Maureen Ferran Headshot

Maureen Ferran

Associate Professor

Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences
College of Science
mcfsbi@rit.edu
585-475-5689
Office Location
CBT-3139

Maureen Ferran

Associate Professor

Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences
College of Science

Education

BS, Fordham University; MS, Ph.D., University of Connecticut

Bio

Maureen Ferran earned her M.S. and Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of Connecticut, where she studied how viruses evade the host innate immune response. She then went to the Laboratory of Viral Genetics within the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease at the National Institutes of Health, where she studied human papillomavirus.

She is now an associate professor in the Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester NY where she teaches courses including Virology, Infectious Disease: Impact on Society and Culture, and Eukaryotic Gene Regulation and Disease.

Her research lab focuses on the development of viruses as a cancer therapy and as a molecular tool to understand innate immunity and age-related diseases. Studies in her lab also investigate the use of imaging agents to detect and target breast cancer.

mcfsbi@rit.edu
585-475-5689
Personal Links
Personal Website
Areas of Expertise
Virology
Genetics
Molecular Biology
Gene Regulation
Cancer Treatments

Select Scholarship

Journal Paper
Marquis, Kaitlin A, et al. "VSV Matrix Protein Inhibits NF-κB and the Interferon Response Independently in Mouse L929 Cells." Virology 5. 48 (2020): 117-123. Print.
Abdelmageed, Alaa A and Maureen C Ferran. "The Propagation, Quantification, and Storage of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus." Current Protocols in Microbiology 58. 1 (2020): 1-10. Print.
Russell, Thomas M, et al. "Near-Complete Genome Sequences of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Indiana Laboratory Strains HR and T1026R1 and Plaque Isolates 22-20 and 22-25." Microbiology Resoure Announcement. 8. 14 (2019): 1-2. Print.
Ferran, Maureen C, et al. "The Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Matrix Protein Inhibits NF-kB Activation in Mouse L929 Cells." Virology 499. (2016): 99-104. Print.
Invited Article/Publication
Ferran, Maureen C and Gary R Skuse. "Evasion of Host Innate Immunity by Emerging Viruses: Antagonizing Host RIG-I Pathways." Journal of Emerging Disease and Virology. (2017). Web.
Full Length Book
Ferran, Maureen C and Gary R Skuse (Eds). Recombinant Virus Vaccines: Methods in Molecular Biology. Totowa, New Jersey: Humana Press, 2017. Print.
Skusa, Gary R and Maureen C Ferran (Eds). Cardiomyocytes. Methods in Molecular Biology. Totowa, New Jersey: Humana Press, 2015. Print.
Book Chapter
Ferran, Maureen C. "Cell and Molecular Biology." Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT: Technology and Techniques, 8th Edition. Ed. Paul E. Christian , Kristen M. Waterstram-Rich. Maryland Heights, Missouri: Mosby, 2016. 40-55. Print.

Currently Teaching

BIOL-216
Molecular Biology Laboratory
1 Credits
This laboratory course will address the fundamental concepts of Molecular Biology. Students in this laboratory will complement their understanding of core concepts in Molecular Biology through the implementation and practice of laboratory techniques used by Molecular Biologists. Laboratory techniques and projects will focus on recombinant DNA technology and the detection and tracking of biomolecules such as DNA, RNA and proteins.
BIOL-295
Biology Research
1 - 4 Credits
This course is a faculty-directed student project or research involving laboratory work, computer modeling, or theoretical calculations that could be considered of an original nature. The level of study is appropriate for students in their first three years of study.
BIOL-298
Biology Independent Study
1 - 4 Credits
This course is a faculty-directed tutorial of appropriate topics that are not part of the formal curriculum. The level of study is appropriate for student in their first three years of study.
BIOL-301
Undergraduate Teaching Experience
1 - 4 Credits
This course allows students to assist in a class or laboratory for which they have previously earned credit. The student will assist the instructor in the operation of the course. Assistance by the student may include fielding questions, helping in workshops, and assisting in review sessions. In the case of labs, students may also be asked to help with supervising safety practices, waste manifestation, and instrumentation.
BIOL-415
Virology
3 Credits
This course is an introduction to virology with specific emphasis on the molecular mechanisms of virus infection of eukaryotic cells and virus-cell interactions. Virus structure, genetics, the infectious cycle, replication strategies, pathogenesis, persistence, effects on host macromolecular synthesis, viral oncogenesis, viral vectors, emerging viral diseases, and strategies to protect against and combat viral infection will be discussed.
BIOL-428
Eukaryotic Gene Regulation and Disease
3 Credits
This course presents an overview of gene expression in eukaryotic systems, with an emphasis on how disease can result when gene regulation is disrupted. Points of control that are examined include: chromatin structure, transcription initiation, transcript processing, stability and modification, RNA transport, translation initiation, post-translational events, and protein stability. The mechanisms involved in regulating these control points are discussed by exploring specific well studied cases. The significance of these processes is highlighted by a discussion of several diseases that have been shown to be due to defects in gene regulation.
BIOL-460
Infectious Disease: Impact on Society and Culture
3 Credits
This course is an introduction to the probabilistic models and statistical techniques used in computational molecular biology. Examples include Markov models, such as the Jukes-Cantor and Kimura evolutionary models and hidden Markov models, and multivariate models use for discrimination and classification.
BIOL-495
Advanced Biology Research
1 - 4 Credits
This course is a faculty-directed student project or research involving laboratory or field work, computer modeling, or theoretical calculations that could be considered of an original nature. The level of study is appropriate for students in their final two years of study.
BIOL-498
Advanced Biology Independent Study
1 - 4 Credits
This course is a faculty-directed tutorial of appropriate topics that are not part of the formal curriculum. The level of study is appropriate for student in their final two years of study.
BIOL-790
Research and Thesis
1 - 6 Credits
Masters-level research by the candidate on an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
BIOL-798
Grad Biology Independent Study
1 - 4 Credits
This course is a faculty-directed, graduate level tutorial of appropriate topics that are not part of the formal curriculum.
CHMB-460
Infectious Diseases: Impact Society & Culture
3 Credits
This course investigates the mechanisms of pathogenesis of bacterial, viral, and other microbial infectious agents. This course also covers the historical, social, and cultural impact that these infectious diseases have had on society. Topics may include: antibiotics and antibiotic resistance, vaccines, gut microflora and health, foodborne illnesses, bioterrorism, HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and staph infections.

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