Maureen A. Griffin, Assistant Professor of Surgical Oncology, earned a DVM from the University of California–Davis, and is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons–Small Animal, and a Fellow of Surgical Oncology with the American College of Veterinary Surgeons. Dr. Griffin completed her internship at Penn Vet and went on to complete a residency at the University of California–Davis, and a post-doctoral fellowship in surgical oncology at Colorado State University's Flint Animal Cancer Center. Dr. Griffin’s clinical and research interests include novel imaging techniques to enhance pre- and intra-operative primary and metastatic disease localization and removal, as well as minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic surgical procedures and interventional radiology within the field of surgical oncology. Specific areas of interest include: sentinel lymph node mapping preoperatively and intraoperatively; tumor imaging techniques pre-, intra-, and post-operatively; embolization and chemoembolization for treatment of nonresectable disease or conditions with high morbidity associated with traditional surgical techniques; ablation techniques for utility as treatment options of neoplastic diseases; and interventional techniques to maximize care in potential palliative or adjunctive settings.
Andrew J. Modzelewski recently joined the department of Biomedical Sciences as an Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology. He received a BSc in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Penn State University and earned his PhD in Genetics, Genomics and Development from Cornell University, and just completed a post-doctoral fellowship at University of California–Berkeley. He is interested in understanding the phenomenon of retrotransposon reactivation that is essential in preimplantation embryos and for germline development. He plans to extend this research to understand how defects in these normal biological processes contribute to diseases, cancer and fertility in both humans and animals. To study these, the "ModzLab" develops tools for embryo manipulation (CRISPR-EZ) and single cell measurement (TRI-Blot for combined Western/RT-PCR/DNA) that are already widely adapted for direct and immediate practical application in research and animal production. Outside of the lab, Andrew enjoys hiking, kayaking, snowboarding and restoring antiques.