Carissa Pardamean
This summer, my research involves point mutations in genomic sequences encoding for the enzyme methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, which is a part of the neural tube formation pathway. The mutations cause spina bifida or neural tube defect (NTD), one of the most common neonatal defects in the US. A common method for NTD prevention is folate (vitamin B9) supplementation but this is not always effective. Thus, my hypothesis is that the success of the folate salvage depends on the type of point mutation that is present in the fetus. Additionally, though NTD […]
Akash Patel
My research this summer analyzes the effects of the 2010 World Cup on xenophobia and interethnic violence in Cape Town. Working in conjunction with the NGO Projects Abroad Human Rights Office, I will document cases of xenophobic violence from January to August 2010, graphing how rates of violence fluctuate in response to the Cup. I will supplement this evidence with informal testimony from a range of communities within Cape Town to see how different people view this international event as affecting levels of xenophobia in the city. In totality, the […]
Niema Razavian
A major breakthrough in cancer research over the past 50 years has been the discovery of tumor viruses, or cancer-causing viruses. Thus far, six viruses have been causally linked to cancer (the best known being human papilloma virus and cervical cancer). This SURF project investigates bovine leukemia virus (BLV) and its role in breast cancer susceptibility. Previous research has demonstrated that BLV in breast tissue is significantly correlated with the breast cancer risk, and that humans have antibodies against BLV. Expanding on this, the goal of my SURF project is […]
Alyse Ritvo
An invisible disability is one that remains unnoticeable to an observer unless the person with the disability or someone else discloses it. Invisible disabilities can be of a physical, cognitive, intellectual, or psychiatric nature and are estimated to account for 40% of disabilities in the U.S. Since people with invisible disabilities can choose whether or not to conceal them in a given situation, they face the ongoing challenge of deciding whether and how to present their disabilities. This liminal status proves challenging for identity formation, a critical issue in young […]
Briana Robertori
For 10 weeks, I will be living up the mountainous rural coffee growing area of Matagalpa, Nicaragua studying the tourism that I myself will be a part of. I will be studying how the UCA San Ramon coffee cooperatives agroeco-tourism project is affecting the families and communities of the mostly female tourist hosts. To survey both the positive and negative effects, I will be distributing a questionnaire to all of the forty host mothers, or alojadoras. I will also be conducting between eight and ten filmed interviews with alojadoras, tourist […]
Emma Tome
Recent scholarship in social science is re-invigorating notions of ‘place’ as it relates to social process. My research asks: how do these notions help to explain or complicate the process of redevelopment at Alameda Point, on the site of the decommissioned naval air station? And how may a close study of one place illuminate the efficacy or inefficacy of these ways of thinking? Furthermore, how may we reconcile theoretical place and the ways place is explained though maps? To approach these questions, my research will involve a close study of […]
Andrina Tran
During the turbulent 1960s, controversial novelist Ayn Rand became a forceful voice for lost and disaffected youth. Through her seemingly impenetrable philosophy of Objectivism, Rand offered a round universe of order, rationality, and certainty for young libertarians who felt that neither liberals nor conservatives fully addressed national issues. My project will center on this undeveloped aspect of Randian scholarship her palliative, almost spiritual, role in the intellectual history of youth. More specifically, I will consider how Rands followers attempted to propagate Objectivism within an overwhelmingly liberal campus atmosphere, while also […]
Lee Ying
Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome (SLOS) is a genetic disease that causes mental retardation and physical abnormalities. Biochemically, a defect in the enzyme that catalyzes the terminal step of cholesterol synthesis causes cholesterol deficiency and a toxic accumulation of its precursor, 7-dehdyrocholesterol. Gene therapy to supply the missing enzyme has been shown to partially normalize cholesterol metabolism, but more biomarkers need to be established in order to fully explore its usefulness. For my SURF project, I will investigate whether photosensitivity and abnormal bile acid composition, which are symptoms of SLOS in humans, are […]
Albert Yu
In the human body, the liver is the only organ that can regenerate following substantial damage. But if all cells contain the same genetic information, how is this function unique to the liver? This summer I will study regeneration in the wing imaginal discs of developing Drosophila larvae. My goal is to develop a system that introduces localized cell death in these discs. Following cell death, I will visualize the amount and location of cell proliferation in the remaining cells. With this system, I can assess the ability of mutant […]