Reflections from Retiring MMI Professor Gary Ketner
Students love him, malaria parasites fear him
MMI Professor Gary Ketner will retire this summer. Gary has been a faculty member in MMI since 1987.
Gary Ketner, PhD, a faculty member in the Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology (MMI) since 1987, will retire this summer. Ketner is a molecular microbiologist who studies the fundamental molecular biology of DNA-containing human viruses and their role in preventing diseases. Ketner’s research focuses on adenovirus biology and the use of adenoviruses as vaccines for diseases, including malaria, that affect the developing world.
How did you become interested in virology?
Viruses are just so cool! As a 20-something, I just thought finding out stuff about them would be fun.
Your undergraduate degree in Biology is from MIT, and your PhD is from Stanford. What was the focus of your PhD thesis?
Bacterial/bacteriophage genetics.
Why did you become a professor?
Back then, it was about the only thing a biology PhD was good for.
What do you think you would have done if you had not become a professor?
Definitely a mechanic. Well, maybe not, but who knows?
What advice do you have for MMI students who may not know exactly what they want to do with their degree in microbiology?
No grad student knows ‘exactly what they want to do with their degree.’ So quit obsessing. If you can, find a good-quality lab doing something new for a postdoc. By then, it may be clearer.
What advice do you have for faculty just starting their careers?
I made the mistake of thinking I could still do lab work and everything else, too. That’s because my grad school PI did that. He must have been smarter than me, or maybe times change. Anyway, don’t try to do that. Talk to your students and colleagues, think, and write grants.
Is there a mentor you had who has influenced your teaching style or left an indelible impression?
My Stanford PI, and my postdoc PI, , both shaped my research and teaching approaches. Both made immensely valuable, indelible contributions.
Do you have any words of wisdom for students (and faculty and staff for that matter!) who are discouraged by what’s happening these days to science and research funding?
I’ve never seen anything like this. For the moment, do your science. Vote in the midterms.
Is there a particular paper or finding that you are most proud of?
I like an old paper of mine and Eileen Bridge, (Journal of Virology) on adenovirus E4 genetics. Hard then, completely trivial now. But really, I’m pretty happy with most of them, all done by great grad students, and every one of them is fun.
Having been a scientist for decades, is there a scientific discovery that most excites you?
Naturally, the mechanism of action of the adenovirus E4 34k, E1b55k ubiquitin ligase!
How has science changed over the years since you have been in the field?
As a grad student, I remember hearing a seminar on sequencing the E. coli lac operator (maybe 20 nucleotides). Completely astonished. Now, you start out with the sequence given to you.
What will you miss most about your time at the Bloomberg School?
Students, colleagues, and the admissions committee meetings.
What will you not miss? (Ha ha)
The commute.
How do you think technological advances changed science?
See the sequencing remarks above!
How has Baltimore changed over the years?
I watched the Inner Harbor being built. And the Key Bridge (from the window of the lab). I had season tickets to the Baltimore Colts!
What are you most looking forward to in retirement?
I'm not sure yet.