Student shares authorship
By Bethany Carpenter, Marketing and News Services Intern
WSU’s commitment to undergraduate education and research paid off recently for Kayla Ann Simons. As a result of work she did as an undergraduate, she was included as one of seven authors of an article in Nature, an international journal of science, for her contribution to a WSU research project on disease resistance in plants.
L–R: B.W. “Joe” Poovaiah, Liqun Du and Kayla Ann Simons. In a rare honor for an undergraduate, Kayla was a co-author on a paper published in the prestigious science journal, Nature. Simons is currently working on a master’s degree in WSU’s professional pharmacy program. |
To be named as an author in a scientific journal such as Nature is a great accomplishment for anyone, especially an undergraduate, said Joe Poovaiah, WSU Regents professor and director of the lab in which Simons worked. In his 33 years in the horticulture department, Poovaiah has had many undergraduate students work in his lab, but Simons is the only one who has earned an authorship in a Nature publication.
Simons, 24, is in her second year of study in WSU’s professional pharmacy program. Five years ago, as a WSU Regents Scholar, she was introduced to Poovaiah at freshman summer orientation, thanks in part to her high school science teacher. Poovaiah hired her to work in his laboratory, where she primarily assisted Liqun Du, a research assistant professor working with Poovaiah.
“Liqun is very meticulous. He is very particular that things are done the right way,” Simons said. “But he was always very patient with me. He is an amazing teacher.”
Dedication to details
Simons differed from other students who worked in his lab, Poovaiah said, because she continued working for the entire four years of her undergraduate education. She also showed a commitment to quality that exceeded the average student.
“Her dedication to details got everyone’s attention in the lab,” Poovaiah said. “The challenge of complicated experiments did not scare Kayla.”
Poovaiah explains how Simons demonstrated her commitment to learning when she completed WSU’s radiation safety class, which, he said, most students shy away from. Simons not only completed the class, she earned a perfect score and became responsible for the safety of other students working with radiation in the lab.
Thirst for knowledge
Simons received funding from the WSU Center for Integrated Biotechnology, the WSU Department of Horticulture, and the National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates program to continue research through three summers. Poovaiah said he and his colleagues were able to “nurture Kayla’s talent” while she assisted them in a “world class project” on plant disease resistance.
“I got lab experience before anyone else,” Simons said. “When I took biochem, that lab experience really helped.”
The fact that students get paid to learn makes working in a university laboratory a “win-win” situation, she said. The experience taught her “critical thinking skills that transcend any discipline.”
Simons has yet to decide what she wants to do after graduating with her master’s degree in pharmacy, but she has thought about conducting research in clinical trials with human patients.
“I don’t think my thirst for knowledge will ever be quenched,” she said.
Learning By Doing:
CAHNRS funds undergrad research projects
An unprecedented number of undergraduate students in the WSU College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences had an opportunity to conduct hands-on science this past year, thanks to a series of grants from the college.
“Experiential learning and applying basic science and research to real-world issues and challenges are cornerstones of what our college is about,” said Kim Kidwell, CAHNRS associate dean for academic programs. “The lessons learned by conducting research are much more impactful than those learned solely by listening in a lecture hall.”
Kidwell initiated the research grants last year, when approximately 10 projects received grants of between $500 and $1,200. This year, she expanded the program to fund more than 30 projects. “The student projects were chosen for funding based on the soundness of the science and research methods they proposed,” Kidwell explained. “The level of quality and innovation is impressive.”
The students, working in teams with faculty and graduate students, conducted research on everything from attribution of blame to victims of sexual abuse to developing wheat for celiac patients and dietary health.
CAHNRS undergrads present research over Mom’s Weekend
Food Science major develops hot ice cream
Christina Martin Samuels |
Ice cream is cold. Right? Not necessarily, according to Christina Martin Samuels, a senior majoring in food science.
Samuels has developed “Mint Blast,” a dual sensation ice cream that delivers heat via spicy mini chocolate truffles along with the traditional cold of mint-flavored ice cream.
“According to trends in the food industry, there is a large move toward ethnic flavors, bold flavors,” she said. “A love of spiciness is becoming more mainstream.”
Food Science Professor Stephanie Clark was her advisor for the project.
Student life guard designs “stay put” swim wear
Tamara Hall |
As a summer lifeguard much of her life, Tamara Hall knows well the dangers of “wardrobe malfunctions” while on the job.
“When you have to dive into the water, it seems that either the top comes up or the bottoms come down,” she said.
So, the junior majoring in apparel design designed and developed a “monokini” bathing suit.
“I went with a triangular shape for both fashion and fit,” she said. “It’s flattering for most figures and is more stable than a traditional one-piece or two-piece.”
Hall showed her swim suit at the annual WSU Moms Weekend Fashion Show April 3. Apparel, Merchandising, Design and Textiles Professor Carol Salusso was her mentor for the project.
Mosquitoes + virus equals one-two punch for victims
Júlia Pásztor |
Are mosquitoes helping viruses infect a host? Probably so, according to Júlia Pásztor, an animal sciences major with a minor in microbiology.
Pásztor measured antibody responses of domestic chickens to Avian Pox Virus (APV), which is naturally transmitted among birds by a mosquito vector.
“We want to figure out what’s going on between vectors and pathogens to infect the host,” Pásztor said. “We found that birds exposed to mosquitoes had a lower pox-antibody response,” she said. “That shows the mosquito is, in fact, affecting the birds’ ability to fight off APV.
“If we can figure out what’s going on and how it’s happening, we may be able to create preventive methods to stop the spread of such viruses in animals and humans,” said Pásztor.
Jeb Owen, assistant professor in entomology, was her mentor for the project.
Collecting cortisol to quantify quality of life
Janet Irons |
A young child’s saliva may hold the secret to determining how, or whether, family difficulties impact his or her stress levels, according to Janet Irons.
Irons, a human development major, helped collect data to measure amounts of cortisol, a stress hormone produced when individuals are exposed to psychological stress, especially in the context of interpersonal relationships.
Working with 37 families with three- to seven-year-old children, Irons collected data on children’s cortisol levels through a salivary sampling method called “The Spitting Game.” Parents also filled out questionnaires about their marital and emotional functioning, parenting, and their child’s personality and behavior.
Preliminary results show higher levels of cortisol in children rated by their parents as expressing more anger and frustration. Patricia Pendry, assistant professor of human development, was the advisor for the project.
