Michael T. Bowser	(352)846-0838
Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota	bowser@chem.umn.edu

Dr. Michael Bowser received his B.Sc. with first class honors from Dalhousie University (Halifax, NS) in 1994. He graduated from Professor David Chen’s group at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC) with his Ph.D. in 1998 as a NSERC post-graduate fellow. His thesis covered topics ranging from molecular interactions and their effect on analyte migration in capillary electrophoresis to nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis buffer systems. During his doctoral studies Dr. Bowser published eleven papers, made twelve presentations at scientific meetings and was U.B.C.’s nomination for the NSERC doctoral prize in the year 2000. Dr. Bowser was an NSERC postdoctoral fellow at the University of Florida from 1999-2000. He developed improved techniques for the in vivo monitoring of amine neurotransmitters under the guidance of Professor Robert Kennedy. Dr. Bowser has recently accepted an assistant professorship at the University of Minnesota where he will continue research in bioanalytical chemistry with particular interests in the in vivo monitoring of important neurotransmitters and hormones, and the in vitro evolution of functional biomolecules.

Neuronal communication is largely mediated by neurochemical transmission. Analytical techniques that can monitor the concentrations of neurotransmitters in the extracellular fluid on a time scale that approaches neuronal activity allow us to “listen in” on neuronal communication in the brain. Dr. Bowser plans to expand on his postdoctoral work where he developed a microdialysis-capillary electrophoresis-laser induced fluorescence technique that simultaneously monitors glutamate, GABA, glycine, taurine, aspartate and dopamine in vivo with a temporal resolution of under 20 seconds. This was a significant improvement over conventional microdialysis based techniques that typically have temporal resolution on the order of 15-20 minutes. The technique makes use of microdialysis followed by online reaction, high speed capillary electrophoresis separation and high sensitivity LIF detection in a sheath-flow cuvette. This technique allows the important amine neurotransmitters to be measured on a time scale approaching that of neuronal activity for the first time. Future projects range from instrumental (improving sampling techniques, developing assays for new neurotransmitters, microfabrication, etc.) to biological (characterizing new neurotransmitters, studying neurochemical rhythms, measuring neurochemical changes induced by sensory stimuli, quantifying neurotransmitter release and uptake kinetics, etc.) providing an opportunity to gain experience in a wide range of fields.

A second area of research that Dr. Bowser’s group will undertake involves the development of functional biomolecules (aptamers) using in vitro evolution (SELEX). SELEX is a process that separates functional molecules from random DNA or RNA pools using affinity chromatography. The molecules that show affinity for the target are amplified using PCR, mutated and reselected against the target. Several repetitions of this cycle provides a pool of biomolecules that show affinity for the target molecule. To date this technique has largely been practiced by molecular biologists with limited understanding of separation science. This is regrettable considering the fact that the separation is the most critical step of the process. Dr. Bowser plans to assess the SELEX technique from a separation scientist’s perspective. New separation techniques will be employed and efforts will be made to minimize evolutionary biases introduced by the separation process. Secondary projects involve the selection of analytically useful aptamers. These projects include developing aptamer assays for neurotransmitters, designing aptamers for use in viral diagnosis, and integrating the SELEX process onto a microfluidic chip.