UMEB: Environmental Endocrinology and Physiology

Iowa State University, Ames IA

Investigators

Abstract

This project will recruit 8 talented undergraduates per year at Iowa State University to careers in environmental biology by providing research training, intensive mentoring, and a clear view of the excitement, rewards, and importance of the field. Recruiting efforts will target groups underrepresented in environmental biology, particularly in the midwest. The program will increase participation of underrepresented groups in the field, aid in recruitment of underrepresented groups to the University, and produce a set of individuals exceptionally well prepared for continued success in graduate and post-graduate careers. The project will collaborate with and take advantage of Iowa State University's strong institutional emphasis on and investment in recruiting underrepresented groups to participate in science and technology in general, and will add a particular focus on environmental biology. The project focus is involvement of students in scientific research programs as full participants, from project design to presentation and publication of the results, all carried out in the context of one-on-one mentoring and strong guidance by University faculty. Each student's research experience will be bolstered by a set of program elements, including rotations through laboratories working on related projects, annual workshops involving the whole group in training and participation in environmental science in the field, an academic seminar that will provide tools for increasing success in environmental biology, and annual symposia, invited speakers, and participation in meetings of professional scientific groups to produce breadth, depth, and a sense of membership in the community of environmental science. The research foci will be those of three groups of faculty, all involving vertebrate environmental endocrinology and physiology in "the land between the rivers," the midwest ecosystems of Iowa and its surroundings. Each of these research areas focuses on native species, including species of conservation importance, in a region heavily modified by humans, and of great importance to both human ecology and natural biodiversity. Each studies the effects of environmental stresses using animal physiology and development as measurement variables, and includes study of endocrine pathways by which environmental effects may be mediated. Each project is diverse enough to provide the necessary scope to ensure student independence, and to give students ownership of their research project. Their common elements will enable students associated with any project to understand and contribute to others, and mean that a common plan for training and enrichment can be equally valuable to all.