BIOrhythms
a publication of the Washington University Biology Department for Undergraduate Majors
Bio 200/500 Research Spotlights
Kristen Reikersdorfer on Hengen Lab
I have spent the last four years as a member of the Hengen Lab, where I have taken a deep dive into neuroscience and neural engineering. Our group focuses on understanding the self-organization of complex brain activity in freely behaving animals. Paramount to this investigation are robust, long-term electrophysiological recordings, which allow us to study the same subset of neurons over many months.
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Michelle Pollowitz on the Penczykowski Lab
Many labs and research opportunities closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, just as my research in plant disease ecology was beginning. In January 2020, I began research in the Penczykowski lab to study effects of temperature on fungal infection of common weedy plants in the genus Plantago. I spent the first weeks of the semester learning skills and techniques that I would need in the lab-based data collection that would begin after spring break. Things went a little differently than planned.
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Ellie Sapiro on the Herzog Lab
I have had the privilege of working in the Herzog Lab since the spring of my sophomore year. The Herzog Lab studies biological clocks and different cells, circuits, and molecules that affect circadian rhythms. Biological clocks are intrinsic oscillators that coordinate approximately 24 hour physiological and behavioral rhythms in almost all organisms.
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Eka Jose and Ethan Lowder on the Kranz Lab
For both of us, COVID has changed things but we believe that the Kranz lab has adapted well to these challenges. I believe that our openness in communication, adaptation to challenges of zoom, and recognition that COVID has made our personal lives more flexible has greatly added to this success. The support from WashU through technology and study spaces, the Kranz lab, and the WashU research community as a whole has made this change much easier for us. We hope that we can continue to stay safe doing this work and look forward to making the adjustment back to normal in the future!
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Shayna Rosenbloom on the Gordon Lab
My name is Shayna Rosenbloom and I am a senior majoring in Environmental Biology. For the last year and a half, I have been lucky to work with Dr. Swanne Gordon as part of her eco/evo lab with Dr. Andrés López-Sepulcre. Dr. Gordon studies evolution and maintenance of color polymorphisms and sexual selection in the Wood Tiger Moth and the rapidly evolving Trinidadian Guppy.
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Ethan Weiner on Haswell Lab
Hello! My name is Ethan Weiner and I am currently a senior about to graduate with a Biology major with a Biochemistry concentration. Since spring semester of my sophomore year, I have had the privilege of working in Dr. Haswell’s lab. Her lab studies the ways in which plants respond to mechanical stimuli. I have utilized algae and moss as model organisms in order to better understand a specific family of protein channels (Piezos) that are likely involved in not just plants’, but many eukaryotes’ responses to certain mechanical stresses.
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Irene Hamlin on the Budge Lab
In the Budge Lab we focus on the eradication of lymphatic filariasis (LF) which is a neglected tropical disease caused by the Wuchereria bancrofti worm endemic in Western and Central Africa. This disease damages the lymphatic system, often causing lymphoedema and elephantiasis of the limbs. I’ve spent the last year and a half as an undergraduate research assistant working towards improving the rapid diagnostic test for LF. The World Health Organization’s Global Program for Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis depends on efficient and accurate diagnoses to inhibit transmission. Currently, cross reactive antigens from the co-endemic Loa loa worm produce false positive test results and impede the successful treatment of those with Lymphatic Filariasis. Misdiagnosis bears significant risks, as treating false positives may lead to encephalopathy and death.
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Maya Dutta on the Olsen Lab
Adaptation to local environments is critically important for a plant’s ability to survive in a variety of ecological settings and persist in the face of climate change. The genetic and physiological mechanisms that regulate these processes, however, are not well known. In the Olsen Lab, we aim to understand the genetic basis of evolution in plants.
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Kevin Yin on the Rentschler Lab
In the Rentschler lab, we aim to address heart disease by looking at how developmental pathways and gene regulation networks are associated with various heart diseases. We are specifically interested in how alterations of genes during development or in the adult can lead to arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia.
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Samuel Kim on the Kummer Lab
In the Kummer lab, we are focused on creating the tools needed to help localize the foci of neural circuit dysfunction. Although the historical attention has been on axonal injury, with synapses below the resolution of classical techniques, new technology enables us to overcome this barrier.
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Mitchell Grinwald on the Chheda Lab
My work in the Chheda lab as a Bio500 independent research student has given me a fantastic opportunity to explore my interests at the intersection of epigenetics and cancer biology. Additionally, the ability to conduct independent research with the exceptional support which my PI (Dr. Chheda) and bench mentor (Dr. Galdieri) provide has enabled me to learn new techniques and think critically about experimental design and analysis.
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Send Us Your Ideas and InformationMallott's path to Microbiome Research
Liz Mallott was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but spent most of her childhood in the town of Martinsburg, West Virginia. Growing up on a small farm in the middle of nowhere allowed her the freedom to play outside most of the time, fostering her interest in nature. She cites the 1980s PBS show Wild America as another source of her lifelong interest in natural history. The show explored various large mammals in North America and made her realize that it was possible to have a career studying animals in their natural habitat and get to be outside all day!
Mallott completed undergraduate degrees in Biology and Music (she plays piano) at Grinnell College in Iowa. During and after her undergrad years, she wanted to explore different options, so she found a variety of seasonal fieldwork positions, followed by graduate school, two postdocs, and a visiting professorship.
BIOrhythms archive
September 2022
Featuring Assistant Professor B. Duygu Özpolat, WashU Votes, Vagelos Fellowship, and best places to study in Biology
April 2022
Featuring Barbara Schaal and Bio 3900: Science for Agriculture and Environmental Policy
February 2022
This issue features new faculty member and undergraduate research coordinator Janet Goins, Bio 131: Biology in the News, and more
November 2021
This issue features interviews with undergrads who won awards and summer opportunities
October 2021
This issue features Assistant Dean and Academic Coordinator Anthony Smith, three undergrad biology courses about cancer, Bear Studios, A World of Women in STEM and WashU Clinical Connect.
April 2021
This issue features Jason Weber, Bio 4715 and 4716, Bio 500 spotlight: Michelle Pollowitz on the Penczykowski Lab and undergrad awards
February 2021
This issue features Eleanor Pardini, new Environmental Studies minors, Bio 500 research stories
November 2020
This issue features Andrés López-Sepulcre, Bio 4193 Experimental Ecology Laboratory, Fall OUR Symposium
September 2020
This issue features Professor Erik Herzog, National Voter Registration Week, student group announcements and more.
April 2020
This issue features Bio 4492 to refocus on COVID 19, Maggie Schlarman on the challenge of teaching a lab online, Bio 500 spotlight on Ethan Weiner of Haswell Lab, new video series WashU Between the Lines, undergrad scholarship winners, and more.
February 2020
This issue features information about new assistant professor Michael Landis, Bio 472: Behavioral Ecology, Bio 500 spotlight Irene Hamlin on Budge Lab, WashU Votes, BioSURF and more.
November 2019
This issue features new assistant professor Swanne Gordon, WUSTL Endure Neuroscience Pipeline program, Research opportunities at Tyson Research Center and MO Botanical Gardens and more.
September 2019
This issue features a Faculty Spotlight on Barbara Kunkel; New Course Spotlight on Bio 4582: Essentials of Biomedical Scientific Reviewing, Writing, and Presenting; Bio 500 Spotlight: Mitchell Grinwald on the Chheda Lab and more!
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All issues of BIOrhythms dating back to September 2008
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