The Roger Hendrix Memorial Lecture Series honors a founding member of the Department of Biological Sciences. Dr. Hendrix made many contributions to microbiology through his research on the structure, assembly and evolution of bacterio-phages. He developed in vitro methods for viral assembly, laying the groundwork for detailed biochemical and structural analyses of the assembly process. at the dawn of molecular biology, his findings on how viruses use bacteria to reproduce revealed much about how bacteria themselves work, which provided scientists with insight into other types of cells. Later, his studies of bacteriophage genomics impacted understanding of viral diversity and evolution. He joined the University of Pittsburgh in 1973 and stayed here throughout his career, rising to full professor in 1986 and distinguished professor in 2009, and chairing the department from 1986-1988. Dr. Hendrix was a member of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. He served as Chair of ASM’s Bacteriophage Division (1988-89). He was a recipient of the University of Pittsburgh Chancellor’s Distinguished Research Award, Senior Scholar in 1997, and was awarded the National Academy of Sciences Prize for Excellence in Scientific Reviewing in 2009. Dr. Hendrix authored more than 100 scientific papers and left an immeasurable impact both in science and in the lives of those who knew him. (Adapted from the ASM obituary)
Speakers in the Hendrix Memorial Seminar Series include:
| Date | Speaker | Topic | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2024 | Forest Rohwer | Phages and coral ecosystems | San Diego State University |
| Oct 2024 | Curtis Suttle | Marine phages | University of British Columbia |