Student scientists in now-defunded KU and Haskell programs showcased their work Thursday, sharing research ranging from depression treatments for veterans and proteins’ impact on tumor cells to gene mutations, behavior of prairie voles and more.
Eleven undergrads and 13 postbaccalaureate scholars presented on the bioscience research they’ve worked on through the support of the programs in KU’s Office for Advancing Success in Science, or OASiS, at the 25th annual University of Kansas-Haskell Indian Nations University Student Research Symposium.
The programs are funded through the support of National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation grants focused on training and workforce development in the biological sciences.
Last week, the program director learned their federal grants had been cut without notice for four of five programs that run through the office.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the programs’ future and the funding cuts that will directly impact them, Haskell’s Stidham Union was abuzz with activity and excitement as the students greeted those who strolled by their posters and explained the complexities of their research with expertise.
The Maximizing Access to Research Careers program, or MARC, helps undergrads access biomedical research experiences through financial support.
KU junior Lawrence James-Osondu is a MARC scholar majoring in behavioral neuroscience. His research aims to address major depression in military veterans, who experience depression, PTSD and suicide at a higher rate than average.
James-Osondu has investigated the effectiveness of therapeutic lifestyle changes as an alternative to medication, which is currently the most common treatment for depression in veterans. The behavioral changes include increasing daily omega-3 fatty acids, moderate exercise, morning exposure to bright light, healthy sleep, social connection and more.
The program is tailored to veterans and is implemented in partnership with the Topeka Veteran Affairs Medical Center. The preliminary results are promising, with depression symptoms measurably improving for most participants over the course of the program.
The Bridges to Baccalaureate Research Training Program supports Haskell Indian Nations University students who want to pursue a science major that isn’t offered at Haskell. The program gives students a mentored research experience in a KU bioscience research lab for a year.
Matthew Billie, Diné, is a Haskell student majoring in speech language hearing through the Bridges program. Billie’s research sought to gain insight about augmentative and alternative communication device use in Native American communities.
Billie’s research showed that, although the communities he surveyed have a favorable attitude toward AAC device use, there are several barriers that hinder or prevent the devices from actually being used.
Rural communities may lack the necessary internet access to support a device; the cost of a device may be prohibitive; and there may not be support for Indigenous languages or bilingual households. Additionally, some devices include imagery that is culturally offensive.
Tatenda Mafa is a participant in PREP, the Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program, which pays students to do research full-time at KU and work on coursework and professional development during a gap year.
Mafa has been studying how different proteins affect lactate in tumor cells. He plans to continue his cancer research at KU Medical Center.
Caleb Nicholson, also in the PREP program, has been researching the brain chemistry of social defeat in prairie voles. Voles mate for life, he said, and the findings from his research may be more strongly comparable to humans than research on mice, which don’t form similar bonds.
Read more on how federal funding cuts are directly affecting Lawrence and Douglas County community members in the articles linked below and on this page.
Contact information for the congressional delegation representing Lawrence and Douglas County is available at this link. The nonprofit 5 Calls, 5calls.org, has phone numbers and templates of scripts to help people make their voices heard on several federal issues.
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Molly Adams (she/her), photojournalist and news operations coordinator for The Lawrence Times, can be reached at molly@lawrencekstimes.com. Check out more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
— Lawrence Times reporter Mackenzie Clark contributed to this post.
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