Category: 2022

Underreporting of Epidemic Rebound and Resurgent Malaria In Nine African Countries

Presenter: Idil Osman – Planning, Public Policy and Management

Faculty Mentor(s): Melissa Graboyes

Session: (In-Person) Data Stories—Data and more Data

This project focuses on the underreporting of epidemic rebound and resurgent malaria in nine African countries— The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zanzibar and Zimbabwe— over the span of a century. Currently, malaria resurgence and rebound, occurring when malaria returns to a region after having been successfully controlled, have a history of being under-counted and under-reported, especially in the African continent. My research attempts to fill in these gaps by providing an overview and analysis of malaria prevalence from 1920-2020, and documenting unreported cases of malaria resurgence. I collected, organized, and analyzed historical epidemiological data of malaria prevalence and control measures and compiled it into a longer frame– essentially creating an entirely new panel dataset– so I could see longer trends in time and identify instances of rebound. My primary results have shown there to be multiple unreported cases of malaria rebound in my researched countries. This finding not only fills a wide gap in the field of malaria research, but also implicates the nature of data collection methodology and presentation on a global scale. The results will provide a framework in determining cases of resurgent malaria and in shifting the way the WHO and other public health organizations present their epidemiological data.

Quantifying soil respiration response to planted conifer saplings and associated mycorrhizae

Presenter: Julia Odenthal – Environmental Studies

Faculty Mentor(s): Lucas Silva

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Forest soils present a crucial opportunity for carbon sequestration to combat rising atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. To better understand the impact of tree planting on soil carbon storage within a previously unforested grass field in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, we will measure soil microbial respiration at the base of two conifer seedlings with different mycorrhizal associations: Calocedrus decurrens (arbuscular mycorrhizae; AM) and Pinus ponderosa (ectomycorrhizae; EcM). We will compare these measurements with soil respiration in plowed furrow replicates at a five foot distance from the sample trees and in unplowed pasture. We hypothesize that soil respiration will be higher next to seedlings compared to pasture and disturbed ground, and that AM seedlings will have higher soil respiration rates than EcM seedlings. In addition, we will measure pH, soil carbon, macronutrient, and micronutrient levels at the same locations to compare soil conditions that may alter microbial communities. Microbial function at the roots of planted trees has been shown to have some control on carbon sequestration through enhanced weathering, suggesting that current models may underestimate the carbon storage potential of forested soils. Understanding the potential of carbon sinks is key to properly allocating resources for climate change mitigation. Our data will guide future local tree planting efforts to maximize soil carbon storage.

Defining and Characterizing COVID-19 Quarantine Hesitancy in Lane County

Presenter: Marlee Odell – Biology

Faculty Mentor(s): Melissa Graboyes

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Covering Covid

Contact tracing and subsequent quarantine of individuals exposed to COVID-19 has been a useful tool throughout the pandemic. While trying to implement such measures, however, it has become clear that some people are hesitant to agree to quarantine, for a variety of reasons. The term “hesitancy” appears in similar areas of public health such as with vaccine hesitancy, however, it has not been defined for COVID-19 quarantine hesitancy. Arising from personal experience as a contact monitor (CM) for the UO Corona Corps, this thesis intended to define COVID-19 quarantine hesitancy and to identify the determinants behind a contact’s hesitancy. Semi-structured, open-ended interviews were conducted with UO Corona Corps CMs about their experience with hesitant contacts. The interviews were thematically analyzed to reveal themes rooted in the firsthand experiences of CMs. This work suggests that COVID-19 quarantine hesitancy is when there is a discrepancy between public health officials’ recommendations and the actions of COVID-19 contacts. In addition, it suggests that there are multiple types of hesitancy and stages in the quarantine process in which they can arise. The thematic analysis also revealed three categories of COVID-19 quarantine hesitancy determinants: situational determinants, personal determinants, and quarantine comprehension. The results from this thesis can help inform future public health work that involves quarantine, whether for COVID-19 or other health issues.

Effect of Mild Hypohydration on Renal Hemodynamics during Exercise Pressor Reflex Activation

Presenter: Cameron O’Connell – Human Physiology

Faculty Mentor(s): Chris Chapman

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Sweating during passive heat stress can induce a state of low body water known as hypohydration. Mild hypohydration combined with elevated core body temperature attenuates increases in renal vasoconstriction during a sympathetic stimulus. It is unknown whether hypohydration, independent of heat stress, elicits a similar altered renal hemodynamic response. We tested the hypothesis that prolonged mild hypohydration attenuates reductions in renal artery blood velocity (RBV) during exercise pressor reflex activation compared to a hydrated state (i.e., euhydrated). Eight healthy adults (5 females) performed two trials following 24 hours of fluid deprivation (HYPO) or when euhydrated (EUHY). RBV was assessed using Doppler ultrasonography during two minutes of static handgrip exercise (Handgrip) that was immediately followed by two minutes of post-exercise arterial occlusion (Occlusion). The 24-hour protocol induced a mild hypohydration in HYPO, as noted by greater reductions in body mass (HYPO: -2.2±0.5%; EUHY: -0.3±0.7%, P=0.001). At the end of Handgrip, there was a trend toward attenuated reductions in RBV in HYPO compared to EUHY (HYPO: -1.6±4.8 cm·s-1; EUHY: -6.2±6.0 cm·s-1, P=0.16). At the end of Occlusion, RBV, was not different between conditions (P=0.52). These preliminary findings suggest that prolonged mild hypohydration may attenuate the renal hemodynamic response to the static handgrip phase of exercise pressor reflex activation.

95% of people want to take a vacation: Creating a world we don’t wish to escape from

Presenter: Elise O’Brien – Planning, Public Policy and Management

Faculty Mentor(s): Lisa Abia-Smith

Session: (Virtual) Creative Work—Connection, Escapism, Poetry and Exercise

The title of my piece refers to a statistic produced by a cruise ship company. Lisa Abia-Smith gave my class an assignment to visually represent a statistic. I chose “95% of people want to take a vacation.” To me this seemingly frivolous and meaningless statistic belies a deeper truth about our society: people are seeking escape. How can we build a society we don’t seek to escape from? How can we escape INTO our lives instead of away from them? How do we aim for utopia? It is my personal belief that this shift starts within and that it starts with empathy. To combat the empathy deficit that is a root factor in the growing housing crisis, I have developed a meditation for the unhoused. Please join me in a guided meditation where we explore the feeling of being lost: without papers and without home. We will meet a guide who will take us to a transitional village where we can explore feelings of relief and safety. What is safety? What is home? This meditation was designed with planners and landscape architects in mind and has space for design ideas to surface. Bring a paper and pen to jot down insights.

Investigating the role of H3K9 methyl transferases in heat-induced DNA damage

Presenter: Philip Nosler – Biology

Faculty Mentor(s): Nicole Kurhanewicz, Diana Libuda

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Bio-Zebrafish and DNA

Exposure to elevated temperature is a major cause of male infertility observed across both animals and plants. A primary consequence of heat stress is the accumulation of unusually high levels of DNA damage in developing sperm. Previous work from the Libuda Lab demonstrated that, similarly to humans, a single acute heat exposure is sufficient to produce high levels of DNA damage in developing sperm, but not in developing eggs in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. Further, mobilization of transposons, segments of DNA that can move autonomously throughout the genome, was associated with heat-induced DNA damage specifically in sperm. Normally, transposon movement is strictly repressed in the germline via chromatin modifications, which affect chromosome structure and regulate gene expression. Specifically, transposon genes are silenced in the germline via a particular chromatin modification: methylation of histone H3 lysine 9 by the methyltransferases SET-25, SET-32, and MET-2. Using an existing mutant strain for set-25 and a double mutant for met- 2;set-25, I found that DNA damage is elevated following heat stress, suggesting set-25 and met-2 repress heat-induced DNA damage. Currently, I am further assessing the roles of set-25, set-32, and met-2 in heat-induced DNA damage using single and double mutant strains. Overall, this work will further our understanding of the mechanisms underlying heat-induced male infertility.

Adoptee Formations of Kinship: Queer Diasporic Traditions in Chinese America

Presenter: Alayna Neher – Ethnic Studies, Psychology

Faculty Mentor(s): Sharon Luk

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Chinese American adoptees are part of a tradition of non-normative kinship and exist in relationships that transcend racial, gendered, and physical borders. It is hypothesized, given the history of transnational adoption, that Chinese American adoptees seek to navigate identity in predominantly white families and communities, negotiate kinship, and participate in the queering of relationships in biological, adoptive, and/or chosen families. In-depth interviews were conducted with 19 adult adoptees (18 women, 1 man; ages 18-26), all of whom were born in China and adopted to the United States. Results show generally strong connections between adoptees and their immediate family members and other adoptees, although adoptees experience varying quality and strength of relationships with all people in their lives. Relationships with other adoptees and non-adopted Asian Americans are less frequent when adoptees are raised in predominantly white communities. Relationships between adoptees are particularly important for humanizing adoptee experiences, providing space for nuance and fluidity in identity, and coalition-building. Adoptee relationships and identity form a constellation of kinships and offer a new understanding Asian American identity.

The Role of Microbiota in the Development of Insulin-Producing Cells in Drosophila melanogaster

Presenter: Nicole Mullen – Neuroscience

Faculty Mentor(s): Karen Guillemin, Steph VanBeuge

Session: (Virtual) Poster Presentation

Resident gut bacteria have the capacity to influence aspects of animal metabolism. Previous research in the Guillemin lab showed that in zebrafish, gut bacteria promote the expansion of insulin- producing cells (IPC) in the pancreas through a secreted bacterial protein, Beta-cell expansion factor A (BefA). This research investigates the role of gut bacteria and BefA to promote IPC development in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. In Drosophila, there are ~7 IPCs located in each lobe of the brain. Our first aim was to test the effect of germ-free (GF) rearing on IPC numbers in Drosophila. Our second aim tested whether feeding flies BefA could restore IPC numbers in GF flies. We compared the number of IPCs present in GF, conventionally-reared (CV), and GF flies fed BefA. Tissue-specific GAL4UAS/GFP in all groups made IPCs visible after dissection. Our results showed that GF flies have fewer IPCs per lobe than CV flies, indicating that microbiota is required for normal IPC numbers. Further, feeding BefA caused a statistically significant increase in IPC numbers in GF larvae compared to CV. However, transgenic expression of BefA, using the UAS/GAL4 system, yielded a trending but not a significant expansion of IPCs in GF flies. This could be due to the low levels of BefA produced through transgenic expression. These results indicate that the microbiota has a powerful effect on metabolic pathways, and cell development, and can influence the normal development of the fly brain.

What Makes A Voice Sound Black?

Presenter: Mary Mugeki – Psychology

Faculty Mentor(s): Rachel Weissler

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

This research explores the nature of linguistic perception upon hearing African American English versus Standard American English. By having speakers from each category and low pass filtering their speech, we can explore how people perceive both vernaculars given the emotional prosody (the emotion reflected in the melody of their voices). Low pass filtering the audio is beneficial since it removes the acoustic characteristics of speech and leaves only the melody. The importance in exploring the relationship between emotion and race is due to the cultural stereotyping that is prevalent in the U.S. which has an influence on perceptions of these two factors. The hypothesized results are that the Happy guises will be perceived as more white, the Angry guises will be perceived as more black, evidencing the power of emotional prosody on the perception of the speech signal. This research impacts the broader fields of speech perception and sociolinguistics, focusing on specifically the parts of the speech signal which influence socio-cultural perceptions in day to day life.

Lrig3 is Required for Colonic Regeneration Following Acute Inflammatory Injury

Presenter: Kevin Mueller – Biology

Faculty Mentor(s): Anne Zemper, Janelle Stevenson

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

The mouse colon is a tightly regulated organ responsible for secreting mucus and absorbing water, which is carried out by colonic crypts; small U-shaped invaginations in the colon’s epithelial tissue. The excision of the protein Lrig3 has been characterized in homeostasis and is defined by more nuclei per crypt, increased mucosal area, and an expanded stem cell compartment consisting of more Lrig1+ cells per crypt. While we now understand that Lrig3 plays an important role in homeostasis, it is currently unknown what role Lrig3 might play in colon-based diseases. The disease we chose to test first was the mouse model of ulcerative colitis. Our lab treated two cohorts of mice, one Wild Type (WT) and one Lrig3-/-, with a 3% Dextran Sodium Sulfate (DSS) solution over 6 days to induce inflammation. Both cohorts were allowed to recover for 24 hours before analysis. We found Lrig3-/-mice are more susceptible to DSS treatment and lack the colonic regenerative capability seen in WT mice. We then performed immunohistochemistry, dye, and enzymatic-based analyses to examine the expression profiles of proteins associated with regeneration of the colonic epithelium. We observed a decrease in cells expressing the stem and progenitor marker Lrig1 in Lrig3-/- mice compared to WT (p<0.01) and a decrease in the total cell number per crypt (p<0.001), however there was no change in proliferation. These data suggest Lrig3 is required for epithelial regeneration in DSS- modeled ulcerative colitis.