Davidson Research Initiative
Summer Research Program
The Davidson Research Initiative’s Summer Research Program enables Davidson College to offer a premier
summer research experience for Davidson students and students from North Carolina’s Historically Black
Colleges and Universities. The goals of this program are to:
1) Foster collaborative student-faculty research in all of the liberal arts disciplines; and
2) Establish a vibrant campus-wide community of undergraduate research during the summer months by
offering activities such as topical group discussions, lectures, and social functions.
The Program
DRI Summer Research Fellows spend between 5 and 10 weeks doing research with a Davidson faculty mentor.
DRI Summer Research faculty mentors also have the opportunity to include a student from one of North
Carolina’s HBCU schools on their research team. Interested faculty mentors provide research descriptions of
available projects and these projects are publicized to North Carolina HBCU institutions (see below for this year’s
projects). HBCU students are invited to apply for one or more DRI Summer Research Fellowships listed. Five
students who are selected for the program will participate as a collaborative team member with the Davidson
faculty mentor and his/her Davidson DRI Summer Research Fellow.
Summer Projects 2015
1. Davidson College Herpetology Laboratory Opportunity - Dr. Mike Dorcas (faculty mentor)
Research in the Davidson College Herpetology Laboratory this summer will focus on the ecology and
behavior of several species, all with conservation implications. Specific research projects may include
field or laboratory work, or both. These projects include: Population monitoring and radio tracking of
endangered bog turtles; studies of metabolic rates and risk behavior in invasive pythons; behavioral
responses of salamanders inhabiting ephemeral wetlands; and status and risk analysis of diamondback
terrapins in saltmarsh habitats. All projects will involve or, in most cases, be led by student
researchers.
2. Carbohydrate Oligoproline Hybrids Targeting Influenza A Hemagglutinin (May 20th- July 24th)
– Dr. Nicole Snyder (faculty mentor)
Seasonal epidemics of influenza A viruses (IAV) are a major threats to public health. According to the
World Health Organization, IAV takes the lives of 250,000 to 500,000 people annually worldwide. A
recent resurgence in the H1N1 strain, in addition to the emergence of a new strain (H5N1), has caused
new concerns for pandemics such as the 1918 Spanish Flu. Mainstream treatments for influenza,
including the blockbuster drug oseltamivir (Tamiflu®), have been largely effective in treating IAV
infections. These drugs target a protein found on the surface of the viral envelope known as
neuraminidase. While inhibition of neuraminidase does not prevent viral fusion, it effectively stops the
virus from being released from the host cell, thus slowing the rate of infection. This provides the
immune system with an opportunity to act on the virus. Unfortunately, rapid mutation rates have
rendered drugs targeting neuraminidases ineffective for certain viral strains. This has prompted a
search for new pharmaceuticals to prevent and treat IAV. My research group aims to address this
challenge by synthesizing well-defined carbohydrate oligoproline hybrids that target a second protein
on the viral envelope known as hemagglutinin or HA. In addition to preventing viral fusion, HA is
highly conserved and so resistance is less likely to develop against therapeutics targeting HA.
Therefore, compounds that target HA are promising candidates for the treatment of neuraminidase
resistant IAVs. Students interested in this project will participate in the synthesis of these compounds
for eight weeks over the course of the summer. The final target carbohydrate oligoproline hybrids will
eventually be evaluated for their ability to bind H1N1 and H5N1 hemagglutinin and prevent IAV
infection.
3. The Functional Significance of Cortical Plasticity – Dr. Julio Ramirez (faculty mentor)
Our primary research goal is to determine the functional significance of hippocampal sprouting after
entorhinal cortex damage in rats. This model neural system exhibits a set of well-defined behavioral
and morphological changes in response to deafferentation. Several recent investigations have
implicated sprouting by the crossed temporodentate projection to the dentate gyrus of the hippocampal
formation in behavioral recovery from unilateral entorhinal cortex lesions. However, the issue of
whether these proliferated connections are indeed functionally significant is far from resolved.
Students involved in the DRI program will participate in on-going electrophysiological projects
focusing on facilitation of the crossed temporodentate projection after its sprouting response has been
induced by entorhinal cortex lesions as well as on behavioral projects exploring the use of the radial
arm maze (a spatial memory task) as an assay for the effects of limbic system lesions on mnemonic
functions. The primary pedagogical goal of our research program is to broaden students’ knowledge
and training in neuroscience and to kindle an interest in and an appreciation for the issues with which
neuroscientists are concerned. This experience will significantly improve the training of undergraduate
students as they prepare for entry into careers in science, medicine, or public policy.
4. Impact of Historical Dams in the piedmont of North Carolina – Dr. Brad Johnson (faculty
mentor) The project aims to examine the impact of historic mill dams in the piedmont of North
Carolina on modern streams. Mill dams were common across the region in the 1800s and early
1900s. These dams have since been breached and the impact of those dams on streams throughout the
area is unknown. A student working on the project would: 1) travel to historic mill dam sites along
streams throughout the Davidson area, 2) assess stream conditions around each mill dam, 3) record the
stream conditions on digital maps, and 4) make conclusions about the overall impact of dams in the
area. Any student working on the project will be encouraged to take a portion of this research and
work on it independently.
5. Wiring the Brain: How do Neurons Develop and Connect? – Dr. Barbara Lom (faculty mentor)
Our lab is interested in understanding how the brain develops and wires itself from neurons into
networks. Specifically, we examine how young neurons achieve their very specialized shapes, how
neurons navigate to their synaptic targets via dynamic structures called growth cones, how
environmental factors (pesticides, BPA) influence neuronal development, and how the Slitrk family of
genes is involved in brain wiring. All these research questions have the potential to provide insights
into fundamental mechanism of vertebrate central nervous system development that can inform our
insights into developmental disorders and/or nervous system regeneration. Our vertebrate models for
these research questions are Xenopus tadpoles and zebrafish embryos. We use these model organisms
because we can access and visualize their neurons particularly easily. Students in our lab become
skilled at microsurgery, microscopy (including confocal), immunostaining, time-lapse imaging, cell
culture, and/or other widely applicable research techniques in cell and developmental biology.
6. Sports Analytics Opportunities – Dr. Tim Chartier (faculty mentor)
Question 1: There are four factors, developed by Dean Oliver, that have been shown to predictive of
success in college basketball. The factors encapsulate a team's style of play. However, these factors
are not the same for every game. I'd like to determine which factors for a given team tend to be most
predictive of winning and losing. Further, can we discern the style of team that plays against a team
that tends to induce such a change. As such, we could know the "beware zone" of a team when they
depart from their intended style. Further, we'd know which types of teams can create such issues.
Question 2: My group of sports analytics researchers have developed extensive methods for the men's
basketball team. While the statistics are the same for women's basketball, how would the statistics
change and give different information for that game? I'd like to develop heat maps, the effectiveness
of line-ups, and player scouting methods for women's basketball here at Davidson College. Question
3: In ranking methods, most networks are rank-able. That is the method will return a result. But,
enough connections are needed for such decisions to be insightful. This project would explore when a
network should be rankable from the standpoint of giving insightful information and further what
might be needed to move to such a level when a network is not yet ready to supply meaningful results.
The work will initially be applied to sports, given the availability of such data, and then be applied to
social networks.
7. Hearing and Sharing Stories: Creating Institutional History – Dr. Shireen Campbell (faculty
mentor)
The depth and breadth of history about an academic institution—the stories available about its
important individuals, substantial changes to admissions, curriculum, or co-curricular issues—hinges
on astute collection and analysis of the stories that comprise the history. When the stories aren’t
collected, analyzed, and made available to the public, parts of the rich history may disappear
altogether.
In the last sixty years, few people have been more essential to Davidson’s legacy than former Dean of
Students William Terry. He oversaw the Civil Rights Era at Davidson, witnessed its transition into
coeducation, and, after retirement, mentors his namesake, the Terry Scholars. However, student life at
Davidson in general is under-represented in its archival representation. Quite recently, Dean Terry
consented to be interviewed by close friends about his experiences at the college for the benefit of
future generations.
Working in conjunction with two Davidson College DRI fellows, the student applying for this position
would transcribe Dean Terry’s interviews, contextualize his stories in relation to college history,
interview alums on campus for Alumni events in June, and capture for posterity the contributions and
observations of this remarkable man. For a student interested in developing interview and
transcription skills and in developing a digital publication portfolio, this project offers a unique
opportunity to enrich history. With the summer’s experience, the student could pursue similar projects
in a major or for the historical archives of his/her institution, thereby ensuring that history gets
recorded in all its rich complexities.
8. Synthetic Organic Chemistry Summer Research Project - Dr. Erland Stevens (faculty mentor)
Over the past several years, student in my laboratory have been synthesizing nucleoside analogues
with potential antiviral activity. The goal for summer 2015 is to finalize the synthetic work, record the
characterization data on the compounds, and prepare enough of each compound for samples to be sent
out to different agencies (National Institutes of Health for antiviral and anticancer activity and Eli Lilly
for metabolic activity) for biological screening.
The compounds fall into three series. One is a set of simple compounds that served as a proof-ofconcept for the entire project. These compounds only loosely resemble natural nucleosides.
CO2Me
HO
OH
1. NaH
PhCH2O
OH
2. PhCH2Cl
1. TsCl
PhCH2O
O
OMe
1. H2, Pd(OH)2
N
N
PhCH2O
N
2. NH2-Y
NH-Y
N
HO
MeO
heat
2. NaN3
O
N
N3
N
Y = H, NH2, OH
The second series of molecules was selected because they are similar to the known antiviral molecule,
penciclovir.
1. NaBH4
EtO2C
CO2Et
2.
O
MeO OMe
CO2Me
1. O3
2. NaBH4
O
3. TsCl
4. NaN3
O
N3
MeO
heat
O
acid (cat)
O
N
O
N
OMe
N
O
O
N
NH-Y
NH
N
N
1. H2O, acid (cat)
HO
N
2. NH2-Y
O
OH
HO
Y = H, NH2, OH
N
N
NH2
penciclovir
approved
antiviral
OH
The third and final series of molecules is closely related to ribavirin, an approved anti-hepatitis C drug.
O
CO2Me
BzO
O
OAc
BzO OBz
SnCl4
BzO
O
N3
N
BzO
heat
TMS-N3
OMe
N
MeO
O
N
BzO OBz
BzO OBz
O
N
NH2-Y
O
N
NH-Y
N
HO
O
N
HO
O
Y = H, NH2, OH
OHOH
NH2
N N
OHOH
ribavirin
approved
antiviral
This is a synthetic organic chemistry project. A student involved on this project will make new
molecules in lab and use instrumentation, namely NMR, to identify the products and establish their
purity.
Application Process
Applications should be submitted to Dr. Verna M. Case, Program Director of the Davidson Research Initiative,
P.O. Box 7118, Davidson College, Davidson, NC 28035 or by email to Linda Shoaf at lishoaf@davidson.edu.
HBCU students should apply for a Davidson Research Initiative Summer Research Fellowship by April 1, 2015.
Application materials must include:
 A cover sheet;
 a cover letter from the student listing the specific project(s) to which the student is applying and
discussing the student’s interest in those projects and, in general, detailing how the DRI program would
help meet the student’s academic goals; and
 two letters of recommendation along with the recommendation form from faculty at the student’s home
institution.
 an official transcript from the student’s home institution;
Applications will be reviewed by the potential Davidson faculty mentors and the DRI Program Director.
Notification of an award will be communicated to the student via email by the Program Director approximately 1
week after the application is due. Following acceptance to the program, the faculty mentor will contact the
student to discuss details of the project. At the time of acceptance, the student will need to apply for housing on
Davidson campus and complete other paper work relevant to the program.
Students who are accepted to the DRI Summer Research Program as DRI Summer Research Fellows will receive:
$480/week fellowship
$120/week housing allowance and housing will be available on Davidson’s campus
$1,000 for supplies and travel
All DRI Fellows (Davidson students and HBCU students) and their faculty mentors are expected to participate in
the summer lunch program and to share their research outcomes in a Summer Research Poster Symposium at
Davidson College on September 15, 2015. DRI Fellows are also expected to present their research at a regional
or national meeting during the 2015-16 academic year. Faculty mentors will plan attendance at those meetings
for their students. HBCU students accepted as DRI Summer Research Fellows will be expected to complying
with all Davidson policies, including adhering to Davidson's Honor Code. Please visit
http://www.davidson.edu/about/distinctly-davidson/research/research-and-scholarship/research-initiative for
program information.