Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences

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The Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences is one of the academic units of the University of California, Irvine (UCI). The school is divided into four departments: Developmental and Cell Biology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, and Neurobiology and Behavior. With over 3,700 students it is in the top four largest schools in the university.[1] It is consistently ranked in the top one hundred in U.S. News & World Report’s yearly list of best graduate schools.[2]

History

The Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences first opened in 1965 at the University of California, Irvine and was one of the first schools founded when the University campus opened. The school's founding Dean, Edward A. Steinhaus,[3] had four founding department chairs and started out with 17 professors.[4]

On March 12, 2014, the School was officially renamed after UCI professor and donor Francisco J. Ayala by Chancellor Michael V. Drake.[5]

List of Deans

1. Edward A. Steinhaus, Founding Dean, 1963-67
2. James L. McGaugh, 1967-70
3. Howard A. Schneiderman, 1970-79
4. Grover C. Stephens, 1982-86
5. L. Dennis Smith, 1987-90
6. Elvera R. Ehrenfeld, 1992-96
7. Shin Lin, 1997-2000
8. Susan V. Bryant, 2000-2006
9. Al Bennett, 2007-2013
10. Frank LaFerla, 2014–present

Departments

1. Developmental and Cell Biology[6]

The department's research program has an emphasis on genetic control cell growth, differentiation and morphogenesis that leads to the creation of tissue and organs of animals. A list of topics that the Department covers: Cancer Cell Biology, Developmental Genetics, Environmental Toxicology, Molecular Signaling, Neurobiology, Organelle Biology, Stem Cell Biology, and Systems Biology. The department has incorporated other disciplines such as bio engineering and physical sciences research for both undergraduate and graduate students. The department chair is currently Professor Diane O'Dowd.

2. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology[7]

The Ecology and Evolutionary Biology department of the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences has research that varies from the development of ecosystems to the effects evolutionary mechanisms on organisms in a particular environment. The department allows students to conduct fieldwork to exploring a ecology and evolution in a diversity of organisms. In addition, students have the opportunity to research in regions around Irvine as well as working at other sites such as New Zealand, Madagascar, and Croatia. The department chair is currently Professor Larry Mueller.

3. Molecular Biology and Biochemistry[8]

The Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry has research in nucleic acids and proteins, regulation, virology, biochemical genetics, gene organization, cell and developmental biology, molecular genetics, biomedical genetics and immunology. The Department offers degrees in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in addition to a degree in Microbiology and Immunology. However, the Department only admits certain biology students into the program for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. The Microbiology & Immunology program is designated for undergraduate students that intend to attend medical school or PH.D programs. Programs for graduates are done in partnership with the Cellular and Molecular BioSciences Department. The department chair is currently Professor Christopher C.W. Hughes.

The National Research Council has named the University of California, Irvine's Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry in the top fifteen percent of programs in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology.

4. Neurobiology and Behavior[6]

Founded in 1964, the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior was originally called the Department of Psychobiology. This is the only department that was not organized by Edward Steinhaus. The task was given to founding chair Dr. James L. McGaugh to form a Department to study neural functionality, circuits, and systems to behavioral interactions with the environment.

The Department of Neurobiology and Behavior has research on memory, age-related neurodegenerative disorders, sensory and integrative neuroscience, neuronal development, neurocomputation, and neurobiology. The department works with various research centers and organizations in and outside of orange county.

The Department of Neurobiology and Behavior of the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences contains the highest ranked programs in the UC system. In addition, the Department is in the top five percent of Neuroscience programs as stated by the National Research Council. The department chair is currently Frank M. LaFerla who is going to receive an award for his outstanding service to the UCI community.[9]

Undergraduate Majors

The following is a list of majors offered to undergraduate students at the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences:

Biological Sciences
Biology/Education
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Developmental and Cell Biology
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Genetics
Human Biology
Microbiology and Immunology
Neurobiology

Graduate Major

The following is a list of majors offered for graduates and master students at the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences:

Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in the Biological Sciences
Master of Science with a Concentration in Biotechnology
Master of Science in Biotechnology Management (MSBTM)
Master of Science in Biological Sciences and Educational Media Design
Graduate Program in Cellular and Molecular Biosciences
Graduate Program in Mathematical and Computational Biology
Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program

Research Facilities

Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences works with the following research facilities:

Center for Environmental Biology
Center for Hearing Research
Center for Virus Research
Multiple Sclerosis Research Center
Beckman Laser Institute
Cancer Research Institute
Center for Complex Biological Systems
Center for the Neurobiology of Learning & Memory
Developmental Biology Center
Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics
Institute for Immunology
Institute for Memory Impairments & Neurological Disorders (UCI MIND)
Network for Experimental Research on Evolution
Reeve-Irvine Research Center
Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center
Urban Water Research Center

Notes

  1. ↑ </http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/research-rankings/page+2> In 2013, the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences contained 19.4 percent of the student population Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ In 2013, the Francisco J. Ayala School of Biological Sciences contained 19.4 percent of the student population Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ http://texts.cdlib.org/view?docId=hb629006wb&doc.view=frames&chunk.id=div00041&toc.depth=1&toc.id=
  4. ↑ http://www.bio.uci.edu/about/history/
  5. ↑ http://news.uci.edu/press-releases/uc-irvines-school-of-biological-sciences-renamed-in-honor-of-francisco-j-ayala/
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 http://www.bio.uci.edu/departments/#developmental
  7. ↑ http://www.bio.uci.edu/departments/#ecology
  8. ↑ http://ceb.bio.uci.edu/
  9. ↑ http://www.ocregister.com/articles/laferla-609666-award-dean.html

External links

References


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