Primary Research Area:

Biomedical Engineering including Bioinformatics

Research Interests:

Bioinformatics, microbial proteomics.

Education:

BS in Physics, 1989, University of Utah
MS in Computer Science, 1992, University Of Wisconsin
PhD in Bioinformatics, 1997, University of Wisconsin
Research Associate in Proteomics, 1998-2001, University of Utah

About Dr. Morgan Giddings:

We are interested in uncovering the fundamental systems-wide processes and mechanisms that underlie life, with a human-health focus. We apply a combination of both modern and traditional tools to this pursuit, including bioinformatics, proteomics, microarrays, molecular genetics, bench work, and software development. Current research areas we focus on include: 1) locating the molecular mechanisms that underlie antibiotic tolerance in the bacteria /Pseudomonas aeruginosa/, to address the threat that drug resistant organisms pose to those with COPD and Cystic Fibrosis; 2) annotation of the human genome with proteomic data, to determine which genes are translated and when, and how those correlate with prevalent diseases such as cancer; 3) development of computational agent-based models of intramolecular pathways and pathogen-host interactions in HIV, to determine how host-pathogen interactions relate to disease progression; 4) development of software tools for analysis of RNA structures, such as the viral HIV genome, to assist with determining how RNA structure impacts function; and 5) developing software for finding post-translational modifications (PTMs) on proteins by integrating proteomic data sets, to determine the role that these play on cellular signaling in healthy and diseased states. We have a wide diversity lab members, from microbiology bench scientists to computer scientists, and would be a great fit for a student looking for a broad, cross-disciplinary training environment focused on either microbiology and/or genomics.


Morgan Giddings received her initial training in physics and computer science. In 1992, while attending graduate school at UW-Madison in computer science, she became interested in applying computers to biological problems, and shifted gears into the brand-new field of bioinformatics. She received her PhD in 1997, focused on software for improved and more automated DNA sequencing under the tutelage of Prof. Lloyd Smith. She then did post-doc work at the University of Utah in the Department of Human Genetics, training under Prof. Ray Gesteland. There she broadened her horizons into proteomics and the molecular mechanisms of protein translation, focusing on software development related to these two areas. Then in 2002, Morgan joined UNC-Chapel Hill as an assistant professor in the Microbiology & Immunology Department and the Biomedical Engineering Department. In her time at UNC, she has further broadened her interests into molecular/microbiology wet bench work that can be pursued synergistically with computational, proteomic, and other systems approaches, to more rapidly and effectively grapple with challenging health problems like antibiotic resistant microbes. In 2007 she joined the Computer Science department at UNC as an adjunct faculty member. She is a co-founder of and training faculty for UNC’s program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, a member of the Carolina Center for Genome Sciences, and a faculty trainer in UNC’s Genetics and Molecular Biology training program.

Recent Publications:

1. Shah, A.A., Giddings, M.C., Parvaz, J.B., Gesteland, R.F., Atkins, J.F., and Ivanov, I.P., Computational identification of putative programmed translational frameshift sites. Bioinformatics, 2002. 18(8): 1046-53. [ Related link ]
2. M.C. Giddings, A. A. Shah, S. Freier, J.F. Atkins, R.F. Gesteland and O.V. Matveeva. 2002. Artificial neural network prediction of antisense oligodeoxynucleotide activity. Nucleic Acids Res, 30(19), 4295-304 [ Related link ]
3. Giddings, M.C., Shah, A.A., Gesteland, R.F., and Moore, M.B. (2003). “Genome-based peptide fingerprint scanning.” Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA. 100(1):20-25. [ Related link ]
4. M.V. Buchanan, F.W. Larimer, H.S. Wiley, S.J. Kennel, T.J. Squier, J.M. Ramsey, K.D. Rodland, G.B. Hurst, R.D. Smith, Y. Xu, D. Dixon, M.J. Doktycz, S. Colson, R. Gesteland, C. Giometti, M. Young, and M. Giddings. 2002. Genomes to Life “Center for Molecular and Cellular Systems”: A Research Program for Identification and Characterization of Protein Complexes. Omics, A Journal of Integrative Biology. 6(4):287-304 [ Related link ]
5. Wisz, M.S., M.K. Suarez, M.R. Holmes, and M.C. Giddings, GFSWeb: A Web Tool for Genome-Based Identification of Proteins from Mass Spectrometric Samples. Journal of Proteome Research, 2004. In Press. [ Related link ]

Date of Last Modification: 1/8/2009

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