MANSFIELD, Pa. – The full
return of students to campus for the 2021-22 academic year brought back the
excitement of student-based research at Mansfield University’s Grant Science
Center. Junior and senior students in the biology program, within the
Department of Natural Sciences, have worked diligently throughout the year on
their Mansfield University-supported independent research projects. Several
students presented their work at state and regional conferences.
Recently, seven MU biology
students presented their original research projects at the 53rd Annual
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania University Biologists (CPUB) meeting at Lock Haven
University on April 9, 2022 (virtually). The conference drew about 45 research
presentations by students from across the PA State System of Higher Education.
Shaelyn Marx (Stroudsburg,
Pa.), a senior biology: cell and molecular concentration major, gave a platform
oral presentation on her research, “Impact of Tumor Cell-Produced Cytokines
on Macrophage Polarization.” Marx, who was mentored by Dr. Kristen Long,
won 1st place for her talk in the category of Cellular and Molecular
Biology.
Poster presentations were
given by six students: Dain Becker, Alexis Easling, James Esposito, Lauren
Griffith, Carly Root, and Kassidy Wood. Becker, Esposito, and Root competed in
the category of Ecology and Organismal Biology; Easling, Griffith, and Wood
competed in the category of Cellular and Molecular Biology.
Dain Becker (Thurston, N.Y.)
a senior biology major presented on the “Effects of Fertilizers on Phaseolus
vulgaris.” James Esposito (Sayre, Pa.) a junior biology major presented on
the “Effects of Road Salts on Plant Growth.” Both students were mentored
by Dr. Robert Maris. Carly Root (Trout Run, Pa.) a senior biology: environmental
biology concentration major presented on “Sequestration of Toxic Metals by
Wild Mushrooms near Abandoned Coal Mine.” Root was mentored by Drs. Gregory
Carson, Elaine Farkas, Gregory Moyer, and Jeanne Kagle. Root earned 1st
place for her poster presentation, and Esposito earned second place for his
poster presentation.
Alexis Easling (Corning, N.Y.)
a senior biology: cell and molecular concentration major presented on “Developing
an extraction protocol for high quality phage DNA from sewage sludge.” Kassidy
Wood (Horseheads, N.Y.) a senior biology major presented on the “Comparison
of Evolution Rate of Ciprofloxacin Resistance among Staphylococcus epidermidis
Isolates.” Both students were mentored by Dr. Kagle. Lauren Griffith (Upper
Marlboro, Md.) a junior biology: cell and molecular concentration major
presented on “T cell impact on tumor microenvironment and therapy resistance.”
Griffith was mentored by Dr. Long.
Last semester, Marx and
Griffith also presented their Mansfield-supported research at regional conferences.
Marx presented her research at the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges
(COPLAC) 12th Annual Northeast Regional Undergraduate Research
Conference (virtually). Griffith presented her work at the 3rd Annual
Developmental Biology New York Conference held virtually in Ithaca, N.Y.
(virtually). The conference included student presenters at the undergraduate,
graduate, and post-doctoral levels, from local through international
universities.
Students in the Mansfield
University biology program complete an independent research project as part of
their degree requirements. Throughout a series of courses, students are trained
how to properly design, conduct, and present biological research. These
requirements allow students to gain first-hand training in a sub-discipline of biology
and teach/reinforce fundamental concepts by bringing them to life.
For more information about
ongoing research projects or to learn more about the biology program at
Mansfield University, please visit mansfield.edu/biology/.