The Department of Microbiology and Immunology
The Department of Microbiology and Immunology is one of the five Basic Science departments in the UIC College of Medicine. There are currently twenty three faculty members within the department and we are actively recruiting additional new faculty members. At this time, fifteen other UIC faculty members hold Adjunct Faculty appointments in our department. With the inclusion of post-doctoral researchers, research associates, support staff and graduate students, there are over one hundred individuals affiliated with the department. For academic calendar year 2006-2007, there are forty-three graduate students in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology.
Faculty members in our department are well represented on various international, national, regional and university committees, scientific advisory boards, NIH study sections, scientific journal editorial boards and as scientific consultants to public and private sector corporations / companies.
The faculty members of the UIC Department of Microbiology and Immunology are dedicated to providing our graduate students with high quality, stimulating classroom and laboratory experience to ensure that each student receives the scientific training needed to become outstanding scientists.
Research Facilities and Resources
College of Medicine Research Building
The research facilities and resources at UIC and in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology are those of any first-rate, highly research-oriented institution, and enable our vigorous research programs in areas of microbial pathogenesis, molecular virology and viral pathogenesis, immunology, structural biology, proteomics and genomics. The departmental research laboratories occupy over 30,000 square feet of space, in the new College of Medicine Research Building and adjoining buildings. All laboratories are well-equipped for various aspects of research in microbiology, immunology, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry and structural biology. Equipment including fluorescence-activated cell analyzer, light and immunofluorescence microscopes, fluorometer and spectrophotometer, ultracentrifuges, gel electrophoresis, DNA sequencer, gel documentation system, instruments for quantitative analysis and purification of cell proteins and x-ray crystallography are available in the department. Many larger facilities and specialized items are shared within the department, fostering an interactive and communal research environment. The University Research Resources Center includes an outstanding computer facility with a Silicon Graphics molecular structure computer workstation, instrumentation for fluorescence-activated cell sorting and analysis and facilities for the synthesis and analysis of DNA, proteins and peptides. A central electron microscope laboratory is equipped with transmission, scanning, and atomic force microscopes. Instrumentation is also available for small molecule and protein structural analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance, circular dichroism, and mass spectroscopy. A modern biological resources laboratory houses and cares for animals used in research.