Education:
B.S. Botany, University of Colombo;
M.S., Ph.D., University of Rhode Island

Sardha Suriyapperuma
Lecturer in Botany and Biology

Specializations:

• Molecular biology
• Plant and cell biology
• Microarray
• Genomics and linkage mapping
• Plant-microbe interactions

Dr. Sardha Suriyapperuma serves as a lecturer and a lab instructor for both the botany and biology departments.

She has conducted research in various disciplines including physiology of mycorrhizal fungi, DNA fingerprinting of turfgrass, gene expression of cytoskeleton proteins, linkage mapping of adult-onset primary open angle glaucoma and gene expression using microarrays.

Dr. Suriyapperuma has carried out her research in a number of institutions including University of Rhode Island, Yale School of Medicine and University of Connecticut Health Center.

With her diverse research experience, she would like to contribute to improve the teaching standards of Connecticut College. She has taught undergraduate courses in biology, botany and microbiology at several institutions including University of Colombo, University of Rhode Island and Middlesex Community College.

Currently, she coordinates and teaches cell and molecular biology laboratories (Bio 106) and teaches laboratories for organisms (Bio 105). In addition, she teaches general microbiology (Bio 330).

Dr. Suriyapperuma attended the conference for undergraduate educators conducted by American Society for Microbiology in 2008 May and Connecticut Conference of independent Colleges on “Pedagogies of Engagement” in 2008 October and is enthusiastic in incorporating her new skills in teaching.

Currently, she serves as a first-year adviser and as adviser for botany majors and biology majors in the cell molecular track. She is receptive to the student point of view in the class and would like to interact with students more in general. She believes in incorporating different styles in teaching to help a wide array of learners.

Some of her research work is reflected in the following publications:

• Sardha P. Suriyapperuma, PhD; Anne Child, MD, FRCP; Trushna Desai, BS; Glen Brice, RGN; Andrea Kerr, MBBS; Ronald Pitts Crick, FRCS, FRCOphth; Mansoor Sarfarazi, PhD. (2007). A New Locus (GLC1H) for Adult-Onset Primary Open-angle Glaucoma Maps to the 2p15-p16 Region. Arch Ophthalmol.125: 86-92.
  
  
• Suriyapperuma, S. P., Lozovatsky, L., Ciciotte, S. L., Peters, L. L., Gilligan, D.M. (1999). The mouse adducin gene family: alternative splicing and chromosomal localization. Mammalian Genome 11, 16-23.
  
  
• Suriyapperuma, S.P. and Koske, R.E. (1995). Attraction of Germ Tubes and Germination of Spores of the Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungus Gigaspora gigantea in the Presence of Roots of Maize Exposed to Different Concentrations of Phosphorus. Mycologia 87: 772-778.

Visit the biology and botany department Web sites.