Dr. Peter J Cavnar

HMCSE's Associate Dean, Biology Department Chair and Associate Professor, Peter Cavnarhas a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences -- Cell & Molecular Biology from Florida State University. He also did a four-year Postdoctoral Appointment to the University of Wisconsin-Madison -- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology. At UWF, his research seeks to understand how defects in basic cell biology processes will result in disease pathogenesis. He is specifically interested in cell motility and the cytoskeleton, and cell death and differentiation. He currently uses a model neutrophil cell line to model immunology related diseases, such as defects in the gene HAX1, which results in severe congenital neutropenia (SCN). Neutrophils are key mediators of the innate immune system. They are the first responders to sites of infection or acute injury, but they also can contribute to the progression of inflammation and the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, such as arthritis and lupus. Cavnar is also interested in the cell biology of marine organisms. He is currently developing a model system using comb jellies (Ctenophores) in order to understand the evolutionary origins of wound healing and regeneration. Cavnar’s research has been published in the Journal of Cellular Biology, Journal of Biological Chemistry, Developmental Cell, and other publications. Cavnar, who joined UWF in 2012, also shares a patent with collaborators utilizing microfluidics to study cell biology. Cavnar teaches Cell Biology, General Biology, Zoology, Biochemistry, and related subjects.