The MU Summer Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievements Forum showcases the creative and scholarly activities that undergraduates have been engaged in over the summer. All students engaged in scholarly or creative activity with a faculty mentor are invited to present their work.

Recent Submissions

  • Synthesis and characterization of amorphous astrominerals 

    Zullig, Bryson; Whittington, Alan G.; Speck, Angela K. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars are the main contributors of solid material (dust) to the interstellar medium. The dust forms as gas escaping from the star cools and condenses to form a circumstellar dust shell. Around ...
  • Turnover of neotropical migrant birds in eleven year old clear cuts during July 

    Zenzal, Theodore; Burke, Alicia D.; Porneluzi, Paul (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Capture and release of birds via mist net and banding techniques has proven to be one of the best way to census turnover or persistence of birds during migration, breeding, and post-breeding seasons. Our study looked at ...
  • Reactivity of Germanium (100)-2x1 with diethyl ether 

    Zahra, Jimmy; Greenlief, Michael (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    There is a great interest in the development of new devices for the microelectronics industry. Changes in materials are continually tried to obtain better performance and higher speed devices. Germanium (Ge), in its natural ...
  • Influence of miRNA on brace root patterning in Zea mays L. 

    Young, Marie; Gerau, Michael; Ware, D.; Davis, Georgia L. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Brace roots reduce lodging by providing support and represent the majority of the root system in adult plants. Previous quantitative trait locus mapping results showed that Teopod1 (Tp1), Teopod2 (Tp2), and Corngrass1 ...
  • Wading in the gene pool: Female preference for long mating calls in gray tree frogs (Hyla versicolor) 

    Yi, Si Yol; Welch, Allison; Gerhardt, H. Carl (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Female gray tree frogs (Hyla versicolor) exhibit a clear preference for long mating calls. Moreover, the expression of this preference varies. The "good genes" model of sexual selection suggests that this is because females ...
  • Species variation and relative abundance of moths in glades versus forests at Peck Ranch 

    Wormington, Michael; Porneluzi, Paul (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    There are a large number of species of moths in Missouri and some of them prefer glades while others prefer forests. This study is to determine what species like which habitat. Two sample areas of each type of habitat will ...
  • Clearance of endosymbionts in the tick vector Rhipicephalus sanguineus 

    Woolery, Andrew; McClure, Jennifer Christine, 1981-; Stich, Roger W. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Vector-borne diseases reduce livestock production in areas whose human populations are starving, such as the Tsetse belt in Africa. In the United States, people are infected every year with Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain ...
  • Microbial fuel cell analysis 

    Womack, Ryan; Hu, Zhiqiang, 1966- (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Microbial Fuel Cells (MFC) are under vast considerations of use, by reason of the energy and economic "crisis" that faces many Western world citizens. MFCs have benefits over other renewable energy systems of creating at ...
  • Variation in mushroom frequency on course-woody debris in areas of different forest management techniques 

    Wilson, Matthew; Manthey, Joseph; Porneluzi, Paul (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Different forest management techniques may have serious varying ecological consequences. Our focus was on the mushrooming bodies of fungus on course-woody debris in three differently managed areas of forest. This is an ...
  • Characterization of gene and protein marker expression by human dental pulp stem cells 

    Wilmore, Lauquyta; Spears, Kathleen; Sanders, Douglas N., 1973-; Kirk, Mark D. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Neurodegenerative diseases result from deterioration of neurons or their myelin sheath that over time leads to brain dysfunction and premature death. Cells of the brain and spinal cord do not readily regenerate therefore ...
  • Does a nonlinear mating preference predict nonlinear benefits to offspring?: Avoiding bad mates to obtain good genes 

    Williams, Amanda J.; Welch, Allison; Gerhardt, H. Carl (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Female Hyla versicolor (gray tree frogs) strongly prefer choosing mates with long or medium call lengths, avoiding the shorter callers. The development of their offspring is hypothesized to mirror this nonlinear preference, ...
  • A human relevent rat model of breast cancer 

    Willbrand, Dana M.; Besch-Williford, Cynthia Lee, 1954-; Ma, Lixin; Shull, James D.; Sauter, Edward R.; Ruhlen, Rachel L. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Because women experience a bewildering array of chemicals, foods and lifestyles, only profound effects on preventing or promoting breast cancer are detectible in human studies. Subtle or delayed effects can be detected in ...
  • Development of tools for in situ hybridization in human embryonic stem cells 

    Wiggins, Amber; Alexenko, Andrei; Schulz, Laura; Roberts, R. M. (Robert Michael), 1940- (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Our laboratory uses human embryonic stem cells (hESC) to understand how embryonic cells differentiate into the cells of the placenta. The long term goal of my research is to develop in situ hybridization methods and use ...
  • Effects of even-aged timber harvest on herbaceous vegetation richness in southern Missouri forests 

    Weiss, Brian; Stafford, Hayley; O'Hara, Elizabeth; Porneluzi, Paul (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    For centuries American forests have been exploited for timber and other commodities, often with unforeseen long-term detrimental effects. As areas are cleared, the natural diversity of the forest is altered. Development ...
  • Is it significant: A search for motifs and their possible significance 

    Warren, Samantha; Biondi, Elisa; Burke, Donald H. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Synthetic biology is an emerging field of study based on the chemistry of biological macromolecules. The function of these molecules is determined by their structure and the structures are determined by the sequence. One ...
  • ROS from menadione induces astrocytic damage: protective effects of apocynin 

    Wang, Xiaowen; Sheng, Vivien; He, Yan, 1979-; Simonyi, Agnes; Sun, Grace Y. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Oxidative stress is a core cause of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. When cells are under oxidative stress, they will produce a high amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS are small and highly ...
  • Role of Gbx2 expression in cranial nerve V development 

    Urkov, Sam; Burroughs-Garcia, Jessica; Waters, Samuel T. (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Gbx2 is a member of the Gbx family of homeobox genes that encodes for the transcriptional factors Gbx1 and Gbx2. The amino acid sequence of Gbx2 is highly conserved across multiple species (e.g. mice, zebrafish, chicken, ...
  • Understanding T regulatory cell development in the thymus using both in vivo and in vitro models 

    Uchiyama, Robin; Haymaker, Cara Lena, 1982-; Cascio, Jason; Zaghouani, Habib (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease caused by autoreactive T cells attacking myelin sheath proteins in nerve fibers of the central nervous system resulting in paralysis and death. Conventional T cells (cytolytic ...
  • Effects of polyploidy on female call preference in gray treefrogs, Hyla chrysoscelis 

    Tucker, Mitch; Hunfel, Sarah; Gerhardt, H. Carl (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    The gray treefrog complex consists of two cryptic species; Hyla versicolor is a tetraploid (N=48) species that arose from the polyploidization of its diploid counter-part, H. chrysoscelis (N=24) and two other extinct ...
  • The impacts of floral fragrances and ant contamination on pollinator behavioral responses 

    Todd, Sadie; Geib, Jennifer C., 1972-; Kaczorowski, Rainee L., 1976-; Galen, Candace Elizabeth (University of Missouri--Columbia. Office of Undergraduate Research, 2008)
    World economy, including agriculture and food production, is heavily dependant on animal pollination. For this reason, it is important to understand factors that mediate plant-pollinator interactions. We investigated ...

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