Sean E. Connolly, Ph.D., Stony Brook University awarded Annual Dissertation Award 2006 by Northeastern Association of Graduate Schools

STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Sean Connolly, from the Ph.D. program in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology department was the 2005-2006 recipient of the Dissertation Award. A former student in Jorge Benach's lab who graduated in 2004, Sean Connolly was honored by Northeastern Association of Graduate Schools for his outstanding dissertation in the fields of Agricultural, Biological, and Health Sciences.

The dissertation titled, ‘The Clearance of Relapsing Fever Spirochetemia is Mediated by Complement-Independent Bactericidal Antibodies ', demonstrated the presence of a functionally unique component of the immune response to a bacterial infection. The research highlighted a new function of antibodies and enhanced the understanding of how the immune system protects a host from infection.

According to Jorge Benach, Dissertation Director to Connolly, "Mr. Connolly came from the University of Scranton with excellent recommendations. He joined my lab and from the onset made it quite apparent that he had the makings of a great scientist. He did in-depth background study, had excellent command over literature and impressive writing skills. Research was carried on in the lab on a different species before Connolly stepped in but his choice of using mice with single-gene immunodeficiencies made his thesis very definitive. He is the ideal recipient for this Award."

Born in Olean , New York in 1977, Connolly studied Biochemistry at the University of Scranton , where he obtained his Bachelors degree in Science. In 2003, he received the Abrahams Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement by a Graduate Student from the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Stony Brook University and was also awarded a Postdoctoral Fellowship by the Interdisciplinary Immunology Training Program. Currently, he is a postdoctoral fellow in the Section of Immunobiology at Yale University .

Each year, all member institutions submit nominations and more than 100 schools in USA and Canada compete for this acclaimed Award. NAGS awards $1000 to the winner at the annual meeting and the recipient is invited to attend the meeting as a guest of the association.