2018 QU Academic Symposium Program

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Academic Symposium

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April 13, 2018

About the QU Academic Symposium

The Quincy University Academic Symposium is a showcase for student achievement across our liberal arts curriculum.

On this day, student presenters will engage in professional performance and discourse with experts in their field of study, as well as the greater community, to disseminate their work. The symposium also provides a public forum for academic competition with prizes awarded to a student and their faculty mentors from each division/ school, including graduate studies programs.

Alignment with QU Mission

Participation in the QU Academic Symposium honors the pursuit of wisdom through education and rewards scholarly leadership.

Schedule 1:00-1:10 Opening remarks SGA Presidents Mary Argana, Abigail Moore 1:10-1:20 QUEST Center Dr. Megan Boccardi & Ms. Kristen Liesen 1:20-2:20 Platform presentations • Detecting Genetic Disorders with PCR- Julia Houghton • Aplysia californica: Are they accessible at the undergraduate

level? - Dylan Handlin, Sydney Lynch, Emily Nelson 2:20-2:30 Break 2:30-3:20 Poster session 3:20-3:30 Reconvene - Dr. Christine Tracy 3:30- 4:10 Platform presentation • Innocence Project - Madeline Dietrich 4:10-4:30 Winner selection & closing remarks - Dr. Teresa Reed

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Abstracts Platforms Presentations

Title: Detecting Genetic Disorders with PCR Student: Julia Houghton Project mentor: Michelle Combs, Ph.D. Hereditary Neuropathy with Liability to Pressure Palsies (HNPP) is a genetic disorder that affects the peripheral nervous system. HNPP is inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. The cause of this disease is a deletion on chromosome 17p of about 1.5 Mb pairs. In this region of the chromosome, the deletion affects a gene called PMP22, which encodes a myelin protein of the peripheral nerve. In order to test the hypothesis that one could see this deletion using a simple polymerase chain reaction assay, tissue digestion, polymerase chain reactions, and electrophoresis were performed. First, DNA was isolated in order to carry out any PCR reactions. Three samples were collected from two subjects, one with and one without HNPP. After performing the tissue digestion, the isolated DNA was tested for purity using a PCR with control primers. The next step was to run PCR with PMP22 primers that were designed for this project.

In order to demonstrate that the PCR product was PMP22, it was restriction digested with HINDIII. Using BRCA1 as an internal loading control, PMP22 band densities can be compared to determine the genotype of the individual being tested. Results demonstrate that individuals having only one copy of the PMP22 gene in their genome have a PMP22 PCR band that is less dense than the band of an individual with two PMP22 alleles. These results suggest PCR is a viable method for detecting this and other genetic disorders.

Title: Aplysia californica: Are they accessible at the

undergraduate level?

Students: Dylan Handlin, Sydney Lynch, Emily Nelson Project mentor: Kimberly Hale, Ph.D. Dylan Handlin, Sydney Lynch, and Emily Nelson will be presenting on their recent neurobiology research they have completed over the past two semesters under the guidance of Dr. Kimberly Hale. This research group had two main focuses: to develop a clearly elucidated protocol for dissecting and obtaining individual neurons from Aplysia californica, and to produce a more clearly labeled image of Aplysia to be used in further research. Aplysia, also known as marine slugs, have been utilized for neurological and psychological research for several years because of their simple nervous system. By developing an easy to follow, affordable protocol for the dissection of Aplysia and producing more clearly labeled images of Aplysia and their ganglia, we believe that this may provide an accessible model for undergraduate and perhaps even high school students to experiment with. Additionally, students’ exposure to such an important model animal may enhance their interest in the scientific field and, more specifically, research.

Thus far, we have made great progress on the protocol and have successfully cultured neurons for up to a week. Future areas of focus relating to this research include improved microscopy, improved culture techniques, forming synapses between motor and sensory neurons, and comparing the dissection techniques between different stages of Aplysia.

These students will specifically present and discuss the exact protocol they developed to dissect and prepare neuronal cells of an aplysia for viewing.

Title: Innocence Project Students: Madeline Dietrich, Valerie Kirk Project mentor: Judith Abbott, J.D. Madeline Dietrich will present on the Innocence Project. This is an organization dedicated to exonerating inmates who believe they were wrongly convicted of a crime, as well as attempt to Und and convict the real perpetrator. The presentation will go over the beginnings of the Innocence Project and what they do, the different aspects that may lead to a false conviction such as faulty eyewitness ID and prosecutorial misconduct, as well as discuss a couple of cases that the Innocence Project was involved in.

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Abstracts Poster Presentations

Title: News Consumption and Political Polarization Student: Lauren Beeman Project mentor: Barbara Schleppenbach, Ph.D. Senior seminar thesis regarding news consumption and political polarization.

Title: Helium in the World Student: Gage Brummell Project mentor: Scott Luaders, Ph.D. Helium is used all across the world everyday. It is used commercially, spectroscopy, and as we all know, party balloons. Every party balloon around the world is lifted by the low density of helium so that they fly high and amuse everyone around. The growing issue with helium now-a-days is that it is running out. When oil is struck, it stays as a liquid with solid chunks in the ground. When helium is found, it simply floats out of the ground and a lot of it is gone before anyone can contain it. With the global supply of helium rapidly decreasing, the price of helium has been steadily rising over the years. Someday, the world will be out of helium or it will be so expensive that it will be impractical to use for different purposes, like floating part balloons. So how do we help fix this issue? We are not proposing a way to help give a permanent fix to this issue, but to help slow the process down. Average helium tanks for balloons use about 80% helium for floating balloons. Theoretically, there should be different mixtures of gases that would provide enough lift to cause a balloon to float long enough for a party.

Considering how often balloons are used, the amount of helium that could be saved could be truly significant.

Title: Psychological Symptoms Associated with Tick

Borne Diseases: Treatment from a Cognitive

Behavioral Perspective Student: Savannah Coelho Project mentor: Kenneth Oliver, Ph.D. Tick-borne diseases are being diagnosed at a higher frequency throughout the United States. Treatment of tick-born diseases requires a simple round of antibiotics if caught early. Keeping this in mind, it is sometimes difficult for physicians to make a tick-borne disease diagnosis because symptoms simply do not appear to correlate with one another. Delayed treatment of these types of diseases can be deadly or cause neurological irregularities.

Inflammation of the brain tissue, or encephalitis, can cause psychological impairment. Individuals may experience memory loss, depression, panic disorder, and other psychological disorders. The purpose of my research is to determine whether mental health clinicians might assist individuals suffering with long-term psychological impairment due to tick borne diseases in managing their symptoms with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT). This research will attempt to link the medical diagnosis of tick-borne illnesses with mental health services.

Title: Creating a More Mentally Healthy College Campus Student: Dylan DeClue Project mentor: Andrea Fifield, Ph.D. College can be one of the most transformative times of a young person’s life. Finding one’s own sense of independence can be hard enough on its own, but for many college students, these changes are made even more difficult by the emergence of a mental illness. These mental illnesses can be chronic or be caused by the added stress that an average student might face every day. These illnesses along with perceived stigmas toward treatment and self-help can create an environment where students are much less likely to seek help for their mental illnesses.These mental health risks include eating disorders, anxiety disorders, and alcohol and drug abuse. The reporting of mental health crises on college campuses have also been observed to be inadequate.

According to a NAMI survey, 73% of respondents say that they have been involved in some sort of mental healthrelated crisis, while only 34% said that their campus was notified about said crisis. The collegiate and counseling communities need to come together to break down perceived barriers for students to seek help and provide students with the resources they need to have a fulfilling and safe experience in higher education.

Title: Effect of chemicals on memory and learning in Aplysia californica Students: Bridget Hunkins, Raigen Schwartz, Anika Webster Project mentor: Kimberly Hale, Ph.D. Aplysia californica, sea slugs, have been instrumental to psychological and neurological research on memory and learning as they are easy to keep and train. Our goal is to develop a conditioning model and then utilize it to determine how various chemicals affect learning and memory. To this point we have been able to house live aplysia, and demonstrated that a brief shock to the aplysia’s tail with a 9V battery causes a withdrawal (contraction) reflex. The next step is to train the aplysia to have this same reflex to a non harmful stimulus. In our training model, the conditioned stimulus, a bristle touch, is immediately followed by an unconditioned stimulus, tail shock with battery. After the training protocol has been established, the effects of chemicals, such as caffeine, on learning and memory of aplysia can be studied.

Title: Promoting Resilience in Adult Survivors of Sexual Assault Student: Ashley Juette Project mentor: Andrea Fifield, Ph.D. Sexual assaults occur at a high rate. According the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC, 2016) approximately 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men will be victims of sexual violence in their lifetime. Many victims of sexual assault develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and continue to display the symptoms long after the assault occurs (Peter-Hagene & Ullman, 2015; Steenkamp, Dickstein, Salters-Pedneault, Hofmann, & Litz, 2012; Ullman, Filipas, Townsend, & Starzynski, 2007). This presentation will focus on promoting resiliency in sexual assault survivors. Emphasis will be placed on protective factors, potential pitfalls, recommendations for counselors working with survivors, and suggestions for future research.

Title: Heart valve regeneration is not necessary in maturing

Danio rerio Student: Taylor Kristicevich Project mentor: Michelle Combs, Ph.D. Calcineurin signaling is required for proper embryonic heart development. Cyclosporin A (CsA) is a known inhibitor of calcineurin signaling. Humans cannot regenerate heart valve tissue. CsA treatment of adult humans does not cause heart dysfunction. Danio rerio have the ability to regenerate heart tissue. It is unknown whether heart valve regeneration is required for proper cardiac function in these vertebrates. We hypothesize that treatment of late stage Danio rerio embryos with CsA will inhibit heart valve regeneration and cause heart dysfunction. In order to test this hypothesis, 47 zebrafish embryos were harvested from an aquarium and split among two petri dishes into a control group (23 embryos) and a treatment group (24 embryos).

The control group embryos were allowed to develop in an aquarium water solution while the treatment group was incubated in a solution of aquarium water with 10 micrograms/mL CsA. Solutions were changed every day around 13:00 and the embryos were observed via ZEISS Stemi 508 microscope. Our results showed that both the control and treatment groups had embryos hatch; however, no significant changes in heart function were observed in the treatment group. Based on our data, heart valve regeneration is not required in late stage zebrafish embryos and early adults.

Title: Working to Decriminalize Mental Illness Student: Veronica Lawson Project mentor: Andrea Fifield, Ph.D. The deinstitutionalization movement sought to move people with mental illness out of state hospitals so that they could receive treatment in their local communities. Since 1955, the number of patients in state mental hospitals has decreased by 94% (Slate, 2017). While this may seem like a positive change, local resources for mental illness have been lacking, in part due to lack of insurance coverage, and in part due to funding for social services being cut by politicians. At the same time, people with mental illness have become overrepresented in the criminal justice system. Over half of inmates in the U.S. have a mental illness (Odegaard, 2007).

There is a need to address mental illness as an area of concern within the judicial system because a person’s psychological diagnosis could have contributed to their charges. This presentation will examine the criminalization of mental illness, as well as efforts to better address the needs of persons with mental illness within the criminal justice system, such as the rise of “therapeutic jurisprudence� and the development of mental health courts.

Title: Exposure to Childhood Trauma and the Influence on

Adolescent Resiliency Student: Ashley VanCamp Project mentors: Kenneth Oliver, Ph.D.; Asabi Dean, Ph.D. Exposure to trauma during childhood is common and can increase at risk behavior such as academic failure, experimenting with drugs, sexual curiosity, or developing emotional or behavioral disorders. Little research has been done to connect exposure to childhood trauma and an adolescent’s ability to be resilient. It is essential to understand that the lack of resilience in this capacity can lead to low executive functioning in adults, which can have negative effects on a global scale. Resiliency protects against suicide and lessons psychiatric symptoms in adolescents and can lead to healthy and professional lives in adulthood. The purpose of this study is to use the ConnorDavidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and a demographic questionnaire to determine if there is a significant difference in terms of resiliency in adolescents between those who were exposed to traumatic events as a child and those who were not. It is imperative to conduct a study that analyzes this concept to start the beginning steps of establishing preventative measures and interventions in order to eliminate low resiliency in this population. Without this study, adolescents will continue to have low self-esteem, higher rates of depression, and low academic achievement because people will fail to see the relationship between childhood trauma and adolescent resiliency and that it is possible for this population to overcome adversity in spite of their trauma.

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