Michael Graves
Associate Professor & Acting Chair
Department of Biological Sciences, President of the Faculty Senate
Expertise
Molecular Biology and Virology
Research Interests
Molecular Biology and Virology
Research in my lab focuses on the chlorella viruses that infect chlorella-like algae. They are distributed worldwide and many genetically distinct isolates populate a single water sample. Their genome is unusually large. One isolate, PBCV-1, for example, (genome size = 330744 bp dsDNA) codes for ~375 proteins, nearly half of which resemble proteins of known function. The genomes of other chlorella virus isolates are probably co-linear with PBCV-1 and appear to share many, but not all, genes. This suggests that the entire "gene pool" of this genus exceeds the 375 PBCV-1-encoded genes. Many of these genes encode proteins (e.g., enzymes involved in protein glycosylation) rarely associated with viruses.
Education
- Ph D: Molecular Genetics, Virology, (1992), Oregon State University - Oregon
Dissertation/Thesis Title: Analysis of two highly expressed genes from Chlorella virus PBCV-1: Protein characterization and the DNA sequences of the major capsid protein gene and the early/late 33-kDa protein gene. - BS: Biology, (1986), University of Nebraska, Lincoln. - Lincoln, Nebraska
Selected Awards and Honors
- Teaching Appreciation Award (2008) - Student Government Association, University of Massachusetts, Lowell
- Teaching Excellence Award (2005) - Department of Biological Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Lowell
- Phi Beta Kappa (1986) - University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Alpha Chapter