Dr. Paula F. Dehn
Professor Emeritus Biology
Former Vice President of Academic Affairs
Dr. Dehn received her undergraduate and Master’s degrees in Zoology from DePauw University, her Ph.D. in Biology from the University of South Florida, and was a Visiting Scientist for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans at the Biological Station Saint Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada. She began her academic career at the university of Texas at San Antonio, then moved to Canisius College, where she as Professor and Chair of Biology. She taught courses in environmental health, physiology, toxicology, ecology and evolutionary biology, and was the recipient of the Kenneth L. Koestler Distinguished Faculty Award. Her research program focused on: a) development of human in vitro models for screening &/or monitoring purposes; b) development of in situ bio-monitors; and c) development of biochemically relevant biomarkers of intoxication. She has involved more than 250 undergraduate researchers over her career, many of whom have co-authored papers in scientific journals as well as been co-presenters at numerous international and national scientific meetings. The NIH (MARC, MBRS, & AREA programs) and Merck/AAAS funded her research program; while NSF (ILI, ARFMP, S-STEM programs), DOE, NASA, several private foundations, equipment manufacturers, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has funded programmatic and institutional initiatives. She has served as a proposal reviewer for NSF, Merck/AAAS, HHMI, a program reviewer for NIH (MARC, INBRE programs for Louisiana, Maine and Oklahoma), the State of West Virginia, Biology programs for several private and state colleges nationwide, and for regional institutional accreditation (SACSCOC). She serves on the External Advisory Committee for the Rhode Island INBRE. Through her many years of involvement with the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), she has mentored numerous faculty throughout the U.S., and for more than two decades has been involved in teaching faculty how to successfully write grant proposals and help institutions implement undergraduate research into and throughout the curriculum. She has been a CUR Biology Councilor, past Chair of the Biology Division, served on CUR’s Executive Board, and was the 2008 recipient of a CUR Research Fellows Award.
Publications: (*denotes an Undergraduate)
Dehn, P.F., C.M. White*, D.E. Conners*, G. Shipkey*, & T.A. Cumbo*. 2004. Characterization of the human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cell line as an in vitro model for cadmium toxicity studies. In Vitro Cell. Develop. Biol.-Animal 40:172-182.
Dehn, P.F., Allen-Mocherie*, S., J. Karek*, & A. Thenappan*. 2005. Organochlorine insecticides: impacts on human HepG2 cytochrome P4501A, 2B activities and glutathione levels. Toxicology In Vitro 19: 261-273.
Dehn, P.F. & D.R. Breed*, 2005. Exercise Physiology: Muscle metabolism before, immediately following, and during recovery from activity. Laboratory Manual for Physiology, D. Silverthorn, B. Johnston, A. Mills, (eds), Pearson Education, Inc. pp. 147-162.
Shea*, J., T. Moran, & P. F. Dehn, 2008. A bioassay for metals utilizing a human cell line. Toxicology In Vitro 22:1025-1031.
Dehn, P.F., 2008. 2008 CUR National Conference, CUR Fellows Address: Bioassays, biomarkers, and biomonitors for aquatic contaminants – undergraduate research a vehicle for student engagement. CUR Quarterly, 29: 63-69.
Dehn, P.F. 2009. Community health-based internships as an entry into research. In. M.K. Boyd & J.L. Wesemann (eds)., Broadening Participation in Undergraduate Research: Fostering Excellence and Enhancing the Impact. Council on Undergraduate Research. Pp. 334-336.
Dehn, P.F. 2010. Responsible Conduct of Research: Administrative Issues Concerning Research Integrity and Compliance. CUR Quarterly, 30: 27-34.
Dehn, P.F. 2010. How Should (Do) We Promote Transformative Research at PUI’s?. In Karukstis, K.K. & Hensel, N (eds.), Transformative Research at Predominately Undergraduate Institutions. Council on Undergraduate Research, Washington, DC. pp. 7-11.
Abraham, N., Cunningham, B. Decauter, S., Dehn, P., Lee, M., Osborn, J. 2010. Supporting Potentially Transformative Research: The Administrator’s Perspective. In Karukstis, K.K. & Hensel, N (eds.), Transformative Research at Predominately Undergraduate Institutions. Council on Undergraduate Research, Washington, DC. pp. 71-88.
Dehn, P. 2012. A Road Map to Initiating, Developing, and Sustaining High Quality Faculty Undergraduate Collaborative Research and Creative Activities. In. Characteristics of Excellence in Undergraduate Research, N. Hensel (ed)., Council on Undergraduate Research, Washington, D.C. pp. 22-24.