With enough funds to realize two of its immediate goals, the Department of Cell Biology is forging ahead under its new chair Brigid Hogan. Since her arrival, Hogan has initiated the recruitment of new faculty and the renovation of existing research space.
Hogan, professor of cell biology, said she wishes to engender an interdepartmental focus by recruiting faculty with shared interests and by combining individual lab space in the Nanaline H. Duke Building, home of the cell biology and biochemistry departments.
Hogan took the reins from interim chair Harold Erickson, professor of cell biology, in December.
After implementing plans to increase the size of the faculty by 10 over the next five years, Hogan has received interest from 214 applicants for the two to four spots open this year. Each of the 10 finalists will visit the cell biology department over a two-day period this spring, meeting not only the faculty and graduate students of the cell biology department but also faculty of neurobiology, biology, microbiology and genetics.
"It's the future of science," Hogan said. "It's become interdisciplinary and interdepartmental. We're also trying to recruit people who can translate basic science [research] to clinical work."
As the first female chair of a basic sciences department in the history of the Medical Center, Hogan said that approximately one-third of the applicant pool were women.
She noted, however, that the main focus of recruitment will center on attracting faculty whose interests span many departments.
Hogan added that the theory of sharing knowledge in general is what fueled the design for the renovation of space in the Nanaline H. Duke Building. Instead of the many tight, individual labs, the lab space has been condensed into one long room with several benches to facilitate discussion on the various research in the department.
"When you're recruiting people, they are looking at the best institutions, and I feel that our renovated space in Nanaline is pretty good," said Blanche Capel, an associate professor of cell biology and the director of graduate studies.
One-third of the building has been renovated and will be ready to accommodate the incoming faculty for this year. Hogan said she is counting on additional space from the newly constructed Center for Human Disease Models to house additional faculty with expertise in both cell biology and modeling.
Marc Caron, James B. Duke research professor of cell biology and interim director of the center, is very enthusiastic about the potential for collaboration. "We have a great opportunity because of the opening of the Center for Models of Human Disease [in the spring]," he said.
Since Hogan's arrival, the department has also seen the addition of a new imaging center, the centerpiece of which is a $400,000 confocal microscope that visualizes the various layers of the cell.
Hogan played a pivotal role in hiring the director of the center-which will ultimately house three confocal microscopes-as well as in facilitating the renovation of space to house the microscopes.
Jo Wright, vice dean of basic sciences and professor of cell biology, underscored Hogan's great opportunity as the permanent chair of cell biology. "She gets to shape the future of this department in a major way," she said.
In addition to continuing her research, Hogan is also juggling teaching responsibilities for a stem cell course.
"I want to learn as much as possible of what is going on [in the department]," Hogan said. "You can't ask people to do something unless you're willing to do it either."
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