Education:
B.S. Animal Science (Genetics minor), North Carolina State University
M.S. Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Ph.D. Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison 

Teaching (20%):
        Dr. Gonda’s primary teaching responsibility is the undergraduate Animal Breeding course for Animal Science majors.  He also co-teaches molecular techniques and genetics courses. 

ABS 705 – PCR and Related Diagnostic Technologies (Spring)
AS 332 – Principles of Animal Breeding (Spring)
BIOL 453/553 – Advanced Genetics (Alternate Spring)
BIOS 890 – Biology Seminar 

Research (80%):
        The Gonda Laboratory is interested in the genetics of susceptibility to diseases.  Although his primary research emphasis is ruminants, he also works on other species including swine and hamsters.  Below are two of the on-going research projects in our laboratory.
        Deciphering the genetics of BVD vaccine response in cattle.  It is oftentimes assumed that vaccine response is homogenous among animals, but the truth is that animals do not respond equally to administration of a vaccine.  Specifically, our laboratory is interested in the humoral (antibody) response to vaccination.  How much of the variation in the humoral response to vaccination is caused by genetic differences among animals?
         We are initially focusing our efforts on the response to a commercially available bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) vaccine.  BVD is a virus that can cause respiratory disease in cattle.  If a cow is infected with BVD during pregnancy, that cow’s calf can become persistently infected with the virus and shed BVD rapidly to other animals in a herd.
          Specifically, we are asking the following questions about the genetics of BVD vaccine response.  1) Can we identify breeds of cattle that are high or low responders to BVD vaccination?  2) What genes affect variation in BVD vaccine response?  To answer this question, we will use a combination of whole-genome and candidate gene approaches.  3) What genes are up- and down-regulated following vaccination?  To answer all of these questions, we will utilize techniques from several scientific disciplines, including quantitative genetics, molecular genetics, and functional genomics.
         Why is this research important?  If we can identify genes that affect variation in vaccine response, it may assist researchers with developing better, more robust vaccines.  By identifying genes that affect vaccine response, we could also develop molecular markers for this trait.  These markers could be used to select against cattle that do not respond robustly to vaccines.  The end result is that we could use genetic selection to improve herd health.
        We are collaborating with Dr. Christian Maltecca at North Carolina State University on this project.  Below is a link to his biography at NCSU. 

http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/an_sci/faculty/cmaltecca.htm 

         The genetics of the Bio 14.6 hamster.  The Bio 14.6 hamster exhibits signs similar to limb-girdle muscular dystrophy in humans.  One of our collaborators at SDSU (Dr. Doug McFarland) has developed clones of satellite cells (muscle stem cells) from the Bio 14.6 hamster and control hamsters.  When these satellite cells are differentiated into myotubes, the Bio 14.6 myotubes do not differentiate normally.
        The mutation that causes the abnormal differentiation in the Bio 14.6 hamster has been identified as a defect in a sarcoglycan gene.  My main goal is to understand the genetic pathways that are modified as a result of this defect.  Because the hamster genome has not been sequenced and hamster-specific microarrays are not available, our first objective will be to characterize the satellite cell transcriptome of the Bio 14.6 hamster by massive parallel sequencing (454 sequencing).  We will compare the Bio 14.6 transcriptome with control hamsters to identify biological pathways that are differentially expressed in this mutant hamster strain.
        We are collaborating with Dr. Sandy Velleman at The Ohio State University on this project.  Below is a link to her website: 

http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/velleman/ 

            If you are interested in working in the Gonda laboratory, please contact Dr. Michael Gonda (Michael.Gonda@sdstate.edu; 001-605-688-5442).  Undergraduate students are welcome!

Lab Rats:  From left to right, Laura Hoff (Senior, Animal Science), Theresa Henrickson (Senior, Animal Science), Dr. Michael Gonda, Xin Fang (“George”, M.S. Student, Biology), and Angie Artz (Senior, Animal Science). 

Service:
Editorial Board, Journal of Animal Science
Ad hoc reviewer for Journal of Dairy Science, Animal
SDSU Functional Genomics Core Facility Committee
SDSU Animal and Range Sciences Safety Committee