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here’s a map of the United States on the wall outside the science labs at Ave Maria University. Dr. James Peliska stands in front of it, pointing out the many places biology and biochemistry graduates have gone off to major medical schools, dental schools, veterinary schools, law schools and graduate programs. Boston University, New York University, Northwestern University, he rattles off, showing off the dozens of map dots that add up to AMU success stories. “They’re all over the place,’’ he says. “The students that we have really go on to some great things.” Peliska is a professor in the Department of Biology and Chemistry and held the position of department chair between 2002 and 2010. He joined the AMU faculty in 2002 when the University was still based in Ypsilanti, Mich. It was Peliska’s job to bring the sciences to AMU. “I started the program without a test tube, without a beaker,’’ he says. “It was a challenge.” But it was a welcome opportunity. Peliska had worked in a major research lab with a dozen other scientists and dealt in millions of dollars in research grants, but his heart pulled him to academics. In 1993, Peliska was teaching at the University of Michigan as an assistant professor of biological chemistry and had started the undergraduate biochemistry program along with four other professors. He enjoyed the job at Michigan and felt that he and his wife were called to the area for a higher purpose. They soon would find out about Ave Maria University and because they wanted to be part of the Catholic tradition of the school, Peliska waited until the University branched out into his specialty. “I always felt that as soon as Ave Maria was ready, that was the place for me,’’ he said. “Finally, they were.” Starting a department and a science lab without the essentials was difficult. The first lab was in an old elementary school closet. They also used labs at Eastern Michigan University. Finally, in 2006, the school was ready to move to Southwest Florida. Peliska and Dr. Joshua Lees put their plans on paper and modern labs, although they were portable classrooms, were brought to the first AMU campus at the Vineyards in North
Naples. Those same labs are on the campus of St. John Neumann Catholic High in Naples. “They worked just great,’’ Peliska said. Now the labs are state-of-the-art in the Paul M. Henkels Academic Building on the AMU campus. It’s where research is done, including Peliska’s work into trying to analyze an enzyme integral to the HIV virus. (See What’s the Science?) Joe Embry, 21, a 2013 AMU graduate, worked on Peliska’s research with him. “It was great being part of it,’’ he said, explaining that he spent about last summer in the lab. “We had a good amount of autonomy.” He graduated this spring with his degree in biology and a minor in chemistry. His brother, Levi, 23, did the same last year. Both are headed off to veterinary schools now. Joe is going to Texas A & M, while his brother is going to Oklahoma State. “Dr. Peliska is a hidden gem at Ave Maria,’’ Levi Embry said. “He’s extremely good. He helped us work through problems a lot. He spent a lot of time doing big-time research. But he’s really good with putting up with college juniors learning organic chemistry.” With only 27 veterinary schools in the country, the competition is tough, Peliska says. He’s proud of the Embry brothers. Although every AMU student takes science courses, some really excel and some didn’t even realize they had an interest until they got into the labs. “They’re both very hard workers and they catch on very fast,’’ he said. “Joe jumps right in, while Levi is a little more deliberate.” Peliska enjoys being an educator and says he loves instilling the love of science in his students. “That’s what I’m here for,” he said. “These brilliant scientists and doctors have to come from somewhere.’’ The Embrys, who are from Kemp, Texas, a 3,000-person town near Dallas, will find out where their talents take them, whether it’s working with cattle or dogs and cats in a clinic. Both had considered being medical doctors, but changed their goals to veterinary medicine. Both feel the pull to help creatures who can’t help themselves. “I like working with people, “ Joe Embry said. “But I’d rather not have the person as the patient. I like working with animals.” Success stories like the Embry brothers make Peliska more than proud. The sciences are alive and well on campus, he said. And now they’re getting a spotlight. “We’ve been a major part of the University that nobody knows about,” he said. amu
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WHAT’S THE SCIENCE? My current main focus is on trying to understand the biochemical causes of drug resistance in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The genome of HIV is composed of single stranded RNA. After infection, a viral enzyme called reverse transcriptase, assisted by other proteins, converts the ssRNA into double stranded DNA. This DNA is then inserted into the host chromosome by a second viral enzyme, integrase. Since reverse transcriptase plays a central role in viral replication, it is an important target in drug development against HIV infection. Many of the currently used HIV anti-retroviral drugs inhibit, or “shut down” viral replication by inhibiting reverse transcriptase. Unfortunately, the genome displays a high rate of mutation formation. That is, much like the influenza virus (which is why you need a different flu shot each season), the virus is always changing due to these mutations. One of the consequences of this high mutation rate is that the virus rapidly develops resistance to drugs, rendering these drugs ineffective. — Dr. James Peliska
avemaria.edu | spring 2013 |
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