Summer Research Projects with Biology
Ed Cluett
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Mechanisms and pathways of cholesterol transport inside cells
Effect of the cholesterol environment on protein function and its relation to diseases:
NPC1 and processing of Amyloid Precursor Protein
Lab activities for high school biology classes
David Gondek
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Host pathogen interactions following chlamydia infection
Cell biology of parachlamydia infection in fresh water amoeba
Jean Hardwick
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Neurophysiology
Maki Inada
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Using a genome-wide microarray-based approach, identify and characterize novel genes
regulated by splicing coupled to mRNA decay
Identify conserved cis-regulatory sequences important for changes in splicing
Examine the role of kinases in gene regulation
Study the effects of co-transcriptional recruitment of regulatory factors on gene control
Te-Wen Lo
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Evolution of Nematode Dosage Compensation Mechanisms
Leann Kanda
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Captive and wild behavior in chipmunks
Relationship of social and movement behaviors in dwarf hamsters
Animal surveys of South Hill
Peter Melcher
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Measuring the freezing and drought tolerance of grasses in the Pooidae
Testing the competitive exclusion hypothesis using ecophysiological approaches on two
tropical coastal congener species as a model system.
Brooks Miner
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Adaptation to UV radiation exposure in the freshwater crustacean Daphnia (water flea),
including:
- DNA repair kinetics
- Protection from DNA damage by melanin pigmentation
- Gene expression in response to UV radiation exposure
- Fieldwork collecting Daphnia from local ponds during spring
& early summer
Andy Smith
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Biochemical identification and characterization of the essential components of a unique
biological glue.
Biochemical and mechanical experiments to characterize the mechanism of adhesion and
to test hypotheses of how the glue components contribute to performance
Susan Swensen Witherup
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Collaborative research on Puerto Rican plants
Phylogenetic Reconstruction of plants belonging to the Genus Gurania (Cucurbitaceae)
Projects in Sustainability Science
Ian Woods
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Analyze the genetic and neuronal basis of arousal and anxiety behaviors in larval
zebrafish.
Clone a gene expressed in somatosensory neurons. Inject mRNA encoding the gene to
assess its effects on somatosensory development.
Generate transgenic fish that inducibly overexpress a gene. Analyze the effects on neural
development or behavior.
Generate transgenic fish that express a reporter gene (eg GFP) in a specific neuronal cell
type. Via live imaging, examine the dynamics of this cell type as it develops and
connects with the rest of the nervous system.
Analyze the phenotype of a mutation in a gene expressed in somatosensory neurons.