Alumni

This past April, Phan presented her research at the annual meeting of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology in Washington, D.C.

This fall, Ngoc Phan, B.S.; Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior; 1998, will begin the Health Sciences and Technology M.D. program jointly offered by Harvard and MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). For the past year, Phan has worked with the chair of UC Irvine's Department of Medicine, John C. Longhurst. She is studying how nitric oxide (NO), a diffusable gas that acts as a signaling molecule, affects cardiovascular responses to bradykinin, a polypeptide the heart produces when it doesn't get enough oxygen. Phan says, "My research suggests that NO may have contrasting roles in the central nervous system and peripheral tissues. Perhaps in the future we'll develop new therapies for hypertension and other cardiovascular pathologies that involve the regulation and production of NO."

Amy Wolf, Ph.D., Ecology, 1998, received the Sigma Xi award for her outstanding research and dissertation, titled "Population Structure and Reproductive Ecology of Serpentine Endemic Plant Species in California's North Coast Range." Susan Harrison, Wolf's major professor, comments, "Amy's work addressed a timely question in conservation biology and ecology: How does the spatial structure of landscapes shape the distribution, reproductive success, and genetic structure of species? Her study was one of the first to show that isolated plant populations suffer reduced reproductive success. Her work was remarkable for its ambitious geographic scope and its blend of observational, experimental, and genetic approaches."

Lisa Puryear with UC Davis alumnus Brent Weeth. Puryear says her undergraduate education "was more than the courses required for my major and included studying for a quarter in Costa Rica, working as a peer counselor, and conducting research for three years."

Lisa Puryear, B.S., Evolution and Ecology, 1997, is a first-year student in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. Lisa says, "I came to Davis with great dreams of becoming a veterinarian, but once here I discovered that Davis offered more than just solid pre-vet preparation. I took advantage of every department on campus, from textiles to viticulture to English literature. I feel it's just as important to find out what you don't like as well as what you do, so in vet school I'm taking every learning opportunity that crosses my path from dairy cow management to llama shearing, and having a great time doing it."

Gina M. Delucca, B.S., Biological Sciences, 1995, graduated this past June from UC San Francisco (UCSF), with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. She will enter a general practice pharmacy residency at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in San Diego. Gina was selected as one of five nominees for the Bowl of Hygeia award, sponsored by the UCSF Pharmacy Alumni Association. The award is given to a senior student who, in the estimation of classmates and instructors, best demonstrate the qualities of the ideal pharmacist in action, thought, and attitude. In the future Gina hopes to practice in an ambulatory care setting.

Heather Vermazen, née Young, and daughter Sarah, who is wearing a christening gown designed and sewn by her mother.

Heather Vermazen, B.S., Biochemistry, 1989, has turned her hobby of designing and sewing clothes for her daughters into a business, "Mama's Stitches," that specializes in English smocking and French heirloom stitching. French heirloom stitching is a method of attaching lace to fabric to achieve certain shapes. English smocking, the process of embroidering on pleated material, often makes up the front breast piece of dresses for little girls. Vermazen sees her work not only as a business venture, but also as an important American craft in danger of dying out. Previous to having her own business, Vermazen worked as a laboratory technician in the UC Davis School of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, where she studied HIV.

Michael DeAnda, B.S., Biological Sciences, 1981, attended dental school at UC San Francisco and has a general practice in Sacramento, Calif. DeAnda's wife, Marilyn, is a dental hygienist who works one day a week at the practice. The couple's two children, Christian and Andrew, four and seven years old respectively, have, not surprisingly, perfect teeth.

"My wife, Kelly, who graduated in psychology from Davis, and I are quite happy in Santa Barbara." says Mahan. "We have two children: our son, Scott, is three years old and our daughter, Erin, is four months old. Scott loves the beach, and I ride my bike to work, just like in Davis."

Mike Mahan, B.S., Biochemistry, 1978; M.S., Genetics, 1982, is an associate professor of molecular, cellular, and development biology at UC Santa Barbara. In his research, Mahan uses Salmonella, which causes diseases ranging from food and blood poisoning to typhoid fever, to study how bacteria cause disease. Utilizing a special technique, Mahan's laboratory isolated bacterial genes that are on in a mouse and off out of a mouse. The laboratory subsequently identified the master switch that controls the on and off states: bacterial enzyme DNA adenine methylase, or DAM. Mice immunized with DAM mutants were completely protected against a subsequent Salmonella infection. Because DAM is present in many pathogens that cause serious health problems worldwide, including cholera, dysentery, meningitis, typhoid fever, and the plague, Mahan's studies could lead to the development of a new generation of vaccines and antibiotics that combat these infectious diseases.