, Theresa W. Ong, Ariane L. Peralta, Amanda Puitiza, Lucia N. Ramirez, Adriana L. Romero-Olivares, M. Fabiola Pulido-Barriga, Karina A. Sanchez, Christine Y. Sit, Chenyang Su, Juleyska Vazquez-Cardona, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Chhaya M. Werner, and Lily Khadempour
Adolescent seizure impacts oligodendrocyte maturation, neuronal-glial circuit Formation, and myelination in the mammalian forebrain, Kylie Foutch, Iris Tilton, Aundrea Cooney, Cole Bender, Collin Licharz, Megan Baldemor, Caitlyn Rock, Atehsa Asal Sahagun, Robert Brock, Chloe Franzia, Mary Francis Garcia, Raghav Gupta, Christopher Arellano Reyes, Mariyam Lokhandwala, Daniela Moura, Hirofumi Noguchi, and Laura Cocas
Interrogating Metabolic Plasticity in Marine Organisms: A Framework for Best Practices Using Metabolomic and Lipidomic Approaches, Yaamini R. Venkataraman and Ariana S. Huffmyer
DNA methylation correlates with transcriptional noise in response to elevated pCO2 in the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica), Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Ariana S. Huffmyer, Samuel J. White, Alan Downey-Wall, Jill Ashey, Danielle M. Becker, Zachary Bengtsson, Hollie M. Putnam, Emma Strand, Javier A. Rodríguez-Casariego, Shelly A. Wanamaker, Katie E. Lotterhos, and Steven B. Roberts
Plasticity, not Genetics, Shapes Individual Responses to Thermal Stress in Non-Native Populations of the European Green Crab (Carcinus maenas), Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Julia C. Kelso, Catlin Payne, Heidi L. Freitas, Jasmine Kohler, and Carolyn K. Tepolt
Submissions from 2024
Genotype-phenotype associations: What are they, and how are they related to broader society?, Armita Razieh Manafzadeh, Dina Navon, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Jordon Millward, Farhat Batool, and Olayinka Murtala Ashiru
DNA Methylation Assessment, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Kathryn Greiner-Ferris, Sam White, and Steven B. Roberts
Investigating genomic and plastic contributions to thermal tolerance in a non-indigenous crab, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Sara Shapiro, Sarah Zuidema, Vanessa Calloway, Julia Kelso, Mikayla Newbrey, Lauren Stephenson, and Carolyn K. Tepolt
Submissions from 2023
Coordination of hydraulic and morphological traits across dominant grasses in eastern Australia, Robert J. Griffin-Nolan, Jeff Chieppa, and Alan K. Knapp
Grass trait–abundance relationships and the role of the functional composition of the neighboring community, Robert J. Griffin-Nolan and Brody Sandel
Characterizing host-pathogen interactions between Zostera marina and Labyrinthula zosterae, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Amanda Shore, Sukanya Dayal, James Sanghyun Lee, Mahsa Alidoost Salimi, Grace Crandall, Malina M. Loeher, Mark Stoops, Megan Swanger, Morgan E. Eisenlord, Kathryn L. Van Alstyne, Mark D. Fast, Colleen A. Burge, and Maya L. Groner
Submissions from 2022
Ocean acidification does not overlook sex: Review of understudied effects and implications of low pH on marine invertebrate sexual reproduction, Jacqueline L. Padilla-Gamiño, Lindsay Alma, Laura H. Spencer, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, and Leah Wessler
Invertebrate methylomes provide insight into mechanisms of environmental tolerance and reveal methodological biases, Shelly A. Trigg, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Mackenzie R. Gavery, Steven B. Roberts, Debashish Bhattacharya, Alan Downey-Wall, Jose M. Eirin-Lopez, Kevin M. Johnson, Katie E. Lotterhos, Jonathan B. Puritz, and Hollie M. Putnam
Differential DNA methylation in Pacific oyster reproductive tissue in response to ocean acidification, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Samuel J. White, and Steven B. Roberts
Submissions from 2020
UV radiation increases flavonoid protection but decreases reproduction in Silene littorea, José Carlos del Valle, Mª Luisa Buide, Justen B. Whittall, Fernando Valladares, and Eduardo Narbona
Genome skimming and microsatellite analysis reveal contrasting patterns of genetic diversity in a rare sandhill endemic (Erysimum teretifolium, Brassicaceae), José Carlos del Valle, Julie A. Herman, and Justen B. Whittall
Ocean Acidification Induces Subtle Shifts in Gene Expression and DNA Methylation in Mantle Tissue of the Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica), Alan M. Downey-Wall, Louise P. Cameron, Brett M. Ford, Elise M. McNally, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Steven B. Roberts, Justin B. Ries, and Katie E. Lotterhos
Sustainable, Alginate-Based Sensor for Detection of Escherichia coli in Human Breast Milk, Nicholas Kikuchi, Margaret May, Matthew Zweber, Jerard Madamba, Craig M. Stephens, Unyoung Kim, and Maryam Mobed-Miremadi
Carryover effects of temperature and pCO2 across multiple Olympia oyster populations, Laura H. Spencer, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Ryan Crim, Stuart Ryan, Micah J. Horwith, and Steven B. Roberts
Unexpected predicted length variation for the coding sequence of the sleep related gene, BHLHE41 in gorilla amidst strong purifying selection across mammals, Krishna Unadkat and Justen B. Whittall
Influence of ocean acidification on eastern (Crassostrea virginica) and Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) DNA methylation, Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Alan M. Downey-Wall, Kathleen E. Lotterhos, and Steven B. Roberts
General DNA Methylation Patterns and Environmentally-Induced Differential Methylation in the Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica), Yaamini R. Venkataraman, Alan M. Downey-Wall, Justin Ries, Isaac Westfield, Samuel J. White, Steven B. Roberts, and Kathleen E. Lotterhos
Submissions from 2019
Stability of petal color polymorphism: the significance of anthocyanin accumulation in photosynthetic tissues, José Carlos del Valle, Cristina Alcalde-Eon, Mª Teresa Escribano-Bailón, Mª Luisa Buide, Justen B. Whittall, and Eduardo Narbona
Whole Plastome Sequencing Within Silene Section Psammophilae Reveals Mainland Hybridization and Divergence With the Balearic Island Populations, José Carlos del Valle, Inés Casimiro-Soriguer, Mᵃ Luisa Buide, Eduardo Narbona, and Justen B. Whittall
