Local High School Students Doing Research at Williams College
WILLIAMSTOWN - For the 18th year running, four rising seniors from Berkshire County high schools are engaging in biological research in Williams College labs. The program, from July 7 to August 1, is supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.The students selected for this year's fellowships are Miranda Bona of Drury High School, Tyler Krutiak of Hoosac Valley High School, Ashley Meczywor of Lenox Memorial High School, and Emily Ury of Monument Mountain Regional High School.
They will spend one week in each of four research programs, gaining hands-on research experience alongside professors, college students, and peers.
These local students won admission to the program based on their eagerness to learn, demonstrated aptitude for collaboration, and understanding of the benefits of scientific research. Each applicant submitted a letter of interest, two teacher recommendations, and their high school transcript.
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute summer program for high school students carries a $1,200 stipend and is directed by Wendy Raymond, professor of biology,
This year, the students are participating in the following investigations:
Genes involved in plant sphingolipid metabolism (Daniel Lynch, professor of biology)
Sphingolipids have been shown to play important roles in animals and fungi, but relatively little is known about their function in plants. The Lynch lab is involved in a five-institution collaborative effort focusing on the network of genes predicted to be involved in sphingolipid metabolism. This investigation seeks to determine the specific roles of different sphingolipids, through characterizing the properties and behavior of mutant plants defective in certain genes related to sphingolipid metabolism.
Mutualism in insect-plant interactions (Manuel Morales, associate professor of biology)
Mutualism is a mutually beneficial association between organisms of two different specie. In the Morales lab, research is exploring the mutualism between ants and treehoppers, insects which feed on goldenrod plants. In this interaction, ants collect the sugar-rich excretions of treehoppers in return for protecting the treehoppers. Summer projects take place primarily outdoors, and include a study on an invasive ant recently discovered at the Hoosic River watershed.
Estradiol and the outcome of transient global ischemia (Noah Sandstrom, associate professor of psychology)
The brain is liable to extensive cellular damage during an occlusion of blood flow, however brief. The hippocampus, which facilitates learning and memory, is particularly vulnerable in such events, termed ischemia. This lab recently reported that estradiol, a steroid hormone, helps preserve both hippocampus cell density and spatial learning faculties in female rats following transient global ischemia. Student research assistants learn a variety of procedures, behavioral testing protocols, and histological techniques to investigate this phenomenon.
Photosynthetic physiology of Prochlorococcus (Claire Ting, assistant professor of biology)
Marine cyanobacteria are among the most abundant photosynthetic organisms on the planet. This lab studies Prochlorococcus, a cyanobacteria that plays a key role in global carbon and energy cycles. The distribution and population of Prochlorococcus are affected by environmental factors such as light and temperature. Students will be familiarized with techniques in genomics and electron microscopy in order to carry out a self-designed experiment on the effects of environmental stress on the photosynthetic physiology of Procholococcus.
