From internships in large production facilities and laboratories to fieldwork in Hawaii, nine 91短视频 students gave fellow students, professors and the campus community a snapshot of their summer experiences this week.

The fall STEM Student Symposium featured engineering majors speaking about internships, as well as biology, chemistry and environmental sustainability majors sharing about research projects.  Several worked in partnership with 91短视频 professors and were funded by the Kauffman-Miller Research Awards and the CT Assist Summer Experiential Learning Program. One student participated in the the prestigious National Science Foundation-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates program. 

Jonas Beachy studied water-splitting viability oxides in thermochemical cycling at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Working in Professor Jonathan Scheffe鈥檚 Renewable Energy Conversion Laboratory, Beachy explored thermochemical cycling, 鈥渁 process that uses concentrated thermal energy from the sun to create favorable thermodynamics to 鈥榮plit鈥� water in H鈧� and O,鈥� he said. 鈥淗鈧� can then be processed in hydrogen fuel cells to release energy. I was looking at oxides that would potentially have greater efficiency in producing H鈧�.鈥�

Beachy appreciated the experience of working in a large university laboratory, 鈥渟imilar to what a graduate school experience would be,鈥� and now feels a bit more ready to take the leap himself. He also enjoyed meeting the other REU participants and exploring Gainesville together.

Beachy is one among many 91短视频 students who have been selected for the REU program. The most recent was Jake Myers, then a sophomore, who researched the regional effects of invasive tree species on daily nest survival at University of South Dakota.

More Highlights

Ben Bontrager-Singer spoke about his experience with mechanical engineering of HVAC systems for new construction.

Cameron Byer shared learnings from an internship at VistaShare, a company in Harrisonburg owned by 91短视频 alumni.

Erin Clayton and Graciella Odelia spoke about their research with Professor Jeff Copeland on measuring the expression of RNF-11 and Parkin in Parkinson鈥檚 Drosophila.

Hannah Giagnocavo worked with Professor Kristopher Schmidt on the pathogenic changes and immune responses in C. elegans.

Cheyenne Suamatae’a-Te’o also worked with Schmidt on a project observing the behaviors of C. elegans when placed on differing bacterial plates.

Luke Wheeler shared highlights from a virtual internship with Engineers in Action (EIA) and an in-person internship at Danone International in Mt. Crawford, Virginia. With EIA, he helped to create training materials on chapter development and compiled lists of resources. As bridge projects are a large contribution of many chapters, he also pulled together instructions on how to make bridge designs, using the Revit program.

While a learning and development intern at Danone, he appreciated the opportunity to learn from upper-level management and contribute to improvements in plant production. Another highlight was seeing 鈥渢he inner operations of a massive production facility,鈥� he said.

Theo Yoder travelled with Professor Matt Siderhurst and fellow student Nicole Miller to conduct research on controlling agricultural pests. They were based at the Daniel K. Inouye U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center.

His research explored the development of protein lures to attract, trap and control Melon Fly populations. This research will be continued in Australia over the next several years with a focus on benzaldehyde and pyrazine, two abundant compounds we found in effective lures.

On December 5, 12 graduate students in 91短视频鈥檚 MS in Biomedicine program defended their original research in a virtual oral presentation. Their work ranged from laboratory experiments with cardiac proteins and African clawed frogs to public health inquiries on and off campus.

Since 2013, the master鈥檚 in biomedicine program has helped graduates prepare for careers as health professionals. The research component is just one unique curricular offering. Students also benefit from a unique approach to cadaver dissection, which many alumni say has provided optimal preparation and a strong background for the rigors of medical school. Several articulation agreements with professional health schools enhance opportunities to matriculate and continue with career goals.

Each oral defense is evaluated by professors in the MS in biomedicine program, committee members, other faculty and other graduate students.

The research component brings graduate students into mentoring relationships with faculty, alumni and other professionals across many disciplines. Committee members for this round of research projects included Doug Graber Neufeld, professor of biology; Daniel Showalter, professor of mathematics; Jeff Copeland, professor of biology; Scott Barge, vice president of institutional effectiveness; Kristopher Schmidt, professor of biology; Ryan Thompson, director of the psychology program; and Tara Kishbaugh, director of the biomedicine program.

Master’s candidates and their research topics include:

Josephine Awotoye: Predictors of not having a primary care provider in the United States: a cross sectional analysis of the 2018 behavioral risk factor surveillance system;

Mecca Baker: Direct and indirect regulation of cell cycle genes by HLH-25 in Caenorhabditis elegans;

Luz Contreras: Health literacy and demographics in Spanish speakers in Harrisonburg, Virginia: a two-part survey questionnaire with self-reported sections;

Cesar Corona Gutierrez: Which neurons play a role in lifespan extension in Drosophila melanogaster;

Jessica Hindle: The effects of nicotine and glyphosate-based herbicide on orofacial cleft;

Carmen Meacham: The effects of progesterone and estrogen on the feminization of Xenopus laevis;

Jennifer Rojas: The effects of electronic cigarette liquids on immunity and lifespan in Caenorhabditis elegans;

Jessica Saunders: Investigating young Black Christians’ attitudes towards medicine in America;

Sukriti Silwal: Effect of bovine milk and NovaMin on the demineralization and remineralization capacity of teeth;

Kristen Snow: analysis of cardiac troponin levels as an indicator of recovery time and myocardial infarction reoccurrence;

Gene St. Val: Influences of transportation, insurance and demographics on DSM-5 cross cutting symptom measures and treatment adherence;

Benjamin Wright: The role of unc-53 in ced-3 mediated apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Describe your field of study and research at Duke and work during clinical rotations.

My clinical interests remain widespread, encompassing orthopedic, neurologic and vestibular patient management.

My clinical affiliations have allowed me to gain experience in a variety of settings including inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient pediatric, outpatient neurologic, and outpatient orthopedic. I currently see myself practicing in an outpatient clinic as this setting affords much variety in patient population and the needed clinical skill sets.

My research at Duke has encompassed the wider topic of health policy. Because patients with chronic conditions have needs that go beyond the usual scope of primary care, coordination and collaboration among multiple providers is necessary for the provision of high quality, comprehensive care. In order to reduce costs and improve care coordination to best meet the needs of these complex patients, research on the implementation and effectiveness of various comprehensive primary care models has emerged. These models target the primary care setting by organizing and coordinating care between the general practitioner and other interdisciplinary team members specific to patient needs.

I, with two fellow students, wanted to explore the effectiveness of four identified comprehensive primary care models by reviewing the existing research on their associated costs and utilization of healthcare services, patient-specific outcomes, and satisfaction. Additionally, we wanted to better understand the role of the physical therapist as an interdisciplinary team member within these models. Our research has been compiled into a scoping review entitled 鈥淐omprehensive Primary Care Models for the Management of Multiple Chronic Conditions in Older Adults鈥� and is in the process of journal submission.

How did your academic studies and professors at 91短视频 prepare you for your graduate studies?

My professors at 91短视频 prepared me for my graduate studies by providing opportunities for problem-solving, guided research, scientific reading and writing, and small-group work. They challenged me to think critically and inspired me to always be curious. They encouraged me to wrestle with and organize the academic material into ways that made the most sense. They offered office hours or would stay late after class to answer individual questions. Their passion for teaching and helping students achieve their academic and career goals was so evident.

My academic studies at 91短视频 provided the prerequisite coursework for applying to a number of physical therapy schools. 91短视频 also offered courses outside of those basic science prerequisites that further expanded my learning and helped prepare me for a job working with people in healthcare, such as sociology of health, social psychology, senior seminar, and ethics courses.

What do you think made your application to graduate school stand out among others?

I think my array of undergraduate experiences and what I鈥檝e learned from those opportunities helped me stand out among others. Playing collegiate volleyball, serving as a community adviser and biology student mentor, gaining cross-cultural experience in the Middle East, and participating in organic chemistry research in Hawaii and Guam marked these formative years. These experiences shaped my passions for serving others, embracing challenge, and pursuing health and wellness, ultimately leading me to pursue a career in physical therapy.

What attracted you to attend 91短视频 as an undergraduate?

In all honesty, 91短视频 was not high on my personal list of schools to attend. I simply applied because my parents, who both attended 91短视频, wanted me to apply. After doing so, however, I could not pass up the academic scholarship, the opportunity to play collegiate volleyball, or the university鈥檚 reputation for having a stellar biology department with high acceptance rates into graduate and medical schools.

What are some favorite memories of your time at 91短视频?

I will never forget the time when biology professor Jeff Copeland released an entire vial of fruit flies into another student鈥檚 book bag as a comical prank, or the feeling of both thrill and fear while performing surgery on lab rats in Dr. Roman Miller鈥檚 physiology class. There鈥檚 also the memory of going to the 鈥渃af鈥� for breakfast one morning and seeing my mother鈥檚 baked oatmeal recipe being featured 鈥� nothing beats that taste of home! Then, there鈥檚 a plethora of memories from cross-cultural in the Middle East, including hiking the Jesus trail, riding a camel through the desert, watching the sunset on Mount Sinai, and gaining new insights into the Bible by studying the geographical landscape with聽Linford and Janet Stutzman.

What do you think makes 91短视频 graduates distinctive?

The lens through which we view the world makes us distinctive. 91短视频鈥檚 core beliefs surrounding peace and justice, diversity in community, love, and service in both a local and global context are very much instilled into the campus culture through the work of the professors and student organizations. To do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8) 鈥� those words become a part of you and are carried into life after 91短视频.

This nudged the second-year graduate student to more investigation: Was vaping as healthy as manufacturers claimed?

For Fernandez, as well as four master鈥檚 in biomedicine candidates at 91短视频 who defended their theses on Dec. 5, the research process was much more than the sum of the parts.

鈥淚 appreciated applying scientific concepts to real world questions that were medically and socially relevant,鈥� said Fernandez, who has received acceptance letters from two medical schools for next year.

Independent research guided by professors

Professor , Fernandez鈥檚 advisor, teaches the summer research methods and the fall data methods courses that guide students through the research project, which is the culmination of the five-semester course of study.

鈥淚n the summer, the students develop their topic, go through the Institutional Review Board process, create methods and gather data,鈥� she explained. 鈥淚n the fall class, we look at data analysis and the writing of the manuscript.鈥�

A committee of three professors from different disciplines guides each student through the rigors of research. 鈥淲e advise carefully, because this is a big investment of time and energy from the student, and an important learning experience,鈥� Halterman said. 鈥淵ou really don鈥檛 know how to do research until you create a project of your own and go through the process. There鈥檚 troubleshooting, and navigation of politics of different institutions and organizations, and learning how to work with people.鈥�

The process-oriented, hands-on approach is excellent preparation for careers in biomedicine or for medical school, Halterman says. 鈥淢ost students don鈥檛 have any experience with original hypothesis-driven research and this really makes them stand out when they apply to medical or dental school.鈥�

The research project is the final component of a four-part program that includes coursework, a cross-cultural experience and a practicum experience. Transdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving are used and encouraged as students and faculty engage in a curriculum that integrates the natural and medical sciences with faith and ethics, Halterman says, a unique training that also positions students to be collaborative and holistic investigators.

Fall 2015 Research Projects

Rachel Thomas: 鈥淎 Data Analysis on Demographic Information of Patients with ADHD at [local medical practice]鈥�

Thomas, who works in healthcare and has a goal of becoming a physician鈥檚 assistant, says her interest arose from her own awareness of the high rates of ADHD diagnosis. She analyzed demographical data from an area medical practice to identify correlations between adult ADHS and gender, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. In demographical analyses of childhood ADHD already done by other researchers, ADHD was more frequently observed in Caucasians and in males. The data set included more than 970 patients ranging in age from 18-65+ and confirmed that a diagnosis of adult ADHS was more likely to be seen in Caucasion men than in other populations. Her research will be used to help identify and treat adult patients with ADHD. Committee members: Drs. and

Hannah Bell: 鈥淲omen鈥檚 Awareness of Risk Factors Linked to Breast Cancer in Harrisonburg, Virginia鈥�

Bell conducted a survey in which 60 female respondents self-reported their knowledge about obesity and breast cancer. She found that women in Harrisonburg did not fully understand the risk factors of breast cancer, including the role of postmenopausal obesity. Though the survey only covered a small population, it affirmed the need to raise awareness among the local population about the risk factors. Committee members: Drs. and

Vipul Nayani: 聽鈥淭he Effect of Collegiate Athletic Training Duration on Athlete Injury Incidence鈥�

Nayani, a 2014 Virginia Tech graduate who plans to become a family physician, developed this project with an interest in 鈥渕ultifactorial鈥� causes and individual proclivities toward injury. He observed a correlation between training time and injury, with evidence suggesting that more than 18 hours of weekly athletic training were 23% more likely to develop athletic injuries than athletes that trained for fewer than 18 hours per week. Committee Members: Drs. and Carolyn Stauffer.

Tareq Yousef: 鈥淐ost Analysis of Dental Services Before and After the Implementation of the Affordable Care Act in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area and the Shenandoah Valley Region of Virginia鈥�

Yousef, who has an undergraduate degree from George Washington University in public health, wanted a research topic that integrated current political events with healthcare, and specifically dentistry, his future profession. He studied the effect of the Medical Device Excise Tax, which supports the Affordable Care Act and is levied on device manufacturers, on the cost of oral health services in dental offices and labs. Statistically significant changes in cost of services were reported for all of the lab services as well as some dental procedures. Committee members: Drs. and Roman Miller.

Jared Fernandez: 鈥淐arcinogenic Compounds Created by the Vaporization of Electronic Cigarette Liquid: Effects of Variable Voltage within the Modified Electronic Cigarette鈥�

Fernandez鈥檚 research, outlined briefly above, hypothesized that there would be positive correlation between the voltage setting of the modified E-cig and the amount of carcinogens within the vapor produced from one modified E-cig design. While no detectable amounts of carcinogens were produced in his data set, Fernandez found that the content of the vapor is significantly different depending on the voltage. Furthermore, increased voltage may increase inflammatory responses in human lungs regardless of flavoring additives due to increased concentrations within inhaled vapors. These findings suggest additional research is required to further characterize E-cig effects on human health. Committee members: Drs. and .

Eight presentations were made by 14 biology, , and students that showcased the breadth and depth of research opportunities available at 91短视频.

The symposium provided an opportunity for students to share their research with an audience of general science majors, said department chair and professor of chemistry . One of the skills of a scientist, she says, is 鈥渢o be able to present technical terminology and processes in accessible language. It鈥檚 great if a scientist can study climate change, for example, but if we can鈥檛 explain the results of a climate change study to someone who doesn鈥檛 have the background, that doesn鈥檛 help us share and discuss our findings.”

The evaluation 鈥� led by , professor of chemistry at James Madison University 鈥� included three criteria: collection of data, thoroughness of research design and analysis, and clarity and accessibility of the oral presentation.

Second place was awarded to junior Hannah Daley for her presentation about her National Science Foundation-sponsored research, in partnership with two professors at James Madison University, on the effects of caffeine on athletes.

Sophomore Kat Lehman and junior Diego Barahona were awarded third place for their research on utilizing radio-tracking to locate coconut rhinoceros beetles鈥� breeding sites, which was conducted under the direction of chemistry professor in Guam. Siderhurst has worked for several years on research projects involving the development of attractants for invasive and agriculturally important pests.

Students find their niche in grant-funded studies

Research projects often pair students with professors engaged in long-term studies. The competition winners, Ferguson and Fernandez, were research assistants to Professor , who earned a $100,000 Jeffress Trust grant to study a multi-year investigation into the causes of hypertension. In Ferguson and Fernandez鈥檚 project, rats were fed a high fructose, high salt, low salt, and no salt diet and measured the activation of genes involved in disease.

The STEM symposium is also offers students like Hannah Daley and Janaya Sachs, who both earned grants to engage research opportunities off campus, to share what they鈥檝e learned. Sachs explored a new ligand for synthesizing copper, a summer project she engaged in through the National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates. She worked at .

The bioorganic copper project is just one of several research opportunities she鈥檚 been involved in. Her freshman year, she joined , led by , director of the MA in biomedicine program, and supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She and Hannah Daley are both currently involved in evaluating the effects of hydrofracking on stream and well water, a project under the direction of and Kishbaugh.

Among the research shared, a unique transdisciplinary project was conducted by biology major Samuel Miller and computer science major Alex Bender, advised by Siderhurst and computer science professor . Miller conducted a chemistry project that involved identification and quantification of volatiles released by the noni fruit during ripening that provided a complex data set that was difficult to analyze. Bender and Miller have both used a mathematical technique called Principal Component Analysis to analyze the results in a simpler manner.聽 Bender is documenting their methodology for PCA usage, simultaneously evaluating software programs Cluster 3.0 and SPSS for their ability to simplify the data set.

Flavenoids, genetics, mold…

Professor , who teaches courses in genetics, cell biology, microbiology and immunology, advised several research projects. Biology major Chris Miller researched the effect of anthocyanins, richly concentrated plant colorants that may have protective effects, on mouse fetal development when the mice are exposed to a significant amount of alcohol.

Derek Harnish and Eli Wenger presented their research on the neuronal basis of aging in flies. Harnish, a biology major, and Wenger, a biology and biochemistry double major, worked with Copeland on his ongoing project to identify specific types of that have the potential to extend lifespan in flies when the mitochrondrial electron transport chain is disrupted.

Biology majors Viktor Kaltenstein and Seth Suttles teamed up to study mold growth in a vacated section of the Suter Science Center campus using the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI).

Research being conducted at 91短视频 in Harrisonburg could begin to shed some light on the mysteries of aging.

Assistant professor of is doing aging research using an unlikely subject- fruit flies.

The concept of studying human aging by using fruit flies is one his student research assistant Charise Garber, a senior from Lancaster, Pennsylvania found a bit strange when she first signed on to the project.

“It was really weird when I first thought about it that way. You don’t really think about discoveries in flies having very much to do with human life span or anything else,” Garber said.

However, Copeland says the flies are at the very center of unlocking the mysteries of aging.

“A lot of our understanding of various diseases, we have some kind of framework but with aging we have no idea of how it works really,” Copeland explained. “We kind of have some ideas of why it happens but we don’t really have any genes behind it or why it happens or why some people can live long healthy lives.”

With the flies, Copeland can run experiments that would be impossible to do on humans.

“We can’t obviously do a lot of human studies so we use these flies to kind of learn from them and then apply to humans,” Copeland commented. “They’re kind of the testing ground for aging research, it can then be applied and it’s kind of what we’ve seen work for these small organism, has also worked for larger organism.”

However, the average life span of a fruit fly in the lab is just about 45 days. So how can research into a creature so small, with such a short life span, tell scientists anything about human aging? The answer to that relies heavily on what has worked in the past.

“Anything we know about aging has come from smaller organisms, from nematodes, from fruit flies and then has been applied to mice and into chimpanzees,” Copeland said.

Successful research that is done on the flies in Harrisonburg is then tried on larger organisms in labs around the world.

“So if it works for a fly and a worm, and it also works for a mouse, it will certainly work for a human,” Copeland said.

If it works in a human, then it could have dramatic consequences on how age-related diseases are treated.

Copeland says “A lot of what we know about medically related diseases – Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Cancer – all of them have a primary factor of age. Typically you don’t hear of young people getting these diseases.”

One especially tough disease that has an age related component is Alzheimer’s.

“A lot of people with Alzheimer’s have an age related disease, a lot of their metabolism goes down and if we can figure out how the metabolism has gone wrong in an Alzheimer’s patient, maybe we can boost their metabolism, boost that age related aspect and then find a way to recover that aspect and maybe find a treatment,” Dr. Copeland said.

The research team has already found some success in changing the metabolism of flies.

One experiment Garber ran seemed odd at first: giving a small dose of poison to the flies, but believe it or not, the flies lived longer.

“I was kind of like, well that seems strange, you know it’s kind of a strange concept that you can feed flies poison and expect them to live longer, you know it’s just not something you expect,” Garber said.

While it may be years before anything learned from the fly lab changes how we live, it’s already starting to take hold.

“When you take a step back and you look at the lifespans, you look at the accumulated data, you can say hey I actually have a story here, I see that I can actually extend the life of flies, 40%, 50, that’s something significant,” Copeland said.

Some of the research has already been applied to mice by a French scientist and Garber plans to use her experiences in the lab when she applies to medical school later this semester.