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Journal of Undergraduate Research

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Full-Text Articles in Neuroscience and Neurobiology

Attracting Female Students To Science: An Interdisciplinary Stress-Psychobiology Mentored Experience, Michael Larson Feb 2014

Attracting Female Students To Science: An Interdisciplinary Stress-Psychobiology Mentored Experience, Michael Larson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Women have made considerable progress in education and the workplace; however, progress in science and technology fields continues to lag behind. Females remain underrepresented in science majors at the university level and, subsequently, represent less than a quarter of full professors in scientific fields. Increasing female representation in science is considered a national priority. Studies indicate women who receive a mentored scientific experience are more likely to choose careers in science and research than peers who are not exposed to scientific research in a mentored environment. Thus, our grant focused on attracting female students to the academic and scientific environment …

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Dimorphic Expression Of Medial Basal Hypothalamic-Preoptic Area Calbindin-D28k Mrna During Perinatal Development In Sprague-Dawley Rats, Emily Briton, Dr. Edwin D. Lephart Feb 2014

Dimorphic Expression Of Medial Basal Hypothalamic-Preoptic Area Calbindin-D28k Mrna During Perinatal Development In Sprague-Dawley Rats, Emily Briton, Dr. Edwin D. Lephart

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Calbindin-D28K (CALB), a calcium binding protein, is one of the most abundant proteins found in neurons of certain brain areas. It is potentially important in neuron formation and may play a protective role against programmed cell death [1]. CALB helps regulate the amount of calcium in neurons. An over-abundance of intracellular calcium leads to cell degeneration and eventually cell death. Brain sites that are exposed to toxic amounts of calcium experience less neurodegeneration where calcium-binding proteins are present than in areas where the protein is less abundant [4]. It is hypothesized that decreased levels of CALB lead to patterns of …

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Orca Scholarship Report, Andrew Moore Jan 2014

Orca Scholarship Report, Andrew Moore

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I received an ORCA award in December of 1999. At the time, my proposal dealt with family dynamic influences on EEG neurofeedback treatement of adolescents with ADHD. This was a multidisciplinary effort, and, to my knowledge, research of this sort had not been conducted before. Though I felt a genuine excitement at the beginning, I soon realized that I had bitten off a coordination and research effort bigger than I could chew. I had to rely on a local psychologist that I was working with for help in recruiting patients, as well as for use of his facilities and equipment, …

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Are There Memory Deficits Among High School Participants From Heading Soccer Balls?, John R. Dayton, Dr. Donovan E. Fleming Jan 2014

Are There Memory Deficits Among High School Participants From Heading Soccer Balls?, John R. Dayton, Dr. Donovan E. Fleming

Journal of Undergraduate Research

A unique aspect of soccer is the use of the player’s head to direct the ball. Participants can “head” the ball to score a goal, pass to a teammate or gain control of possession. Studies performed on soccer players at the international2,5,7,10,12 and Olympic1 levels have shown memory2,3,4,6,8,9,10,12, attention3,6,11,12, concentration2,3,6,11,12, and judgment24 deficits. Is such damage due to practice schedule and necessitated drills, or is it the cumulative result of lifelong soccer participation? If due to lifelong participation, are high school participants at risk?

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Myelin Basic Protein And Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein Antibodies In Autism, Edward Stevenson, Dr. Erin Bigler Sep 2013

Myelin Basic Protein And Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein Antibodies In Autism, Edward Stevenson, Dr. Erin Bigler

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Autism is a developmental disorder. There has been an increasing trend in the diagnosis of autism in the past 15 years. After years of research there is still little agreement as to the causes of autism. It has been hypothesized that autistics could be the result of the body’s immune system attacking the brain through cytotoxicity and antibody mediated responses.2 Studies between immune factors and autism have had some interesting results, yet due to the complexities of the central nervous system and immune system, solid conclusions have not been reached.

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Title, Jordan Yorgason Sep 2013

Title, Jordan Yorgason

Journal of Undergraduate Research

We had four main objectives when I applied for the mentoring grant: to measure locomotor habituation to an environment, acoustic prepulse/startle inhibition, memory with a morris land maze, and to present findings in a neuroscience journal and on a poster for a convention. The results are as follows:

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Visual-Motor Development In South Indian School Children: Environmental Complexity’S Relationship With Cortical Development, Christine H. Walton Sep 2013

Visual-Motor Development In South Indian School Children: Environmental Complexity’S Relationship With Cortical Development, Christine H. Walton

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Previous neurological studies have found the degree of environmental complexity influences the acquisition and development of motor skills in human infants as well as animal models. During a critical period in human development, which is believed to span the first 6-10 years for human visual-motor development, neurons grow and solidify appropriate connections. Signals sent from cell to cell are insulated by additional protective cells in a process called myelination. These postnatal cognitive developments are influenced by sensory input and experience. It appears that deprivation of appropriate stimuli in a subject’s surroundings at this time results in decreased cognitive development as …

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The Effects Of Anesthesia On Midbrain Gaba Neurons, Stuart Layton, Dr. Scott Steffensen Sep 2013

The Effects Of Anesthesia On Midbrain Gaba Neurons, Stuart Layton, Dr. Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Consciousness has perplexed neuroscientists for decades. What is consciousness and how is it obstructed by anesthesia? Every year doctors expose thousands of people to general anesthesia. Anesthesia does several things, it prevents the perception of pain, renders a patient unconscious, inhibits the formation of memory, and paralyzes the subject; all of which as desired during a medical procedure. The mechanism by which anesthesia accomplishes these many tasks are unknown, including its ability to render a subject unconscious. The goal of this study was to study the effects of anesthesia on -aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) …

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Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Model For Clinical Addiction Treatment, Jordan Davies, Dr. Scott Steffensen Sep 2013

Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Model For Clinical Addiction Treatment, Jordan Davies, Dr. Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The goal in my proposal was to study the effects of light stimulation in human brains on the action of the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) within the nucleus accumbens (NAc), in order to determine its efficacy as a non-invasive method for inducing long-term potentiation of dopamine neurons, restoring homeostasis, and its possible use in clinical treatment for addiction. It was dependent upon research that was being done on mice in Dr. Steffensen’s lab to determine the optimum frequency and wavelength of light stimulation to bring baseline dopamine levels back up to normal. Unfortunately, there haven’t been any conclusive results that merit …

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Low-Dose Alcohol Self-Administration In Freely-Moving Rats And Its Effect On The Firing Rate Of Ventral Tegmental Area Gaba Neurons, Stuart Thomas, Dr. Scott Steffensen Aug 2013

Low-Dose Alcohol Self-Administration In Freely-Moving Rats And Its Effect On The Firing Rate Of Ventral Tegmental Area Gaba Neurons, Stuart Thomas, Dr. Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Each year, more and more people become the slaves of addiction to narcotics, alcohol, and nicotine. These addictions destroy families and ruin lives. The brain’s chemistry is influenced by these drugs. This study aimed to evaluate how alcohol and other drugs affect the brain’s chemistry and identify potential avenues for therapy.

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Modification Of Experimental Objective And Protocol To An Assessment Of The Effects Of Electroacupuncture On Vta Gaba Neurons In The Context Of Acute Alcohol, Christine H. Walton, Dr. Scott C. Steffensen Aug 2013

Modification Of Experimental Objective And Protocol To An Assessment Of The Effects Of Electroacupuncture On Vta Gaba Neurons In The Context Of Acute Alcohol, Christine H. Walton, Dr. Scott C. Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Although my proposal for the ORCA grant involved the effects of nicotine on neurons in the VTA, preliminary data showed little to no promise and my mentor and I decided to go in a different direction.

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Addicts Seeing Blue: Color Processing Differences In The Opiate Dependent State, Cary Crall, Dr. Scott Steffensen Jun 2013

Addicts Seeing Blue: Color Processing Differences In The Opiate Dependent State, Cary Crall, Dr. Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Opiate use in Utah has grown faster than that of any other substance in the past year (Duda, 2008). In 2007, total opiate abuse (e.g., heroin, Oxycodones, etc.) accounted for 15.3% of overall substance abuse in male clients and 18.1% in female clients (see Payne, 2007). [I’m expecting you to say what the usage rates are in 2010 (or at least 2009) here.]. By October 2008, it was reported that prescription drugs had killed more people than car accidents in Utah, with 6.5% of fatalities caused by using prescription painkillers—most opiate based—for nonmedical reasons (Stryker, 2008). In many cases, opiate …

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