Chenelle Boatswain worked at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Minneapolis under the supervision of Dr. Silvia Giraudo. The purpose of her research was to observe the feeding behavior of rats after being given a newly developed chemical, SHU 9119. SHU 9119 is an antagonist that interrupts neural receptor pathways, which allow the rats to recognize when they are satiated, and appears to play an inhibitory role in feeding and energy storage. The results from Chenelle’s project were very interesting and unexpected. As a result, Chenelle’s advisor has decided to write a grant proposal to do further investigations. Chenelle's paper can be accessed here.
Chris Dale worked in the Chemistry Department of Hamline University under the direction of Dr. Matachek. He synthesized ferrocene molecules of different chin lengths to investigate effects of the chain lengths on insulator properties of the molecules. By exchanging chain lengths between two ferrocene molecules and inducing a positive charge on one molecule, he was able to observe effects on the opposite molecule. Chris says this experience has given him a unique opportunity to step outside of the classroom to truly enjoy the art of chemistry. He indicates that he particularly enjoyed working with sophisticated instruments such as the NMR and mass spectrometer and has plans to continue his research on insulators. Chris' paper can be accessed here.
Stephanie Friedland worked in Karen Oberhauser's laboratory at the University of Minnesota. She investigated food-choice preferences of monarch butterflies and larva at different stages of development for milkweed that was infected with BT toxin versus water. Corn in many fields is sprayed with the BT the, which finds its way onto nearby milkweed. Studies have shown that BT toxin is deadly to monarch larva, ranging in different mortality rates. Stephanie hopes that her work will help to save monarch butterflies that are being endangered because of the BT toxin. Stephanie was a Semi-Finalist in the INTEL (Westinghouse) Science Talent Search. Stephanie's paper can be accessed here.
Varun Kshettry conducted his research in the laboratory of Dr. Cathy Kotz at the Obesity Center at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center. He investigated ways in which Orexin-A, an amino acid peptide, stimulates feeding behavior in rats. By injecting Orexin-A into a specific site of the brain known as the lateral hypothalamus (LH) to stimulate food intake, he was able to research the release of opioids and glutamate and the interaction between the LH and other sites in the brain, including the lateral septal nucleus, and the paraventricular nucleus. The data from these experiments will aid in understanding the mechanisms of the brain that regulate food intake. Varun feels he had a remarkable opportunity to learn and work with experienced professionals. Varun's paper can be accessed here.
William Martin worked in the laboratory of Dr. Thomas at the University of Minnesota. Will investigated how myosin heads rotate during muscle contraction and determined the change in distance between the myosin heads during different stages of movement. To do this, he labeled myosin molecules with fluorescent probes and then observed the movement of these probes during the three main stages of muscle movement (rigor, relaxation, and contraction). Will says that the results of his experiment may be used to gain a better understanding about the mechanics of muscle movement. Will's paper can be accessed here.
Chad Simcox worked in the laboratory of Dr. Ray Allmaras at the University of Minnesota. The goal of his research was to determine which tillage machine spread and distributed tracer spheres the most uniformly. He used data from core samples taken from sites where tracer beads were placed on a make-off area of a field and tilled by different tillage machines. Chad’s results showed that a Gramegna spading machine, with six spades, distributed the tracer beads with the most accuracy and uniformity. He found that the Northwest Rotary Tiller came in second although all three rotary tillers, Northwest, Kuhn and Fobro, all resulted in concentrated clusters of tracers, the Northwest tiller resulted in deeper clusters. Chad's paper can be accessed here.
Richard Stern conducted his research at the University of Minnesota under the Supervision of Dr. Dave Thomas and Ben Mueller (Breck alum). He researched the effect of ellagic acid on the calcium ATPase pump in the heart, a mechanism that uses energy to move calcium from the cytoplasm into the sarcoplasmic reticulum, making muscle relax. He labeled calcium pump with a phosphorescent dye then measured anisotropy with a high-powered laser. Ricky says that the information obtained from these experiments may help to control the state of the pump thus controlling muscle relaxation and contraction. Richy's paper can be accessed here.
Garin Strobl had the unique opportunity to work on an archaeological dig in northern England under the supervision of Dr. Carl Blair (Breck alum). She dug, among other things, iron smelting furnaces used by the Nordic people around AD 950. Besides learning about archaeological techniques and the Nordic people from that time period, she specifically studied slag, a byproduct of smelted iron. She did a comparative study between the slag found in northern England and slag that her advisor, Dr. Blair, produced in a mocked-up smelting furnace at the University of Minnesota. By using statistical analysis, Garin was able to find patterns first within the two individual groups and then between the two groups of slag. The patterns enabled Garin to compare the techniques used by the Nordic people in their iron smelting process to the technique used by Dr. Blair. Garin's paper can be accessed here.
Richard Timm worked with Dr. Osha Roopnarine in Dr. David Thomas’s laboratory at the University of Minnesota. He studied myosin mutations that cause a heart disease called familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC). His project involved site-directed mutagenesis to create a cysteine regulatory light chain mutant (cysRLC) and a cysRLC mutant with a FHC mutation (cys/FHC). He then expressed and purified this mutant and attached spin labels to the cysRLC and the cys/FHC mutants. By doing this, he was able to study the protein dynamics using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Ricky says that the results of his experiments will give a better understanding of the link between the mutations and muscle function. Richy's paper can be accessed here.
