upcoming events

Ph.D. Candidate Anthony Auletta is kicking off the new year in sunny Tampa, FL, at the 2019 Annual Meeting of the Society for Intregrative & Comparative Biology (SICB). The meeting will take place in the Tampa Convention Center from January 3-7th. If you'll be in attendance, please come check out Anthony's poster, which details the latest and greatest research he's done as part of his doctoral dissertation:

Auletta A, Mesce KA. 2019. An examination of biogenic amines in nervous system of the scorpion Centruroides sculpturatus (Scorpiones: Buthidae) provides insight into the evolution of neuromodulatory systems in the Arthropoda. 

And, of course, from all of us here in the Mesce Lab, have a safe, happy, and productive new year!! We look forward to all of the wonderful things to come in 2019!

We're taking this show on the road! That's right-- this November, you'll have the chance to learn about all of the great research we've been doing at not one, but two conferences!

Newhoff M, Smith C, Ebbini E, Mesce KA. 2018. Low intensity ultrasound reversibly inhibits single neuron firing in a tractable invertebrate model.

Mesce KA, Bigelow AW, Puhl JG. 2018. Reorganization of proprioceptive inputs facilitates locomotor recovery after injury to the CNS.

Auletta A, Mesce KA. 2018. A window into the past: evidence for an ancient tripartite dopaminergic, adrenergic, and octopaminergic signaling system in the Chelicerata.

In addition, Anthony will also be participating in the ESA Student Debates this year, alongside fellow entomology graduate students Anh Tran, Edwin Benkert, and Dylan Tussey. Their debate will take place on Tuesday the 13th at 3:00pm. Come by and cheer on their team!

Karen begins as president-elect for the 2018-20 term, after which she will officially take over as president for the 2020-22 term, which includes the 2020 International Congress of Neuroethology in Lisbon, Portugal.

Congratulations again, Karen, on your well-deserved victory!

PI Karen Mesce and Ph.D. Candidate Morgan Newhoff will both be in attendance and showcasing their research with poster presentations. If you will be at the meeting, please stop by our posters... we are excited to show you what we've been up to this past year! The full poster citations are below:

Newhoff M, Ebbini E, Mesce KA. 2018. The effects of ultrasound neuromodulation on behaviorally relevant neuronal firing patterns.

Mesce KA, Puhl JG, Bigelow AW, Newhoff M. 2018. Locomotor recovery after injury in the medicinal leech: novel proprioceptive pathways correlate with the return of locomotion.

We hope to see you down under, mate!

Auletta A, Bigelow AW, Newhoff M, Mesce KA. 2017. Dopamine and norepinephrine as neuromodulators of arachnid behavior: Anatomical and physiological insights from the scorpion Centruroides sculpturatus (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Poster D3026.

We hope to see you there!

Can you believe that it’s already been a full year since our lab hosted a Bugs ’n Brews (Entomology Social Hour) and turned Hodson Hall into a 1920s speakeasy? Well, the time has come for us to host Bugs ’n Brews again, and this time… we want to see what you got! That’s why the Mesce Lab is pleased to present Entomology’s Got Talent: the first-ever Entomology Department talent show! That’s right— in addition to all of the usual refreshments & comeraderie you’ve come to love from Bugs ’n Brews, this time there will also be an optional talent competition! So, come strut your stuff! We even have a few prizes for the very best acts….

It’s going to be so much fun, and we look forward to seeing all of our friends and colleagues in the Entomology Department there! The festivities will take place this Friday (August 4th), from 4-6pm in Hodson Hall 490. We hope that you can make it!

Ph.D. candidate Morgan Newhoff will be presenting preliminary findings from her doctoral research next Wednesday (May 17th), as part of the Graduate Program in Neuroscience Colloqium series. Her talk, entitled An Investigation into the Cellular Mechanisms Underlying Ultrasonic Neuromodulation, will take place from 12:00-1:00pm in Jackson Hall 2-137. Come join us if you can! And good luck, Morgan (we know you’ll do a great job)!

We will have two posters at this year’s meeting— come find us at them and say “hi!:”

Puhl JG, Newhoff MM, Rue MCP, Bigelow AW, Mesce KA. The contribution of central and sensory information in locomotor recovery after injury to the CNS. Poster #536, Tuesday (November 15th) 8am-12pm

Newhoff M, Mueller J, Legon W, Mesce KA. 2016. Ultrasonic modulation of a single identified neuron in an intact invertebrate system. Poster #626, Tuesday (November 15th) 1pm-5pm 

Hope to see you there!

Need something fun to do this Saturday (October 15th)? Then come by the Bell Museum and hear Ph.D. candidate Anthony Auletta talk about his research on spider neurobiology, as part of the museum’s Best of “Saturday with a Scientist” Showcase!

Anthony’s display, “Spiders: Small Brains, Big Behaviors,” will be up in the main hallway of the museum from 11:30am-1:00pm, and Anthony will be there to show off some cool live arachnids and answer all of your spider questions. Then, from 1:00-1:30, he will be giving a special talk in room 175, entitled “Why I Love Spiders (and You Should Too).” We hope to see you there! This event is free, open to the public, and great for kids and adults alike.