Insect virus researcher Michelle Flenniken, a postdoctoral scholar in
the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of
California, San Francisco, is the newly selected Häagen-Dazs
Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Davis.

"We're hoping that Michelle Flenniken's expertise in molecular
virology will lead to understanding one of the factors contributing to
colony collapse disorder and lead to strategies that increase honeybee
survival," said Lynn Kimsey, chair of the Department of Entomology and
director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology.

Skilled in multidisciplinary research — molecular biology,
microbiology, chemistry and cell biology — Flenniken will focus on the
biology of honeybee viruses, specifically the role of RNA interference
(RNAi) in the honeybee antiviral immune responses, Kimsey said.

* In 2006, Andrew Fire and Craig C. Mello shared the Nobel Prize in
Physiology or Medicine for their work on RNA interference. It was
evident from the very beginning that the significance of RNAi would be
exceptional. The far-reaching consequences include: RNAi protects
against viral infections. We know that this anti-viral mechanism is at
work in plants, worms and flies, whereas it is still unclear how
relevant it is for vertebrates, including man (2006
http://nobelprize.org)

-- 
Peter L Borst
Danby, NY  USA
42.35, -76.50
http://picasaweb.google.com/peterlborst

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