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Dr. Fang 's research has been focusing
on two areas: tick molecular vector biology and tick molecular
systematics, including molecular population genetics.
Ticks are obligate, nonpermanent ectoparasites of terrestrial
vertebrates. Although only around 850 species worldwide, ticks can be
found in every continent of the world. Within arthropods, ticks are the
second only to mosquitoes in their transmission of pathogens to humans,
human pets, livestock, and wild animals. The pathogens that ticks
serve as vectors can cause various types of diseases, including Lyme
disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Colorado tick fever, tick-borne
encephalitis, babesiosis, tularemia, tick-borne relapsing fever, and
others. In addition, other maladies such as tick paralysis, tick toxicosis, and anaphylaxis to tick bites also occur. Each year, worldwide
public health costs due to tick-transmitted diseases are estimated to be
in the range of several billion U.S. dollars.
Dr. Fang's lab has been involving in molecular phylogenetic analysis of
ticks using variety of genes, particularly the unused nuclear
protein-encoding genes. The second research effort in Fang's lab
is to investigate genes
that are related to relations of tick, host, and pathogen, including these
genes that are promising in development of anti-tick vaccine.
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Dr. Fang has been involving in teaching courses at multiple levels,
including courses of Cellular and Molecular Biology (laboratory),
Principles of Genetics, Human Genetics, Molecular Biology, Biotechniques, Molecular Systematics, and Molecular
Ecology. In addition to teaching regular courses, Dr. Fang also offers undergraduate research training
course (under Biol 4890).
Please click related links in this page if you are a student at GSU and are interested in finding more about the courses that
are taught by Dr. Fang. (See course related
links).
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