Tysha R. Palmer, M.S.M.
Compliance & Award Specialist
Phone: 410-651-6714
Fax: 410-651-7571
Email: trpalmer@umes.edu
Dr. Joseph Pitula, Ph.D.
Dr. Joe Pitula graduated from Rutgers University in 1989 with a B.S. in biology. He then worked 6 years as a lab technician in quality control at Nutrition International, a food testing laboratory. He went on to join the University at Buffalo, where he earned his Ph.D. in microbiology in 2001, focusing on pathogenic organisms. His field of emphasis was two RNA binding proteins from Trypanosoma brucei, the causative agent of African Trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), and how these proteins regulate the formation of ribosomes. He continued his work in RNA binding proteins when he went on to post-doctoral studies in the Department of Nutrition at the University of Wisconsin. There he studied the role of phosphorylation on the binding activity of Iron Regulatory Protein-1 (IRP-1). IRP-1 also has enzymatic function, and went on to demonstrate that phosphorylation has a dramatic impact in controlling substrate preference during its enzymatic function as the cytosolic aconitase. In 2004 he joined the Department of Natural Sciences at UMES, where he has continued his research interests in both protist parasites and enzymology.
Dr. Pitula’s research interests focus on the application of molecular approaches to various ecological issues. Currently his lab is analyzing the environmental distribution of PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” in both marine and terrestrial systems. Research studies are also being conducted to analyze how these chemical may influence the growth and molting patterns in both plants and arthropods. He has also devoted significant amount of his career to studying marine pathogens, primarily a protistan parasite (Hematodinium perezi). Finally, his lab continues to be interested in various microbial species that lead to various harmful algal blooms, and nutrients in the environment that may stimulate their proliferation.
Email: jspitula@umes.edu
Mr. Josh L. Shockley
Contracts and Grants Associate
Phone: 410-651-8993
Fax: 410-651-7571
Email: jlshockley1@umes.edu
