Research in Biology

During January Term and the beginning of the spring semester, students will learn all about research and work on research skills that include: scientific literacy, scientific writing, presentations and communication skills. In the lab students will learn about the scientific method and experimental design, basic wet lab techniques which include: micropipetting, sterile technique, gel electrophoresis, and many more. 

Spring semester is also when students do library research, develop their project, and begin working with their model organism. Students will write a research proposal which they defend at midterm. Work on their project continues during the summer term and is completed at the beginning of the fall semester.

The focus of fall semester is data analysis and communication of results in multiple formats including paper writing, poster sessions, and short talks at competitions and conferences. 

Students in this program are, first and foremost, interested in biology. They are able to work independently, respond well to constructive criticism, and want to learn how to be a good scientist. There are no course prerequisites or expectations that students have had previous research experience. 

• Potential Quorum Quenching Effects of Galactosamine on Biofilm formation in E. aerogenes.

• Assessing the Effectiveness of H. erinaceus Extract as a potential acetylcholinesterase inhibitor to treat Alzheimer’s Disease

• The effect of Small Molecules JH-RE-06 and T2AA on Mutagenic Translesion Synthesis in A.thaliana

• Investigating potential synergistic effects between MSDC-0160 and Rapamycin in treating Parkinson’s Disease

• Production of Extracellular PET Hydrolase using Transgenic E.coli to degrade Polyethylene Terephthalate

• Use of Lipid-based SEDDS to Enhance the Bioavailability of Curcumin to reduce the effects of Alzheimers’s Disease

• Responses to global warming in Pieris rapae (Lepidoptera): consequences of increased nocturnal temperature on fitness components.

• Effect of hierarchy status on vocal amplitude in the zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata

• Differential Sequestration of TLR Agonists: a Novel Mechanism by which ApoE Isoform Regulates Immunoresponse in Humans

• The Effect of Substrate Density on the Rate of Migration of NIH-3T3 Fibroblasts

• Prions as a novel mechanism of yeast stress response through yeast colony morphology

• Trail avoidance, spatial pattern recognition, and tubule-crossing efficiency in the true slime mold Physarum polycephalum.

• Use of lipophilic fertilizers and surfactants to enhance oil degradation by B. cereus.

• Effects of di-butyl phthalate (DBP) on developing Medaka embryos

• Effects of anthropogenic climate changes on the emerging marine disease Serratia marcescens