Psilocybin And The Related Tryptamine, Norbaeocystin, Exert Acute Anxiogenic Effects That Depend On Sex, Marisa J. Savini, Kylie M. King, Noelle M. Molnar, Evelynn J. Schneider, Savannah E. Straub, Joe Parker, Lillianna P. Puppel, Aleece K. Al-Olimat, Allison M. Bach, Andrew Jones, Phillip R. Zoladz

ONU Student Research Colloquium

Single treatments with psychedelics have demonstrated rapid, long-lasting antidepressant effects. However, psychedelics often produce unfavorable psychoactive effects that could worsen existing psychological distress. Thus, we compared the effects of psilocybin and the related tryptamine, norbaeocystin, on anxiety-like behavior in male and female rats. In Experiment 1, rats were treated with 1 mg/kg psilocybin (PSIL), 1 mg/kg norbaeocystin (NOR), or vehicle 30 min before a 5-min trial on an elevated plus maze (EPM) or in an open field test (OFT). On the EPM, PSIL led to decreased open arm time and fewer arm entries in males and females. NOR led to …

Impact Of Caffeine On Participant Memory For A Stressful Experience And The Development Of Intrusive Memories, Jaycee L. Kirkland, Kaylina R. Mcclenen, Natalina E. Porter, Sarah M. Wood, Julia Gross, Madilyn E. Paphanchith, Kelsey M. Siereveld, Jasmine Ic Ifeakanwa, Caeden M. Gurganus, Koen N. Suzelis, Aiden J. Farrell, Boyd R. Rorabaugh, Phillip R. Zoladz

ONU Student Research Colloquium

Most individuals consume caffeine on a daily basis. Research has shown that caffeine stimulates the release of glucocorticoids and catecholamines and can enhance cognition. Caffeine also amplifies stress-induced increases in arousal and aggravates PTSD-like symptoms. Thus, we examined the impact of caffeine on memory for a stressful experience and intrusive memories related to that experience. Undergraduate students ingested caffeine or a placebo. Thirty minutes later, they were exposed to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST; stress condition) or friendly-TSST (f-TSST; control condition), both of which were designed to enable participant memory for the experiences to be quantified. In each condition, …

Role Of Cb1 Receptors In Mediating Thermal Pain In Male And Female Mice, Jessica Acheampong, Sarah Seeley, Manoranjan S. Dsouza

ONU Student Research Colloquium

Pain is responsible for significant morbidity and mortality in the United States and all over the world. CB1 cannabinoid receptors have been reported to play a role in pain. Also, more recently sex-dependent behavioral differences after CB1 receptor activation have been reported. However, the sex-dependent effects of CB1 receptor activation on thermal pain have not been systematically assessed. This project will address this gap in knowledge. The study will use adult male and female C57BL6 mice. CB1 receptors will be activated using the synthetic cannabinoid WIN 55212. Thermal pain will be assessed using the hot plate method. Data for the …

Development Of A Preclinical Model That Can Be Used To Test Novel Therapeutics For The Treatment Of Mild And Moderate Traumatic Brain Injury, Hayden Anderson

Honors Theses

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) occurs when a foreign object induces damage to the skull and brain through a forceful blow or whiplash. It is one of the most frequent injuries in the United States, with approximately 250,000 cases of different levels occurring annually. It is well known that severe TBIs can result in persistent physical, cognitive, and socioeconomic consequences and the timing of treatment following this injury can play a critical role in the ultimate outcome. It would be beneficial to develop a safe therapeutic that could be administered rapidly after impact and improve the recovery of the patient. However, …

Investigating The Synergistic Effects Of Mental And Physical Exhaustion On Learning And Attention In Emergency First Responders: An Eye-Tracking Study, Kayla Page

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Exhaustion is known to impair cognitive functioning and performance, yet its effects on learning during video-based instruction among first responders and military service members remain underexplored. This study examined how mental, physical, and combined exhaustion independently influence learning outcomes and visual attention in a physically active sample drawn from military, public safety, and emergency service roles. Visual attention was measured utilizing eye tracking, focusing on fixation duration (FD) and fixation rate (FR). Participants completed instructional tasks under each exhaustion condition, allowing comparison of learning and gaze behavior across fatigue states. Results indicated that mental and physical exhaustion were associated …

Establishment Of A Hek293t Cell Model System To Investigate Direct Intracellular Interactions Between Amyloid-Β (Aβ) And The Nlrp3 Inflammasome, Cristina Sinobas Pereira

Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder and the leading cause of dementia worldwide. While Amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregation is a defining pathological feature, increasing evidence highlights chronic neuroinflammation as a critical contributor to disease progression. Soluble Aβ assemblies can act as damage associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) including activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, which links amyloid pathology to sustained inflammatory responses in the brain (Heneka et al., 2015; Nakanishi et al., 2018). However, the molecular mechanisms by which specific Aβ conformations influence inflammasome assembly remain incompletely understood.This study aimed to investigate whether distinct aggregation states of amyloid β42 (Aβ42) are …

Medial Prefrontal Cortical Ensembles Direct Behavior In Response To Competing Needs, Francesca H. Schaub, Kaelin S. Mccaffrey, Madison A. Rohr, Olivia L. Belt, Emma N. Morley, Claire Kelly, Noah A. Ashby, Alonie L. Ashley

Neuroscience Program Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Clec7a Deficiency Affects Cerebellar Microglia Development And Purkinje Cell Axon Myelination, Olivia Barbarini, Grace Belt, Lauren Bedford, Julia Carson, Kayla Fordyce, Michael Martinez, Lindsay Walsh

Neuroscience Program Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Music Tempo And Genre On Attention Mediated By Arousal, Ethan Moore, Kenneth Diaz, Emily Faenza, Jenna Gomez-Nieto, Crismar Ramos Marti

Neuroscience Program Student Scholarship

This study investigates how music genre and tempo influence attention mediated by arousal. The Yerkes-Dodson law tells us that high arousal increases performance levels on simple tasks. We hypothesized that higher arousal levels will enhance performance on an hour-long Lexical Decision Task. Thirty-six participants were categorized into six groups: Country, Jazz, or Metronome at high and low tempos. Attention was measured using accuracy, response times, and event-related potentials (ERPs) recorded via EEG. By controlling for verbal proficiency through TOWRE assessments, we aim to uncover the neural mechanisms linking musical components to cognitive processing.

Quantifying Sleep Wake Rhythms In The Hospital Environment With Digital Technologies, Carsten Skarke, Nadim El Jamal, Michael V. Genuardi, Thomas G. Brooks, Antonijo Mrčela, Nicholas F. Lahens, Makayla Cordoza, Sean Sarles, Amarachi Mbadugha, Dineth R. Karunamuni, Shikhar Gupta, Charles J. Bae, Amita Sehgal, Thomas P. Cappola, Jacob T. Gutsche, Pavan Atluri, Nimesh D. Desai, Michael A. Acker, Gregory R. Grant, Richard J. Schwab, Ilene M. Rosen, Garret A. Fitzgerald

Division of Cardiology Faculty Papers

Postoperative clinical care is prone to circadian desynchronization that may influence health outcomes. In an exploratory, feasibility-oriented and signal-exploration effort, we collected 1.8 million data points using 11 remote sensors during preoperative, in-hospital and post-discharge settings in 13 elective cardiac surgery patients (5.2% enrolled from 252 screened). We found that room traffic continued during nighttime with ≥1 visit/h. Sound levels exceeded the recommended 45 dBA threshold (51.9 ± 3.3 vs. 48.3 ± 4.2 dBA during nighttime). Brightness dropped at night (89.9 ± 87.7 to 3.7 ± 9.8 lux), but bright light exposures occurred. Ambient room temperature lacked sleep-inducing diurnal variability. …

Optimizing Itpa R178c Assays Via Hplc, Jared J. Reisnouer, Wally D. Pines

2026 Symposium

Two of the major nucleotide bases in DNA and RNA (Adenine and Guanine) are derived from the purine Inosine Monophosphate (IMP). IMP may occasionally form the noncanonical nucleotide Inosine Triphosphate (ITP) within the cell and become incorporated into DNA during replication, leading to potentially lethal errors. To combat this, human cells produce the “housekeeping” enzyme Inosine Triphosphatase (ITPA) to revert ITP to IMP. A mutation of this protein that replaces the 178th amino acid Arginine with Cysteine (R178C) is associated with a fatal infantile encephalopathy. Previous assessments of enzyme-substrate binding and catalysis for ITPA variants have been run at a …

Amyloid Beta-42 Neurotoxicity In Drosophila Retinal Development, Shay O. Sims, Pierce Duncan, Malachi Abon, Jacob G. Smith

Create@State

Alzheimer's disease (AD) represents one of the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorders globally. Thus far, the underlying mechanisms associated with the pathogenesis of AD are innately elusive. Two hallmarks associated with the progression of AD exist, including Amyloid-Beta 42 (Aβ42) protein plaque formation and hyperphosphorylation of tau proteins in neurons. Amyloid-beta is known to concentrate with other neuronal proteins as complexes form, including the cytoskeletal protein actin. However, whether actin contributes to neuronal decline in AD is unknown. To further understand the cellular cascades associated with AD, we investigated the role of cytoskeleton dynamics in modulating oxidative stress and neuroinflammation within …

Relish As A Temporal Switch In Neurodegeneration Using Drosophila Melanogaster, Kyle M. Johnson

Create@State

Neurodegenerative diseases are often linked to chronic inflammation in the nervous system, but it is still unclear what triggers this process during the early stages of disease. This project examines whether activation of the NF-κB transcription factor Relish may act as a temporal switch that contributes to early neurodegenerative stress in Drosophila melanogaster. As a result of many innate immune pathways are consistent between flies and humans, Drosophila serves as a useful model for studying how immune signaling affects neuronal health. In this study, neural driver lines were crossed with control strains to evaluate how changes in Relish signaling …

An Investigation Into Relish Activation As A Temporal Switch In Neurodegeneration, Kyle M. Johnson

Create@State

Neurodegenerative diseases are often linked to chronic inflammation in the nervous system, but it is still unclear what triggers this process during the early stages of disease. This project examines whether activation of the NF-κB transcription factor Relish may act as a temporal switch that contributes to early neurodegenerative stress in Drosophila melanogaster. As a result of many innate immune pathways are consistent between flies and humans, Drosophila serves as a useful model for studying how immune signaling affects neuronal health. In this study, neural driver lines were crossed with control strains to evaluate how changes in Relish signaling …

Temporal Interference Stimulation Effectively Reduces Parkinsonian Beta Band Activity In A Computational Model Of The Basal Ganglia Network, Anna Stolle

25th Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2026)

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurological disorder characterized by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons, leading to impaired motor function and disrupted basal ganglia activity. One of the most effective treatments is deep brain stimulation (DBS), which targets deep brain regions to restore abnormal firing patterns. However, DBS requires invasive surgery to implant electrodes, posing surgical risks and limiting accessibility. This has driven interest in non-invasive alternatives that achieve similar therapeutic outcomes. Transcranial temporal interference stimulation (tTIS) is a non-invasive technique delivering two high-frequency currents through scalp electrodes. These currents overlap to produce a low-frequency "beat" capable of reaching deep structures …

Transcranial Temporal Interference Stimulation Modulates Spike Timing Of Subthalamic Nucleus Neurons In A Computational Neuron Model, Kimberly Maldonado

25th Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2026)

The established treatment for Parkinson’s disease is deep brain stimulation (DBS), an effective but invasive procedure requiring surgical implantation of electrodes. Transcranial temporal interference stimulation (tTIS) is a novel, noninvasive technique with potential to target deep brain regions. It applies two high-frequency currents with a slight offset through scalp electrodes, producing a low-frequency envelope that may modulate neuronal activity where the fields overlap. The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is the favored DBS target in advanced Parkinson’s disease. While tTIS has been studied in humans, animals, and generic neuron models, no work has examined tTIS on optimized models of STN neurons. We …

Subjective Feelings And Electrophysiological Responses To Love-Stimuli In Parasocial And Real-Life Romantic Love, Magda Martinez-Mata

Theses

People can have a crush on, fall in love with, or develop a romantic interest in media figures despite having no reciprocal interaction, which is known as parasocial love. The objective of this study was to evaluate subjective feelings for and event-related potential (ERP) responses reflecting attention to the parasocial beloved and to compare them to real-life love. Twenty-six participants who have a parasocial beloved were recruited. Sixteen of those had a real-life beloved as well. The participants answered questions about their love feelings and completed the Infatuation and Attachment Scales and the Parasocial Love Scale for both their parasocial …

The Role Of Pten Subcellular Localization In Neuronal Development And Autism Spectrum Disorder, Nicole Desmet

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are genetically heterogeneous neurodevelopmental conditions that nevertheless converge on altered neuronal connectivity and circuit function. A central unresolved problem in the field is how diverse genetic perturbations, acting at different biological levels and developmental stages, give rise to shared neurodevelopmental outcomes. This dissertation addresses this problem by examining how gene function, subcellular signaling, and developmental context interact to shape neuronal morphology and circuit-relevant phenotypes.

Cell-autonomous mechanisms regulating neuronal morphology are examined through the ASD risk gene Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog (PTEN) in developing dentate gyrus granule neurons. Selective biasing of PTEN to defined intracellular compartments in …

Continuous Light And Pinealectomy: Two Models Of Melatonin Deficiency Revealing Distinct Interactions With Vitamin D Deficiency On Blood Parameters, Rebaz Sedeeq Shekh, Ismail Mustafa Maulood

Polytechnic Journal

Modern lifestyles reduce sunlight exposure and increase artificial light at night, potentially promoting vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and melatonin (MEL) suppression. The two hormones regulate immunity, erythropoiesis, and platelet (PLT) indices, but their combined hematological effects are not well characterized. We investigated the independent and combined effects of VDD and MEL deficiency on leukocyte profiles, erythrocyte indices, and PLT parameters in albino rats using two 12-week models (n = 8/group): continuous light (CL)-induced MEL suppression (Control, CL, VDD, and CL + VDD) and pinealectomy (Px)-induced MEL deficiency (Sham. Px, VDD, Px + VDD). Complete blood counts (CBCs) and inflammation-related ratios …

Exploring Decision-Making In Caenorhabditis Elegans: Navigating Dichotomous Envrionmental Cues, Hunarmeet K. Gill

Caroliniana Undergraduate Research Journal

All living organisms thrive off the survival choices they make and the factors they prioritize, but the mechanisms guiding these choices remain unclear. This study investigates decision-making in Caenorhabditis elegans, aiming to understand how they navigate dichotomous environments that contain both attractive and aversive cues. Despite possessing a simple nervous system, C. elegans express behaviors indicating a level of advanced sensory-processing abilities, making them ideal models for studying decision-making processes. The experiment consisted of five separate petri-dish tests, each with three sections: side A and side B (containing natural or UV light and/or E.coli or ethanol), and a neutral …