ABOUT US
Principal Investigator
Muhammad A. Spocter, Ph.D. Human Biology
Associate Professor of Anatomy, Des Moines University
Honory Research Associate, University of Witwatersrand
Affiliate Assistant Professor, Iowa State University
Email:
Office Phone: 515-271-1577
Lab Phone: 515-271-7485
About: I am a biological anthropologist from South Africa. I completed my graduate training at the University of Witwatersrand (Ph.D, 2007) under the guidance of Dr. Paul Manger. I relocated to the USA and completed my postdoctoral training at The George Washington University with Dr. Chet Sherwood. In the Fall of 2011, I joined Des Moines University and established the Evolving Brain Lab with the goal of expanding our understanding of mammalian brain evolution.I am passionate about community engaged scholarship and as a first generation college student I am an ardent supporter of initiatives that help to expand STEM education.
Research Assistant
Kathleen Bitterman, BSc. Mathematics
Email:
Office phone: 515-271-7485
About: I am a native of Iowa and completed my undergraduate education at Iowa State University. I joined the Anatomy Department at Des Moines University in 2009.
Major Equipment and Facilities
Nikon 80i microscope equipped for brightfield microscopy; MBF Bioscience integrated stereology analysis software; Equipment for histological sectioning and immunocytochemical staining, modified Leica SM2000R sliding microtome, Leica CryoHistostat; Mac Pro workstation, Analyze 10.0 software for 3D biomedical image visualization and analysis, NextEngine 3D Laser Scanner, Monoprice Mini & Maker 3D Printers,
Mentored Research Interns
Sophonie Nash Dusabe (Drake University) Samantha Lord (MA'17), Michael Conte (DO'17); Jeremiah Fairbanks (DO'17); Kayla Olson (MA' 15); Amy Nguyen (Drake University); Naveen Nath (DMPS); Brian Whyms (DO'16), David Cain (DPM'16), Christopher Hoisington (Iowa State University); Emma Fisher (DMPS); Ian Odigie (DPM '16);Steven Rose (DO'18); Ashraf Uddin (D0'18); Victoria Knauf (DPM'18); Lisa Le Hang (DO'19), Ella Dublin (Drake University); Ian Glidden (BMS ISU), Pavel Fillipov ((DPM'19), Brittany Wilson (DO'20), Jacob Nelson (DO'20)
© 2015 by Evolving Brain Laboratory (EBL)