2009 — 2019 |
Kreitzer, Matthew |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Collaborative Research-Rui: the Role of Extracellular H+ in Processing Visual Signals @ Indiana Wesleyan University
Inhibition of neuronal signals is an essential component of the normal processing of information that takes place in the nervous system. Lateral inhibition is a key type of inhibition that is believed to play an especially important role in enabling the neuronal computations that mediate visual, tactile, auditory, and olfactory sensation. The experiments in this project are designed to clarify the molecular mechanisms of lateral inhibition in the vertebrate retina. The focus of the work is specifically on the role that hydrogen ions (H+) might play in the outermost synaptic connections of the retina and the potential involvement of H+ in lateral inhibition. H+-selective self-referencing sensors and fluorescence imaging studies will be used to examine the molecular mechanisms governing the efflux and influx of H+ from cells in the outer retina, and the effects of neurotransmitters and neuromodulators on H+ efflux and influx will be investigated. This project is structured as a collaborative endeavor between a faculty member and undergraduate students at a strictly undergraduate institution (Indiana Wesleyan University) with two faculty and their undergraduate and graduate students at a Ph.D. granting institution (the University of Illinois at Chicago). It is designed to be one in which undergraduate students truly participate in the research endeavor and become actively engaged in addressing important questions in neurobiology. Undergraduate involvement will be incorporated at both campuses and will include joint video-conference lab meetings and seminar sessions to integrate the undergraduates tightly into the research program. The PI at IWU and several undergraduate students will also travel to spend one month working jointly in the laboratories at UIC. These collaborative studies will serve to better elucidate the role of H+ in synaptic processing in the retina and central nervous system, while catalyzing undergraduate student understanding of and involvement in neuroscience research.
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0.915 |
2015 — 2020 |
Leonard, Stephen Kreitzer, Matthew Ramos, Roberto |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Scholarships For Boosting the Scientific Workforce in Rural Central Indiana @ Indiana Wesleyan University
This project will enhance the quality and quantity of STEM undergraduates by providing scholarships for talented and financially-needy students in biology, chemistry, and physics at Indiana Wesleyan University. The program will provide scholarships for 18 undergraduate students for a period of four years. The surrounding region of Indiana is economically depressed where only a small percentage of students obtain Bachelor's degrees. Special effort will be made to recruit applicants from under-represented groups in the immediate vicinity. The program has the potential to be highly-transformative by increasing diversity in the largely homogenous STEM student community in an economically depressed area and increasing our national economic competitiveness.
This program will be part of a major initiative to improve STEM programs and resources at Indiana Wesleyan University. These include a new Science Building with dedicated faculty research laboratory spaces, an Annual Summer Research Institute, two active NSF-sponsored Research in Undergraduate Institution (RUI) grants, a new Science Colloquium Series, award-winning science outreach programs, and new academic programs. Scholarship recipients will be selected through a holistic review process taking into account motivation, logical and critical thinking, resourcefulness, and demonstrated aptitude in the sciences. The recipients will be supported by focused academic and research experiences. Support services include collaboration spaces for STEM majors, a specialized STEM student orientation, memberships in professional societies, tutoring by peers, and extensive mentoring by faculty. This project will offer an innovative boot camp after students' first academic year to introduce students to the essential components of the science career path including summer research opportunities, applying to internships and graduate school, applying for grants, and an introduction to scientific reading, writing, and presentation. The program will also forge sustainable connections to local employers through lunches with STEM industry experts and working with the local chamber of commerce. All of these support services will receive formative assessment throughout the project and summative assessment at the conclusion. The project's web site will report all assessment statistics that are gathered as well as pictures and video of S-STEM scholars doing research, performing outreach events, and enjoying social activities. Measureable outcomes will be disseminated at meetings of professional societies including the American Association of Physics Teachers and the American Chemical Society.
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0.915 |