REU Site: Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology

Duke University, Durham NC

Investigators

Abstract

TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This REU is designed to inspire undergraduate students towards future research and careers in science and engineering by engaging students in an integrated approach to understanding principles governing nanoparticle toxicity. It features a 10-week interdisciplinary team approach to mentoring students on research projects across themes designed to link fundamental physical and chemical properties of nanomaterials with their observed biological and ecosystem effects. Research spans 6 themes: Exposure: Transport & Transformation; Cellular and Organismal Responses; Impacts on Ecosystems; Manufactured Nanomaterials; Natural and Incidental Nanoparticles; and Risk Assessment and Modeling. Specific CEINT research includes: 1) elucidating nanomaterial properties and physiological processes that control the uptake of engineered and natural nanomaterials into organisms (plants and invertebrates; 2) determining behaviors of selected nanomaterials in complex environments, and the resulting "nanoparticle specific" effects at the cellular, organismal, and ecosystem levels; and 3) developing models to predict nanomaterial behavior in complex environments. Laboratory and mesocosm studies are integrated and conducted at different scales and varying levels of complexity, with models being developed that include specific nanomaterial properties and interactions using measurable hueristics. Thus CEINT is uniquely positioned to provide training for students in environmentally relevant research design by incorporating feedback loops from studies conducted in CEINT's mesocoms (32 large self-contained ecosystems) to inform strategically designed laboratory studies to elucidate the mechanisms by which nanoparticles exert their impacts in the more complex media of ecosystems. This REU will leverage the well-developed international research and training activities across CEINT to provide summer placements at core CEINT US partners Duke, Carnegie Mellon, and Virginia Tech Universities and with French partner the European Center for Research and Education in Geosciences and the Environment (CEREGE), Aix-en-Provence, France. Students will learn how risk assessment provides feedback to guide future research and about evolving parameters for international studies in nanotechnology. NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This REU program will support the critical demand for undergraduate research training in the emerging field of nano-scale science and technology and expand research opportunities for underrepresented minorities as well as provide interdisciplinary research training in the sciences and engineering for students early in their careers. Projects will engage students in an integrated, unique interdisciplinary approach to understanding principles governing nanoparticle toxicity and learning how risk assessment can provide feedback to guide future research and policy. This research is particularly important in the area of environmental nano-science since it includes self-contained ecosystems (mesocosms) that provide environmentally relevant feedback loops- critical to informing lab research- and thus providing students with research opportunities of real-world importance. Broader impacts include solidifying training opportunities for undergraduates across three U.S. universities and in France- thus creating trans-university and international networks for undergraduates that position students to readily transition to graduate school. By targeting underrepresented groups, particularly females and minority students, and recruiting students at early career junctures from institutions with limited research opportunities, this REU program has potential to contribute to environmental protection by advancing the training of a diverse group of environmentally responsible nano-scientists and engineers. Through website and media highlights as well as student publications and presentations, and by involving REU students in K-12 outreach to engage younger students, a strong foundation will be built to disseminate students' educational and research experiences.