Category: 2022

Gender differences in externalizing and internalizing behaviors for children of incarcerated parents

Presenter: Julia Rehmann – Family and Human Services, Psychology

Faculty Mentor(s): Abbie Sanders, Jean Kjellstrand

Session: (Virtual) Poster Presentation

Children with an incarcerated parent are three to four times as likely to engage in delinquent behavior and two and a half times as likely to have mental health problems when compared to children without an incarcerated parent. As soon as fourth grade, gender differences emerge between externalizing and internalizing symptoms, with girls showing higher rates of internalizing behaviors and boys showing higher rates of externalizing behaviors. Using data drawn from the Linking Interests of Families and Teachers (LIFT) project, the current study examined the impact of gender on the externalizing and internalizing behavior ratings of fifth-grade students with incarcerated parents (n = 67). Results from an independent samples t-test revealed that scores between male and female students did not significantly differ in externalizing or internalizing behavior ratings. Prior literature had established distinct differences in a general population between externalizing and internalizing behaviors based on sex. In contrast, the findings in this study highlight the need for further examination of how behavior is impacted by parental incarceration.

A Homeodomain Protein Generates Neuronal Diversity and Connectivity in the Drosophila Lamina

Presenter: Tyler Ramos – Human Physiology

Faculty Mentor(s): Chundi Xu

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Daily Dose of Proteins

How we perceive and integrate our experiences is the result of an intricate network of diverse neuron types, each with specific connectivity. To generate different neurons, signals in precursors give each neuron its unique neuronal fate. Subsequently, a combination of proteins called homeodomain transcription factors (TFs) grant neurons proper synaptic connectivity. The processes of fate selection and synapse assembly are sequential actions that have been characterized separately but are deeply connected. It is unknown if a common regulator exists between these two developmental steps. Our purpose is to test if a homeodomain TF can function as a regulator of both neuronal fate and synaptic connectivity. To pursue this, we use the lamina neurons (L1-L5) of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. We show that homeodomain TF Brain-specific homeobox (Bsh) is expressed in lamina precursor cells, which suggests it may play a role in establishing lamina neuron fate. Using cell- specific knockdown and tracing methods, we found removing Bsh generates L1 and L3 neurons at the expense of L5 and L4 neurons, respectively. In L4 neurons, Bsh activates another protein, Apterous (Ap). Knockdown of Bsh and Ap in L4 neurons resulted in the loss of a synapse recognition molecule and altered synaptic connectivity. We propose that the homeodomain TF Bsh functions as a regulator of both neuronal fate and synaptic connectivity, which may be a conserved developmental mechanism across organisms.

Alkaline phosphatase-activated hydrogen sulfide donors for bone regeneration

Presenter: Mia Ramos – Biochemistry

Faculty Mentor(s): Annie Gilbert, Mike Pluth

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a small gaseous signaling molecule that can provide a variety of important physiological effects. For example, H2S can promote angiogenesis, osteogenesis, and regulate inflammation. These regenerative effects of H2S make it an ideal therapeutic candidate for healing bone defects. The challenge with studying therapeutic effects of H2S in bone applications is that the direct delivery of H2S as a gas or inorganic sulfide salt lack spatial and temporal control. To address this challenge, small molecule H2S donors have been developed. Previously, the Pluth lab has developed caged thiocarbamates as a highly tunable class of COS-based H2S donors. Upon activation, caged thiocarbamates undergo a self-immolative cascade in the presence of specific environments or analytes to produce COS, which is rapidly converted to H2S by carbonic anhydrase. This strategy could be useful for localizing H2S delivery in bone healing sites. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is an enzyme that is present in large concentrations in bone fractures and could serve as an activator of H2S production from a phosphate protected caged thiocarbamate. Here, we developed an alkaline phosphatase-activated caged thiocarbamate COS/H2S donor to study H2S in bone healing applications. We anticipate the development of these ALP-activated H2S donors will serve as useful tools for investigating therapeutic effects of H2S in bone healing.

Evaluating Responsive Caregiving Behaviors within the FIND Intervention

Presenter: Heather Ralph – Biology, Psychology

Faculty Mentor(s): Andrea Imhof, Phil Fisher

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Connection and Community

Interventions that emphasize responsive caregiving can reverse the negative effects of early life stress exposure on development in early childhood. Despite this knowledge, there is a lack of consensus in the field about which behaviors define “responsive caregiving”. The Filming Interactions to Nurture Development (FIND) Intervention is a responsive caregiving intervention that guides caregivers towards serve and return interactions that follows the child’s lead. Preliminary evidence from pilot trials suggest that the FIND intervention may significantly impact both caregiver and child outcomes, but it is not yet known how FIND changes the way caregivers and children interact. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether FIND increases the frequency of caregiver “following” behaviors during a dyadic freeplay tasks. Results from a pilot trial using 18 mother-infant dyads (9 FIND families and 9 control families) will be presented, highlighting ways that the FIND intervention changes the nature of dyadic interaction. Implications for analyzing responsive caregiving behaviors, limitations, and next steps for evaluating the FIND intervention will be discussed.

The Efficacy of Diversity Training in Nonprofit Organizations

Presenter: Isabel Queisser – Planning, Public Policy and Management

Faculty Mentor(s): Nicole Ngo

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Diversity and Analysis

This study explores the outcomes of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) training in nonprofit organizations. This study aims to determine which aspects of diversity training lead to increased awareness about DEI or tangible improvements, and which factors are more detrimental to the goals of DEI. Open ended interviews were conducted with 18 nonprofits in the Pacific Northwest, where participants were asked about their experiences with DEI trainings and workshops. The data were then coded for the themes addressed above. This research suggests that diversity training can be a successful tool to increase DEI engagement if intentionally designed with longevity and opportunities for dialogue, actionable steps, and organization-specific focus in mind and are facilitated by an expert.

Investigating Greywater Filtration Capabilities of Pumice and Scoria from the Pacific Northwest

Presenter: Margery Price – Earth Sciences

Faculty Mentor(s): Thomas Giachetti

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Graywater (wastewater produced by bathing, washing, and other domestic water uses) contains particles that can be removed by filtration. With treatment, it can be reused for tasks such as irrigation or street cleaning. Pumice and scoria, highly porous volcanic rocks, are optimal filtration media; they have both high external and internal surface area due to their tortuous networks of connected pores. This project investigates the physical characteristics of pumices and scoriae that most impact their efficacy as filter materials by testing interactions between the rocks and graywater. Samples of pumice and scoria from Oregon volcanoes are measured using a Particle Analyzer, a high precision scale, and a helium pycnometer to find mass, volume, packing fraction, and total and connected porosity. Graywater is created using conventional household cleaning and personal care products, then characterized for pH, turbidity, TDS, and conductivity. Lastly, static absorption experiments examine the interactions between pumice and scoria with both tap water and graywater when submerged. Preliminary results show that pumice and scoria systems of the same sizes absorb similar volumes of water, despite having different porosities. Scoria offers more area of interaction with water on its external surfaces, but pumice contains more available surface area within the particles. More work needs to be done investigating which of these parameters results in better filtration of graywater.

Skeletal Muscle Compliance and Composition in Young Men and Women

Presenter: Ayooluwa Popoola – Human Physiology

Faculty Mentor(s): Austin Ricci, Damien Callahan

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Skeletal muscle is a complex tissue, comprised at the whole tissue level of contractile structures, adipose and connective tissue. The relationships between composition and biological sex are important because composition likely affects muscle contractile performance. However, the mechanisms through which composition and stiffness interdependently influence function between men and women remain largely unclear.

Purpose: to investigate the differences in active and passive stiffness of the vastus lateralis muscle (VL) and patellar tendon (PT) in young men and women.

Methods: We recruited 14 young healthy participants, 9 men and 5 women. Participants performed 3 maximum voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) of the knee extensor muscles (KE) to determine peak torque. Passive stiffness was measured at the VL and PT using digital palpation (DP) prior to MVIC measurements. Active stiffness was measured at 25%, 50%, and 100% MVIC during ramped contractions using DP and ultrasound.

Results: Passive stiffness was not different between sexes at the PT or VL. Active stiffness was less in women at the VL [0.19] and PT [0.03]. Women had higher subcutaneous adipose thickness (SAT) [<0.001] and echogenicity [<0.001] with similar muscle thickness.

Conclusion: Data suggests muscle activation comparatively alters stiffness in women. Despite similar muscle thickness, women have higher SAT and echogenicity, two characteristics known to reduce stiffness.

Professionalism: Swearing in the Workplace

Presenter: Victoria Pineiro – Environmental Studies

Co-Presenter(s): Andi Van Laanen

Faculty Mentor(s): Melissa Baese-Berk, Myrihe Rohbock

Session: (Virtual) Oral Panel—Read, Speak and Act

In recent years, swearing has moved from somewhat of a taboo topic to a more common and acceptable practice in day to day life. This particular research examines how swearing impacts perceptions of professionalism in the workplace, with gender stereotypes as a sub focus. To investigate this, two surveys were distributed to primarily college aged individuals, and each survey had two sets of audios with the same scripts, one with a woman swearing and man not swearing, and the other with a man swearing and a woman not swearing. Participants were then asked about their perceptions of the speaker in each audio and to reflect on their feelings towards each as a whole. Overall, we found that swearing and professionalism have a negative relationship, regardless of gender. In conclusion, by conducting this research we are able to investigate the various ways professionalism is portrayed through different linguistic choices.

Public Speaking Literacy as a Counterstory

Presenter: Tristan Phillips – Business Administration

Co-Presenter(s): Claire Putnam

Faculty Mentor(s): Emily Simnitt

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Communication: How and Why

When asked about what skills are most important for communication, often reading and writing come to mind. It’s not often in our education that we find public speaking to be a skill that is emphasized as important. As a result, people don’t often put time and energy into becoming better public speakers and are afraid of it when they are required to give presentations. In this study, we examine how students feel about public speaking. How do students who have received practice or training feel compared to those who don’t have that training? The purpose of this study is to see how we can best tailor our public speaking workshops to the students. We want to get an idea of the perception people have of public speaking. More importantly, what qualities do people see as “good public speaking skills” and what does this tell us about public speaking literacy? We hope this data can be used by the university to allocate more resources toward public speaking education.

Using machine learning to classify bacterial species from fluorescent image data

Presenter: Noah Pettinari – Physics

Faculty Mentor(s): Raghuveer Parthasarathy

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Uniquely Their Own

The study of host-microbe interactions has been of growing interest in recent years, with new research highlighting their importance in ecology, human health, developmental biology, and immunology. Fluorescent imaging of larger multispecies bacterial communities within the host microbiome is generally limited to one species per fluorescent channel, greatly limiting the ability to image several species simultaneously. Additionally, the creation and integration of new fluorophores is a slow and labor intensive process, further limiting the use of fluorescent imaging. We assess an algorithm for classifying two bacterial species in vitro within one fluorescent channel using machine learning techniques on morphology data. We then applied this machine learning model to bacterial communities in the rotifer gut, testing new algorithms for removing unwanted autofluorescence along the way.