Rate My Professor Benjamin Carone

Benjamin Carone, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biological & Biomedical Sciences at Rowan University’s College of Science and Mathematics. He earned a B.S. in Molecular & Cellular Biology and Philosophy and a Ph.D. in Genetics and Genomics from the University of Connecticut. Carone conducted postdoctoral research on transgenerational inheritance and epigenetics at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and served as Visiting Assistant Professor studying histone modifications at Williams College. At Rowan, he directs a research laboratory and teaches molecular biology courses while mentoring undergraduate students.

His research focuses on epigenetics, genomics, and histone modifications, investigating epigenetic marks and molecular mechanisms for inheritance of acquired states. Projects include using CRISPR to create fusion proteins targeting H3K9me to endogenous genes in S. cerevisiae, assessing gene expression via qRT-PCR and flow cytometry to determine histone packaging’s role in regulation. Additional efforts examine mammalian sperm chromatin organization to test its function in transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, employing genomic and bioinformatics approaches on germ cells, including Ctcf mutant mice at Rowan University. Supported by National Institutes of Health Academic Research Enhancement Awards (R15), studies use genetically modified stem cells and rodent models to understand cell programming in embryo development and how paternal experiences like diet affect offspring via sperm epigenetics. Key publications are “Paternal diet alters tRNA fragment levels throughout the male reproductive tract in mammals” (Science, 2015), “High resolution mapping of chromatin packaging in mouse ES cells and sperm” (Dev Cell, 2014), and “High incidence of multiple antibiotic resistant cells in cultures of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7” (Mutat. Res., 2014). His work has received over 4,000 citations.