Mansfield student researchers leave mark on annual state-wide biology conference

It was an award-winning showcase for several Commonwealth University-Mansfield students who presented research at the recent 55th annual Commonwealth of Pennsylvania University Biologists (CPUB) Conference, held this year at PennWest’s California campus.

Five of Mansfield’s 10 student researchers brought home awards for their original work. Joining the Mansfield contingent that included two oral presentations and eight poster presentations were two CU-Lock Haven biology majors also presenting.

Outstanding Graduating Student Award

Grace Long ’23, a recent Mansfield biology honors graduate, was presented the CPUB Outstanding Graduating Student Award. One of her most ambitious accomplishments at Mansfield was the completion of her independent research project, “Effects of T Cell Presence on Tumor Size, Microenvironment, and Responsiveness to Liposomal Curcumin Therapy,” a collaborative project with the University of Pennsylvania.

For the project, she earned funding support from a CPUB Research Grant and a Commonwealth University COST Professional Experience Grant. Last spring, Grace presented proposed/preliminary versions of her project at the 54th Annual CPUB Meeting and at Mansfield’s 13th Annual Showcase of Student Scholarship, where her work won a certificate of outstanding presentation. Long then presented a completed version at the 2023 PASSHE STEM Student Research Conference in November.

Aside from this main research, she has also worked on research projects such as, “Examining the Effects of Cinnamon Oil on Reducing Antibiotic Resistance Against Tylosin in P. aeruginosa” and “Cell Growth and Seeding Differences between Fetal Bovine Serum and FetalPlex FBS in Medium.” Starting this, Long will be attending graduate school to become a certified physician assistant (PA-C).

Research Award Winners

Platform Presentation: Cellular and Molecular Biology

• First Place — Grace Long, “Effects of T cell Presence on Tumor Size and Responsiveness to Liposomal Curcumin Therapy,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.

Platform Presentation: Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology

• First Place — Faith Cameron, “Effects of Sleep Deprivation and Caffeine on Skeletal Muscular Endurance in Mice,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.

Poster Presentations: Cellular and Molecular Biology

• First Place — Eilie Holland, “Antibacterial Effects of Essential Oils,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.
• Second Place — Jay Diya, “Effect of Caffeine on Sleep Disruption-Induced Differential Expression of Clock Genes,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.
• Second Place — Kristen Fulford, “Effects of Dietary Curcumin on the Gut Microbiome and Influence on Tumor Spread,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.
• Marvens Ravix, “Microplastics effects on the Liver, co-advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield, and Dr. Elaine Farkas, associate professor of physics at CU-Mansfield.

Works in Progress: Cellular and Molecular Biology (not judged for an award)

• Magi Earnest, “Mutations potentially affecting the expression of the Multidrug Efflux Pump in S. indicatrix,” advised by Dr. Jeanne Kagle, professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.
• Kayla Howell, “Induced Loss of Trp53 Heterozygosity by Icariin in vitro,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.
• Emma Wonsick, “Effects of T Cell Presence During Tumor Development on Tumor Phenotype,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.

Works in Progress: Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology (not judged for an award)

• Sadie Beers, “Effects of Induced Sleep Disturbances on Physical Coordination and Muscle Strength,” advised by Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology at CU-Mansfield.

“Students on our campus develop and carry out their own independent research projects from start to finish,” Kristen Long said. “They start by reviewing primary literature to help them develop a research proposal, a hypothesis, and appropriate experimental design to answer their research questions.”

Long says research students then work with their research advisor to set up their experiments and collect and analyze their data. There, she adds, they once again use primary literature to help apply and interpret their data in terms of their research questions.

“These types of independent research projects bring biological concepts to life in the lab and teach application of these concepts first-hand,” Long said. “Students learn to address protocol issues by understanding protocol processes and using logic to troubleshoot problems. Students also learn how to communicate scientific information in both written and oral formats. And conferences like the CPUB conference are great networking opportunities for students.”

CPUB was founded in 1973 as an organization to provide support for the teaching and research activities of faculty in the biological sciences from the fourteen state-owned universities in the State System of Higher Education. Its activities have included scientific meetings, symposia, and institutes for the enhancement of the professional development of its members and associates. It also provides a forum for graduate and undergraduate students for the presentation of their research.