Dr. Melissa Harris, an assistant professor in the Department of Biology, has received the 2016 PanAmerican Society for Pigment Cell Research (PASPCR) Medrano Award, which includes PASPCR membership for 2017 and a travel award to the 2017 PASPCR Conference.

Each year, the award is given to an individual at the early stages of his/her career who embodies the characteristics and love of science exemplified by the late Dr. Estela Medrano. Dr. Medrano was a highly respected scientist who contributed to deciphering the roles of cyclins in senescence, of epigenetic changes in aging, and of Ski in melanoma progression.

Dr. Harris studies stem cells and aging and joined the UAB faculty in fall 2016.