Melanopsin: What is a fly photopigment doing in our eyes?

Dr. Phyllis Robinson is Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).  She received her B.A  in Biology from Wellesley College. She received her Ph.D, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in  working in the laboratory of Deric Bownds. She did postdoctoral work at Brandeis University . In Oprian’s laboratory she was the first to describe constitutively active rhodopsin mutants Her research focuses on visual opsins involved in both image and non image forming functions.

In addition to her research program, Phyllis is known for her efforts to increase the participation of women and minorities in science at UMBC. She co-founded the Women in Science and Engineering group at UMBC and was a Co-PI on the UMBC NSF ADVANCE grant and currently co-chairs the University executive committee on Gender and Diversity in Science, technology, engineering and math.