Understanding Cancer Metastasis: The Role of Zyxin in Actin Dynamics

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Nicholas H Bishop Purpose and Protocol My research aims to elucidate the protein interactions at cell-cell contacts (adherens junctions or AJs) by studying the fluorescence recovery of three known AJ proteins (zyxin, VASP, and actin) after photobleaching. At AJs, zyxin interacts with VASP (Vasioukhin et al., 2000) which in turn encourages the polymerization of actin […]

Molecular Mechanism of Host Specificity in a Permissive Infectious Process

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Joshua Sterling Bentley and Dr. Joel S. Griffitts, Micro and Molecular Biology vUnderstanding the molecular mechanism permitting symbiosis is not completely understood. A more confounding question is why do closely related bacteria demonstrate variable specificity? In my project we attempted to answer this very question by attempting to identify the gene or genes responsible for […]

The Role of YPO 2169 in Flea Transmission of Plague

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Paul Henry Beeston and Dr. David Erickson, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Yersinia pestis is the gram negative bacteria responsible for the disease known as the plague. It is transmitted to hosts primarily through fleas such as the Oriental rat flea North American ground squirrel flea. Y. pestis is mainly a disease that affects small mammal […]

Chondrocyte Apoptosis Correlated with Progression of Osteoarthritis in Dmm Mice

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Ryan Anderson and Dr. Robert E Seegmiller, Physiology and Developmental Biology Osteoarthritis (OA) is a progressive disease resulting in the degeneration of synovial joint cartilage and is the leading cause of chronic disability in the elderly1. Despite the prevalence of this disease, its pathogenesis is poorly understood. There is need for low cost, short generation […]

Finding a Correlation Between Aggressivity of Cancer and DNA Repair Capacity

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Kristie I. Aamodt and Dr. Kim L. O’Neill, Microbiology and Molecular Biology The initial proposal for this project outlined the study of the link between DNA damage and aggressiveness of cancer cells. A major portion of the project involved developing a more time-efficient method of measuring DNA repair using a fluorescent staining technique that quantifies […]

The Effects of Cultural Views and Culture Shock on Success in Study Abroad Programs

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Nichole Trone and Dr. Jennifer Bown: Germanic and Slavic Department Upon getting to St. Petersburg, Russia, I realized that this project was not something I would just be conducting and observing; I would be participating it in as fully as any other student would. I somehow thought that I would be exempt from experiencing the […]

Excavation on the North Slope of Vesuvius: Establishing a Chronology

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Kristina Sycamore and Dr. Roger Macfarlane, Classics Centuries of excavation around the south slope of Vesuvius has proven the volcanic eruption of 79 AD to be a boon to Roman archaeology and history. As multiple sites have been uncovered, archaeologists have viewed a snapshot in time. As a result, a great deal has been learned […]

Aristotle’s Vision of God: Moving Beyond the Unmoved Mover

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Tyler Stoehr and Dr. Daniel Graham, Philosophy In Physics VIII and Metaphysics Λ Aristotle paints a portrait of a God that has typically dominated theological discussions in both the philosophical and Christian traditions of the West. This God is form without matter,1 pure actuality,2 pure thought,3 indivisible,4 incorporeal,5 andthe ultimate cause of the universe.6 However, […]

Reflections of the English Tradition in James Henry’s Poetry

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Ryan D. Stewart and Dr. John Talbot, English James Henry (1798-1876) was an Irish classicist most well known for his long and eccentric commentary of Virgil’s Aeneid—Aeneidea, or Critical, Exegetical and Aesthetical Remarks on the Aeneis—and known to some extent for his work as a physician and his penchant for pamphleteering. In the mid-1980s, however, […]