Fair Participants - Fall 2026

The bi-annual Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression Fair gives undergraduates from across the University the opportunity to exhibit posters and research projects in all academic majors and fields.

The Fall 2026 Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression Fair will take place Wednesday, October 28, 2026, from 5 to 7 p.m., in the Connolly Ballroom, Alumni Hall.

Note: students can receive Outside the Classroom Curriculum (OCC) credit for attending this event.

Fall 2026 Presenters and Projects

Pitt undergraduates were invited to submit poster abstracts for the Spring  Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression Fair. While poster presentations are most common, projects presented in formats other than a poster are also included as part of the fair.

Following is a list of students participating in the fall event and their projects.They are arranged by poster presentations first, alphabetically by presenter, followed by PowerPoint presentations.

Info Format: 
Student Name - Project Title
Inside the dropdown: School: Major / Affiliations / Year / Research Program / Faculty/Staff Mentor / Title and Description

Posters

Lydia Aluko - Computationally Investigating HLA-B*52 Mediated Molecular Mimicry Between Mycobacterial and Human Heat Shock Proteins in Takayasu’s Arteritis
 

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Computational Biology 
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College and Provost Scholars
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Mert Gur

Computationally Investigating HLA-B*52 Mediated Molecular Mimicry Between Mycobacterial and Human Heat Shock Proteins in Takayasu’s Arteritis 

Takayasu’s arteritis (TA) is a chronic large-vessel vasculitis characterized by inflammation of the aorta and its major branches and is strongly associated with the human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B*52 allele. While studies suggest a link between Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) exposure and TA, the molecular basis of the proposed cross-reactive autoimmunity remains unresolved. Mycobacterial heat-shock protein 65 (mHSP65) shares substantial sequence similarity with human heat-shock protein 60 (hHSP60), raising the possibility that homologous microbial and self-derived peptides may drive molecular mimicry, a process wherein a foreign antigen structurally resembles a host antigen closely enough to trigger a cross-reactive T-cell response. We use a computational pipeline to characterize how homologous 9-mer peptides from both mHSP65 and hHSP60 are stabilized and positioned within the HLA-B*52 peptide-binding groove. Using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we evaluate the structural stability and conformational fluctuations of these peptide-HLA complexes, as well as peptide depth within the binding groove. By comparing these dynamics with those of peptide complexes containing the structurally similar, Behçet’s disease-associated HLA-B*51 allele, this study examines how minor binding-pocket differences influence peptide conformation and stability, providing a molecular framework for investigating the proposed mimicry in TA.

Aadi Balsaraf - Engineering VHH-Based Antibody-Drug Conjugates for Targeted Cancer Therapy

School of Pharmacy: Pharmacy
Affiliation with Global Experiences Office
Third Year
Research Program: DIS: Study Abroad
Faculty Mentor: n/a

Engineering VHH-Based Antibody-Drug Conjugates for Targeted Cancer Therapy

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) have emerged as a significant advancement in targeted cancer therapy; however, their substantial molecular size, limited penetrative capacity within dense solid tumors, and structural complexity continue to constrain therapeutic efficacy. Single-domain antibodies (VHHs, or nanobodies) have consequently gained increasing attention as alternative targeting scaffolds owing to their compact molecular architecture, high intrinsic stability, and strong antigen-binding specificity. Despite their therapeutic promise, the development and validation of functional tumor-targeting VHH platforms remain essential for the advancement of next-generation targeted therapeutics. Given the widespread overexpression of the target antigen across numerous solid malignancies and its comparatively restricted expression in normal tissues, we investigated this target as a candidate antigen for nanobody-based therapeutic targeting. Using recombinant expression strategies, we generated and evaluated a target-specific VHH construct and assessed its production and antigen-binding functionality. Our findings by ELISA further demonstrated the specific binding of the expressed VHH to the target antigen with minimal nonspecific background signal, confirming retention of antigen recognition capability following expression. Collectively, these findings support the feasibility of utilizing target-specific VHHs as modular targeting scaffolds for future nanobody-based drug conjugates and intracellular delivery systems, while further underscoring the broader potential of single-domain antibody platforms to overcome key limitations associated with conventional antibody-based therapeutics and improve targeting precision in oncology.

Arushi Bansal - “The System is Broken”: Qualitative themes of health insurance depictions on The Pitt

School of Public Health: Public Health
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Beth Hoffman, PhD, MPH

“The System is Broken”: Qualitative themes of health insurance depictions on The Pitt

Background: In January 2026, Season 2 of the HBO Max medical drama The Pitt introduced a storyline following Orlando Diaz, a Hispanic patient with substantial medical debt and diabetes complications stemming from lack of health insurance. Building on prior research showing that The Pitt viewers discuss public health content online, this study characterized discussions of health insurance on the social media platform Reddit throughout the season.

Methods: Using RStudio package RedditExtractOR, we extracted posts and comments (hereafter ""posts”) weekly from the r/ThePittTVShow subreddit as each Season 2 episode aired. Posts were coded for relevance to medicine and public health by human coders and Claude (Anthropic). We then used R to filter posts corresponding to weeks the Orlando Diaz storyline aired for keywords related to race, personal experience, and health insurance. Flagged posts were reviewed qualitatively.

Results: Five qualitative themes emerged: (1) rationing healthcare due to costs, including delaying or avoiding care; (2) medical debt, where one user noted that “66.5% of U.S. bankruptcies are health related”; (3) the coverage gap Medicaid eligibility and private insurance affordability; (4) harm caused by insurance company denials; and (5) international viewers comparing the storyline to their own countries’ healthcare systems.

Conclusion: Reddit discussions following The Pitt’s Orlando Diaz storyline suggest it inspired discussions about real-life experiences with the U.S. healthcare system and international viewer commentary. These findings highlight the potential for medical dramas to encourage education and informed discussion around structural inequities in insurance and care access.

Rachana Bhattacharya - Double Emulsion Encapsulation Prolongs TIMP-3 Release from Vaginal Extracellular Matrix Microspheres

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Amanda Artsen

Double Emulsion Encapsulation Prolongs TIMP-3 Release from Vaginal Extracellular Matrix Microspheres

Introduction: Pelvic organ prolapse affects up to 50% of women over 50. Polypropylene mesh reduces recurrence but can cause inflammation, tissue degradation, pain, and exposure. Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP-3) inhibits matrix metalloproteinases involved in extracellular matrix degradation and may improve mesh integration. Vaginal extracellular matrix (vECM) microspheres enable local TIMP-3 delivery, but rapid release limits sustained delivery. We hypothesized that double emulsion encapsulation would reduce burst release and prolong delivery compared with single emulsion.

Methods: TIMP-3-loaded vECM microspheres were fabricated using double emulsion and characterized by microscopy. Microspheres were incubated in phosphate-buffered saline at 37°C with mild agitation for six weeks. TIMP-3 release was quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and compared with a previously developed single-emulsion method.

Results: Single emulsion released nearly all TIMP-3 within one hour. Double emulsion yielded cumulative release of approximately 10.5% at one hour, 37.6% at three hours, 63.4% at six hours, and 82.5% at 12 hours. Release reached 89.7% at two weeks, 95.9% at four weeks, and approximately 100% at six weeks. Cumulative release differed significantly between methods at intermediate timepoints (p<0.01).

Conclusion: Double emulsion reduced initial burst release and prolonged TIMP-3 release, supporting our hypothesis. Most TIMP-3 was released within 12 hours, with additional release through six weeks. This approach warrants further investigation to limit extracellular matrix degradation and improve tissue integration in pelvic organ prolapse repair.

Zach-Elie Boko - Autonomous Rover Mapping and Sensor Failure Recovery Using Computer Vision and SLAM

Swanson School of Engineering: Mechanical Engineering
Affiliation with TRIO McNair
Fourth Year
Research Program: SHREC
Faculty Mentor: Gretok Evans

Autonomous Rover Mapping and Sensor Failure Recovery Using Computer Vision and SLAM

This research focuses on developing an autonomous rover capable of spatial mapping, environmental perception, and navigation in unknown environments. The system combines YOLOv8 object detection and segmentation with Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) to identify objects, estimate the rover’s position, and construct a map of its surroundings. Initial work includes testing a pretrained YOLOv8 model on diverse terrain images and exploring datasets such as KITTI and Argoverse for autonomous navigation research. The project is progressing toward integrating cameras, sensors, and software with a 3D-printed rover. A central research objective is to investigate whether the rover can autonomously return to its starting point if its cameras or perception sensors fail during operation. The proposed approach involves recording the rover’s trajectory and evaluating recovery methods that use stored motion information and any remaining sources of localization data. Ultimately, this research aims to improve the reliability and resilience of autonomous robotic navigation in unfamiliar environments.

Nora Burns - Impacts of Dietary Nitrate Supplementation on Ambulatory Blood Pressure  

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Nutrition Science
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Benjamin DH Gordon

Impacts of Dietary Nitrate Supplementation on Ambulatory Blood Pressure  

Background: Hypertension is a leading modifiable risk factor for all-cause mortality, yet pharmaceutical treatment may not be accessible or effective for everyone. Nitric oxide (NO) is a potent vasodilator, but individuals with hypertension often have impaired endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) function, limiting NO production. Dietary nitrate, such as from beetroot juice (BRJ), produces NO independently of eNOS via the nitrate-nitrite-NO pathway and may reduce blood pressure (BP).  

Methods: Ten participants completed a crossover-controlled trial investigating the acute effects of isometric handgrip exercise and BRJ supplementation on post-exercise BP. During the second session (SHAM handgrip protocol), participants consumed two 70 mL Beet It Sport Nitrate bottles (400 mg of dietary nitrate each). Ambulatory BP over the following 24 hours was compared with baseline readings.  

Results: Paired t-tests showed no significant change in systolic or diastolic BP after BRJ supplementation. A regression, including all participants, found that baseline BP did not predict the magnitude of reduction following dietary nitrate supplementation (slope 0.09, p = 0.739). However, with the exclusion of one outlier, participants with higher baseline BP experienced greater reductions in 24-hour ambulatory systolic BP following BRJ supplementation (slope 0.41, p = 0.012).

Conclusions: Dietary nitrate supplementation did not significantly change ambulatory BP overall. An exploratory analysis suggested higher baseline BP was associated with greater reductions in 24-hour systolic BP following dietary nitrate intake, but this depended on excluding an outlier. Dietary nitrate may be more effective for individuals with higher BP, but larger follow-up studies are needed to confirm this. 

Brianna Campagna - Ergonomic Adaptation: Selecting the Right Computer Mouse for Physical Disabilities

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Rehabilitation Science
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Elizabeth Pitts

Ergonomic Adaptation: Selecting the Right Computer Mouse for Physical Disabilities

In schools and office jobs, using computer mice is inevitable. Computer mice were originally designed to make computers more accessible to a broader audience, but they overlooked accessibility for people with physical disabilities. My research finds that different adaptive computer mice are beneficial to a wide range of demographics. This research explores the history of the computer mouse and identifies which contemporary mouse types best suit people with physical restrictions. In the future, this research will reduce the stress a computer mouse may cause for individuals with physical disabilities. 

Emily Campos - Three-dimensional characterization of myelin ultrastructure in postmortem human cortex using FIB-SEM  

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience
Third Year
Research Program: Translational Neuroscience Program
Faculty Mentors: Jill Glausier, Jenesis Kozel, Matthew Maier

Three-dimensional characterization of myelin ultrastructure in postmortem human cortex using FIB-SEM  

Introduction: The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) integrates information across distributed circuits to support executive function. Communication across circuits is facilitated by myelin, a multilayered sheath that insulates axons. Myelin structure influences the speed and reliability of signal conduction, which is coupled to energy supplied by local mitochondria. Focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM) permits the visualization of myelin, axons, and mitochondria, allowing quantification of the structural features that influence conduction at a high resolution and in three-dimensions (3D).  However, whether these structure-function relationships are preserved in postmortem human DLPFC is unclear. To begin this investigation, FIB-SEM was used to reconstruct and quantify myelin, axon, and mitochondrial ultrastructure in postmortem human DLPFC.

Methods: Human DLPFC grey matter of a decedent with no clinical brain-related disorders was imaged using a Helios 5 CX FIBSEM with a 20nm3 isotropic voxel size (Total volume = 12.2*103mm3). Myelin sheaths were segmented and reconstructed in 3D. A subset (n=5) was randomly selected for expanded analysis, which included reconstruction of the central axon and their mitochondria. From this, g-ratio (the ratio of the axon diameter to the diameter of the total myelinated fiber), mitochondrial number and volume, and decompaction data were obtained. These measures are indicators of conduction efficiency, energetic capacity, and overall sheath health, respectively.  

Results: Myelin comprised 150um3 of DLPFC volume across 36 individually segmented myelin sheaths. Expanded analysis (n=5) revealed a mean g-ratio of 0.42nm (standard deviation of 0.016), indicating thicker myelin relative to axon size. Each axon (n=5) contained 1-2 mitochondria, for a total of 7, with an average volume of 0.22um3. Moderate decompaction (20-33% slices with fraying) was present in four sheaths, whereas one sheath was intact throughout the entire volume.  

Conclusion: FIBSEM offers high-resolution imaging that allows neuronal ultrastructure to be quantitatively and qualitatively studied to better understand the human brain. This lays the groundwork for looking at differences across diseases.  

Siheng Chao - Inference of Cell Type-Specific eQTLs from Bulk Tissue Data

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Double Major in Statistics (DSAS) and Natural Sciences (CGS)
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Chris McKennan

Inference of Cell Type-Specific eQTLs from Bulk Tissue Data

Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) are genetic variants whose genotypes are associated with gene expression levels and are critical for understanding how genetic variation contributes to phenotypic variation. eQTLs are typically identified using gene expression measurements from bulk tissues, which are comprised of heterogeneous populations of cell types. Consequently, eQTL estimates from bulk tissue data do not capture the effects of genetic variants on gene expression within individual cell types. Instead, they represent average effects across the constituent cell types. Given the substantial differences in cellular function, distinguishing these cell type-specific effects is essential for understanding how genetic variation influences cellular function.

To address this challenge, we developed a novel statistical method for identifying cell type-specific eQTLs from bulk tissue data. We demonstrate the utility of our approach by leveraging data from the Vanderbilt cohort of the CANOE study to identify cell type-specific eQTLs in the placenta. Compared with existing methods, our approach produces estimates that closely resemble those obtained from single-cell RNA sequencing studies. We further demonstrate the performance of our method through extensive simulations.

Truc Chu - Structural Parameters as Predictors of Galaxy Quenching up to z ∼ 4 Using the JWST UNCOVER and MINERVA Survey

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Astronomy and Physics
Affiliation with NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium Research Internship    
Fifth Year
Research Program: NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium Research Internship
Faculty Mentor: Rachel Bezanson

Structural Parameters as Predictors of Galaxy Quenching up to z ∼ 4 Using the JWST UNCOVER and MINERVA Survey

This study investigates the relationship between specific star formation rate (sSFR) and galaxy internal structure across a broad range of redshifts (0 > z > 4) using the observational sample from the Ultradeep NIRSpec and NIRCam ObserVations before the Epoch of Reionization (UNCOVER)survey of galaxy cluster Abell 2744 (z = 0.308), which is a JWST Treasury Program. Previous large galaxy surveys suggest a quenching process in galaxies, based on the observed bimodality in the galaxy population: elliptical galaxies exhibit little to no star formation, whereas blue spiral galaxies display ongoing star formation. Although specific evolution processes that lead to the two distinct populations are ambiguous, previous studies have found correlations between galaxy structure and star formation activity. The UNCOVER survey provides catalogs of galaxy physical properties and morphologies derived with the Prospector Bayesian inference framework. Using these catalogs, we were able to infer physical properties such as surface stellar mass density, central stellar density, Sersic index, and stellar mass of the galaxies in Abell 2744 up to z ∼ 4 and investigate their relationships with specific star formation rate (sSFR). We then analyze which parameter best shows the separation between the two galaxy populations, i.e., which best predicts quiescence. Results show that structural densities perform better at separating the two populations with a clear quiescent threshold than S´ersic index and stellar mass at z < 3. For z ≥ 4, no parameter correlates well with quiescence. We conclude that central structural densities play a large role in regulating star formation.

Jack Cignetti - Ecological Validity of the AMPD Conceptualization of Psychopathy:  Testing the Psychopathy Specifier within Daily Life

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Psychology
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College        
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Colin Vize

Ecological Validity of the AMPD Conceptualization of Psychopathy:  Testing the Psychopathy Specifier within Daily Life

Psychopathy is a multidimensional personality disorder encompassing disinhibition, antagonism, and boldness. However, boldness has been the subject of debate regarding its importance to the disorder, including its more recent representation as the "psychopathy specifier" in the Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD). To date, prior research examining the relations of psychopathy domains to theoretically important outcomes has relied almost exclusively on cross-sectional data. The present study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to examine how AMPD antagonism, disinhibition, and the psychopathy specifier relate to affective and interpersonal functioning in daily life. A community sample of adults (N = 297) completed baseline trait assessments used to score the AMPD psychopathy domains and then a 14- to 21-day EMA protocol assessing negative affect (nervousness, shame/guilt, anger/frustration) and momentary interpersonal stressors. Results showed that antagonism and disinhibition were generally related to all forms of negative affect. In contrast, the psychopathy specifier generally showed a consistently negative pattern with the same outcomes, predicting lower negative affect both within and outside stressful situations, as well as lower odds of reporting momentary stressors. These findings replicate and extend evidence that boldness-related traits appear to relate to adaptive functioning in daily life, raise questions about the utility of total psychopathy composite scores, and underscore the value of EMA designs for clarifying the nomological network of the AMPD psychopathy specifier.

Aliya Delnore - Task Instructions for Linguistic Judgments of Stigmatized Speech

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Linguistics
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Phillip Rogers

Task Instructions for Linguistic Judgments of Stigmatized Speech

Linguistic judgment experiments have long been administered inconsistently, in that instructions will sometimes solicit judgments as to the "quality" of stimuli, sometimes as to their "probability", and so on. It has previously been demonstrated that these differences in task instructions can manifest in different patterns of responses. Particularly, it has been demonstrated in data from German and Dutch that prescriptive grammars distort naïve speakers' judgments of non-standard or disfavored speech varieties inconsistently depending on how the judgment is solicited. I present new data from French and English adding to this picture, replicating this earlier finding at a larger scale than previously demonstrated as well as showing its consistency across education, age, race, and literacy levels. I also demonstrate an interaction between stimulus modality (written versus oral) and task instructions in the French data. These results expand our understanding of the judgment task and have implications for future best practice in grammatical research.

Brenna Doty - Perceived Value Similarity and Romantic Relationship Quality

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Psychology
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Joel Le Forestier

Perceived Value Similarity and Romantic Relationship Quality

Perceived similarity between romantic partners is related to higher relationship quality. This is particularly true for similarity in personal values. But is similarity in all types of values equally important? This study will assess the relationships between perceived similarity in 10 value domains and romantic relationship quality. For this cross-sectional study, we will recruit 415 participants in romantic relationships from an undergraduate subject pool. Participants will report on their values for 10 domains from the Portrait Values Questionnaire (i.e. conformity, tradition, benevolence, universalism, self-direction, stimulation, hedonism, achievement, power, and security), their perceptions of their partner’s endorsement of those values, and their relationship quality, measured using the Couples Satisfaction Index. We will test associations between perceived value similarity and relationship quality for each domain and whether the magnitude of these relationships is affected by value importance to the participant. We predict that perceived value similarity will be positively related to relationship quality in general, but we do not have domain-specific predictions.

Claire Ellsworth - Comparative Histopathological Features of SEPN1-Related Multiminicore Disease and DNM2-Related Centronuclear Myopathy​​ 

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: English Literature
Second Year
Additional Presenters: Ruari Maguire (rising junior at Binghamton University and is a coauthor on the poster)
Faculty Mentor: Alan Beggs    

Comparative Histopathological Features of SEPN1-Related Multiminicore Disease and DNM2-Related Centronuclear Myopathy​​    

Congenital myopathies are rare genetic neuromuscular disorders characterized by muscle weakness, hypotonia, and structural abnormalities within skeletal muscle. Because clinical features often overlap across genetic subtypes, distinguishing these disorders based on symptoms alone can be challenging. This comparative case study examined skeletal muscle histopathology in two genetically confirmed congenital myopathies: SEPN1-related multiminicore disease and DNM2-related centronuclear myopathy (CNM). Clinical histories were retrospectively reviewed for age at onset, disease progression, complications, and ambulatory status. Archived muscle biopsy sections were examined using a Keyence BZ-X810 digital microscope. H&E and oxidative enzyme stains, including NADH, SDH, and COX, were used to evaluate disease-associated morphology. The SEPN1-related biopsy demonstrated multifocal, irregular reductions in oxidative enzyme activity across COX, NADH, and SDH staining, producing a multiminicore pattern. In contrast, the DNM2-related biopsy showed marked fiber-size variation and prominent centrally positioned myonuclei on H&E, while NADH staining revealed radial sarcoplasmic strands extending toward the fiber periphery. These findings demonstrate distinct histopathologic features in these two congenital myopathies. Identifying multifocal oxidative defects in SEPN1-related disease versus centralized nuclei and radial sarcoplasmic organization in DNM2-related CNM can strengthen clinicopathologic interpretation and support more precise disease classification.​

Evan Enwright - Mapping Quasar Accretion Disks via Dual-band Photometry at Allegheny Observatory

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Physics and Astronomy
Fourth Year
Research Program: NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium 
Faculty Mentor: Dr. David Turnshek

Mapping Quasar Accretion Disks via Dual-band Photometry at Allegheny Observatory

As matter falls towards a supermassive black hole, it feeds the accretion disk (AD), causing mass to orbit at higher speeds closer to the black hole. This material in turn heats up and emits light at higher frequencies due to blackbody radiation. These “bluer” regions will experience changes in accretion rate, and therefore brightness, with an observational time delay compared to the outer regions. Over the last year and a half we have been using the 24” Keeler Telescope at the Allegheny Observatory to detect and measure a discernible time lag using filters g’ (410-540nm) and r’ (540 700nm) during one of these accretion events, on a time scale smaller than has been conventionally observed before. If we can observationally constrain the AD size scale, it will allow better models of quasar ADs to be constructed and give us more insight into the structure and behavior of black holes and their ADs.

Ella Esteban - Impact of Donor Variability on Proliferation and Differentiation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Swanson School of Engineering: Bioengineering
Fourth Year
Research Program: Lehigh University's STEM-SI Program
Faculty Mentor: Tomas Gonzalez-Fernandez

Impact of Donor Variability on Proliferation and Differentiation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Musculoskeletal injuries remain a major global health burden, driving continued interest in regenerative therapies to restore damaged tissue. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) are widely used in such therapies due to their capacity to differentiate into bone, fat, and cartilage lineages. However, donor-to-donor variability is a common but often overlooked factor that can influence hMSC proliferation and differentiation, potentially limiting the consistency and effectiveness of therapeutic applications. This study evaluated donor variability in hMSCs by comparing cell doubling times and adipogenic differentiation across four donors. hMSCs were expanded in T-225 flasks (Day 0), and proliferation was assessed using the alamarBlue assay to calculate doubling time. At Day 7, cells were induced toward the adipogenic lineage using a standard adipogenic differentiation medium, and adipogenic potential was quantified at Day 21 via Oil Red O staining and absorbance ratios. Results showed measurable variability across donors. Donors 1 and 2 exhibited shorter doubling times, indicating higher proliferative capacity, compared to the female donors. Donor 3 showed both a relatively short doubling time and the highest adipogenic potential, as confirmed by staining and dye quantification. Notably, the three Hispanic/Latinx donors displayed diverse proliferative and differentiation behaviors, suggesting that age and sex may also contribute to variability beyond ethnicity alone. These findings demonstrate that donor characteristics meaningfully influence hMSC behavior, underscoring the need to account for donor variability in therapeutic design. Future work should expand the donor pool to include a larger, more diverse population and assess osteogenic and chondrogenic potential to help fully characterize donor-dependent differences in hMSC differentiation capacity.

Gianna Falciani - Prefrontal Cortex Basket Cells in Ethanol Seeking and Consummatory Behaviors

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience and Psychology
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Max Joffe

Prefrontal Cortex Basket Cells in Ethanol Seeking and Consummatory Behaviors

Binge drinking is a major risk factor for Alcohol Use Disorder, affecting roughly 20% of the U.S. population. Despite its prevalence, treatment options remain limited. Parvalbumin- and cholecystokinin-expressing interneurons (PV- and CCK-INs) are two distinct basket cell populations in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) that may contribute to ethanol-related behaviors. PV-INs have established roles in binge drinking, but involvement of CCK-INs is less understood. The current study utilizes in vivo fiber photometry to record calcium activity from PFC PV- and CCK-INs during free-access operant drinking. PVCre and CCKCre mice expressing GCaMP6s underwent a behavioral paradigm consisting of eight daily one-hour sessions of 20% ethanol access, followed by three to four days of extinction with water, and a final session with 3% sucrose. Photometry recordings revealed intake-dependent changes in PV-IN activity. In high-intake mice, an anticipatory increase in PV-IN activity occurred before each licking bout, and a pronounced suppression occurred during ethanol consumption. This suppression weakened following extinction and re-emerged during sucrose consumption. Mice with lower ethanol intake did not show these trends, suggesting PV-IN dynamics reflect motivation and consumption level. CCK-IN activity showed an anticipatory decrease in signal followed by suppression during licking. Given that PV-INs synapse onto and inhibit CCK-INs, the increase in PV-IN activity during ethanol anticipation may suppress CCK-INs, highlighting the need for further studies examining PV-CCK circuit interactions rather than each interneuron class separately. Findings reveal real-time changes in PFC basket cell activity during binge drinking and underscore the importance of PFC interneuron circuitry in ethanol consumption.

Simon Fisher - Spatial Disparities in Vaccine Series Completion in Cambodia: Assessing the Impact of Migration

School of Public Health: Public Health
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Haley Grant

Spatial Disparities in Vaccine Series Completion in Cambodia: Assessing the Impact of Migration

Multi-dose vaccine coverage has dropped in Cambodia despite successes in mass COVID-19 immunization. Internal migration has been identified as a key indicator of pediatric coverage, though it remains understudied. Although spatial modeling has been utilized to identify coverage gaps, migration has not been used as a model-enhancing covariate.

Using Cambodian Demographic Health Surveys data from 2021, under vaccinated proportions were estimated using combined integrated nested Laplace approximation and stochastic partial differential equation methods in R. Recent migration and travel time were included as covariates, with travel time estimated using WHO AccessMod software respectively. Counts were estimated by multiplying proportions and population maps.

Undercoverage for all four final-dose antigens (measles-rubella, polio, pneumococcal conjugate, pentavalent) was highest in rural northeastern districts (45-64%) and lowest in densely populated agricultural districts in the northwest (3-21%). Estimated incomplete series counts were highest in populous districts around Phnom Penh (1,866-4,321 children) and lowest in sparsely populated rural districts (80-181 children), despite lower coverage. Weighted correlations between observed and fitted values ranged from 0.70-0.81, indicating solid model performance. Density plots of credible intervals showed that including migration did not improve estimates; migration coefficients were statistically insignificant across models, although intervals were narrowest for MR2 estimation.

Although migration was not an informative covariate, the model effectively identified areas with low-coverage. These methods can be used for targeted vaccine planning to address geographic disparities. Limitations include the estimated migration variable, although other covariates of elevation and travel time were significant. Future research should examine additional predictors of spatial coverage to enhance estimates.

Yadira Garcia Galindo - The role of splicing factors, snr-4, and Lsm-4, in age-related reproductive decline

College of General Studies: Health Service
Affiliation with TRIO McNair
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Arjumand Ghazi

The role of splicing factors, snr-4, and Lsm-4, in age-related reproductive decline

Splicing dysfunction is emerging as a hallmark of reproductive aging. A PhD student in the Ghazi Lab previously identified 824 germline genes that showed age-dependent differential expression, with 580 downregulated with reproductive aging and fewer than 10 associated with alternative splicing. Further, mutations that removed function from the alternative splicing regulator tcer-1 accelerated reproductive decline.

The finding that tcer-1 removal led to diminished reproductive function motivated this project. Building on this discovery, we hypothesized that induced dysfunction of core splicing genes, snr-4, snr-6, and Lsm-4, would accelerate the onset of reproductive decline and amplify the effects of reproductive aging.

Preliminary data suggest that both genetic deletion of these factors in mutants and whole-body knockdown of these splicing factors severely decrease or eliminate live progeny production, reproductive span, and overall reproductive health in snr-6 knockout and knockdown of snr-4, and Lsm-4. 

Patty Gbor - Integration of Non-Symbolic and Symbolic Numbers in Preschoolers

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Psychology
Affiliation with TRIO McNair
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Melissa Libertus

Integration of Non-Symbolic and Symbolic Numbers in Preschoolers

Humans process numbers through two systems: the Approximate Number System (ANS), an intuitive, non-symbolic sense for estimating quantities, and the Exact Number System, which relies on symbols like number-words and Arabic numerals. Research is split on whether these systems interact (Integration Theory) or operate independently (Estrangement Theory). Findings also vary by age. Adults show estrangement linked to stronger math performance, while 8-10 year olds show mixed results. Preschoolers (ages 4-5) remain understudied. This study asks whether preschoolers show different integration patterns depending on the task, and whether integration predicts formal math skills. Preschoolers from the Pittsburgh area (target N=45) will complete a number-symbol discrimination task and a number comparison task, followed by the TEMA-3 to measure early math ability. This study aims to fill the developmental gap between adult and school-age findings and will help clarify how non-symbolic and symbolic number systems connect during early childhood.

Abigail Goncher - Evaluating Limitations of the Bone-Specific Physical Activity Questionnaire: Activity Coverage, Exercise Intensity, and Estimated Effective Load 

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Nutrition Sciences
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Additional Presenters: Alexa Barzi, College of General Studies: Natural Sciences, Affiliation with TRIO SSS and Provost Scholars
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Pouneh Fazeli MD, MPH 

Evaluating Limitations of the Bone-Specific Physical Activity Questionnaire: Activity Coverage, Exercise Intensity, and Estimated Effective Load 

The Bone-Specific Physical Activity Questionnaire (BPAQ; Weeks & Beck, 2008) estimates lifetime bone-loading exposure (BLE), or the mechanical forces experienced by bone during physical activity, influencing bone mineral density (BMD). Unlike traditional physical activity measures, the BPAQ accounts for the magnitude and frequency of mechanical loading associated with activities. Although BPAQ scores have demonstrated associations with measures of bone strength, our research involving adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D) has identified methodological limitations that may affect its accuracy.  

Identified limitations include incomplete activity coverage, reliance on standardized effective load ratings regardless of individual exercise intensity, and susceptibility to recall and reporting bias. Additionally, effective load ratings for certain activities are estimated using comparable movements rather than direct ground reaction force measurements.

The BPAQ requires participants to recall lifetime physical activities. In our adolescent population, participants frequently require prompting from researchers or assistance from parents to recall childhood activities. This raises concerns about recall accuracy, particularly in adult populations where more time has elapsed since childhood.

Furthermore, the BPAQ emphasizes activity frequency without accounting for individual variations in intensity or session duration, despite evidence that loading intensity influences BMD. Consequently, individuals participating in the same activity at different intensities may receive similar scores despite differences in mechanical loading. Estimated effective load ratings may introduce inaccuracies by overestimating or underestimating forces.  

Collectively, these limitations highlight opportunities to refine BPAQ scoring methods to better capture individual differences in BLE and improve the assessment of physical activity's relationship with bone health.

Valentina Gulino - Vitamin B6 as a Potential Modulator of Muscle Aging: Experimental Studies and Future Directions

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Rehabilitation Sciences
Fourth Year
Research Program: Bethel Musculoskeletal Research Center
Faculty Mentor: Bridget M Deasy

Vitamin B6 as a Potential Modulator of Muscle Aging: Experimental Studies and Future Directions

Age-related loss of muscle mass and strength (sarcopenia) affects an estimated 5-13% of people aged 60-70 and 11-50% of those aged 80 or older, increasing the risk of falls, fractures, and frailty . Muscle stem cells (satellite cells) maintain and repair skeletal muscle but their number and function decline with age, impairing regeneration [ref needed]. Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin whose active form, pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP), is a coenzyme in many metabolic reactions and also has antioxidant properties. Skeletal muscle holds an estimated 75-80% of total body vitamin B6, mostly as PLP bound to glycogen phosphorylase, yet the role of B6 in muscle aging is not well defined.

Observational studies in older adults link lower vitamin B6 status with reduced lean mass, slower gait speed, and poorer physical performance, and higher vitamin B6 intake with lower risk of sarcopenia and frailty [see comment]. In mice, vitamin B6 deficiency reduces satellite cell number and function, and B6 combined with nicotinamide enhances muscle stem cell expansion and regeneration during aging. In healthy young men, vitamin B6 and nicotinamide co-supplementation improved muscle repair after exercise-induced damage. Proposed mechanisms include support of amino acid and energy metabolism , reduction of oxidative stress, and modulation of inflammatory signaling.

Most human evidence is correlational, key interventional data combine vitamin B6 with nicotinamide, and trials in older adults are limited. The direct effects of vitamin B6 on aged human muscle cells have not been examined. Addressing these gaps will clarify whether vitamin B6 is a modifiable factor in muscle aging and could inform nutritional strategies to preserve regeneration, mobility, and independence in older adults.

Gella Hample - The Impact of an Exercise Oncology Program On Healthcare Utilization in Adults With Gastrointestinal Cancer

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Biological Sciences and Social Work
Affiliation with Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR)
Second Year
Faculty Mentor: Melanie Potiaumpai

The Impact of an Exercise Oncology Program On Healthcare Utilization in Adults With Gastrointestinal Cancer

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND: During active infusion therapy for gastrointestinal cancers, treatment-related toxicities such as neuropathy, neutropenia, gastrointestinal distress, and fatigue may reduce functionality and quality of life, and lead to severe symptom burden requiring unplanned healthcare intervention. Exercise has been shown to help reduce adverse events during chemotherapy and contribute to better functionality. 

PURPOSE: This study examined the effect of a telehealth supervised home exercise program (HEP) on treatment tolerance in older adults with gastrointestinal cancer receiving active infusion therapy. 

METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of older adults who were enrolled in the UPMC Moving Through Cancer Program. Patients who completed the telehealth HEP were matched to adults who declined participation in the HEP based on age, cancer subtype, cancer stage, sex, and race. Data from 44 patients (72 ± 7.0 yrs; 45.5% female; 88.1% Caucasian) with various Gastrointestinal Cancers (31.8% colon) were analyzed.  Healthcare utilization was abstracted from the electronic health record (i.e. Emergency Department visits, unplanned hospitalizations, rehabilitation referrals, treatment changes, Palliative Care contacts, and death). 

RESULTS: Participants were enrolled in the HEP for approximately 11.76 weeks. In the HEP group, 18% of adults were hospitalized during treatment compared to 41% of those who did not exercise. For those who were hospitalized, the hospital length of stay was shorter in the exercise group compared to non-exercisers (3.2 vs 26.8 days). Those who did not exercise during chemotherapy also visited the Emergency Department more frequently, with 36% requiring at least one visit, versus 27% in the HEP. Rehabilitative service referrals were more common in non-exercisers (27%) compared to HEP (4.5%). There were no referrals made to Palliative Care among the participants, but 41% of those who declined were provided with a referral. CONCLUSION: Participants of the HEP had significantly less encounters with the healthcare system during the course of the program compared to those who declined. Overall, the exercise group experienced less toxicities associated with chemotherapy, with remarkable differences in referral rates and unplanned hospitalizations.

Emily Hegedus - Advertising the Writing Center and Exploring Reputation and Intention

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Public and Professional Writing
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: n/a

Advertising the Writing Center and Exploring Reputation and Intention

Existing Writing Center scholarship largely examines what happens inside the Center, leaving the question of how Centers are perceived and represented externally mostly unaccounted for. My research interrogates how a Writing Center's advertising directly shapes its reputation and, in turn, determines whether students choose to seek out its services. This work also explores concerns around how the Writing Center and its values are perceived by outside figures, such as professors, and how this can also act as a form of unaffiliated advertising. Using the University of Pittsburgh Writing Center's Instagram presence and website language as one example, this paper acknowledges the strengths, while also highlighting the limitations of social media as a primary advertising tool. Social media offers a wider reaching method of communication, its heavy reliance on infographic style, text heavy posts can fail to convey the collaborative nature of the Center and may inadvertently betray the values of the Writing Center and reinforce misconceptions about who the Center is for. A survey of first year composition students at the University of Pittsburgh and its findings that most students felt they had a positive experience with the Writing Center suggests that replicating these experiences outside of the Center would be an ideal way to accurately advertise the Center and its services. This paper argues that in classroom visits, though more resource dependent, provide a direct personal connection that social media cannot replicate on its own. A hybrid approach allows the Center to advocate for itself as a welcoming environment and effective tool directly to students, while still leaving the opportunity to use more accessible social media advertising strategies.

Ian Herzog-Pohl - Using CADD to Discover Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Inhibitors

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Computational Biology
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jacob Durrant

Using CADD to Discover Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Inhibitors

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major cause of chronic infections in immuno-compromised individuals and device-associated infections due to their ability to form bacterial colonies called biofilms. These biofilms allow for evasion of antibiotic action as antibiotics can not target individual cells in a condensed bacterial environment and as resistance factors are shared amongst bacteria in the colony. P. aeruginosa biofilms are organized with a variety of extracellular molecules, and one major structural component is a functional amyloid called FapC. Our goal was to use structure-based computational methods to predict small-molecule drugs that inhibit the formation of these amyloid structures, therefore inhibiting biofilm formation allowing effective targeting of  P. aeruginosa biofilm associated infections by antibiotics. Starting with a diverse set of molecules and a cryo-EM structure of the FapC fibril, we used molecular docking to predict small molecules binding to FapC and associated binding affinities. We then took the most successful molecules and some previously experimentally validated molecules and ran a pharmacophore search to try and improve these initial hits. Overall, we found 40 potential inhibitors which can be used in combination with antibiotics to target biofilm associated infections.

Laura Irwin - Flourishing in the Community

School of Social Work: Social Work
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Research Program: BASW Research Class
Additional Presenters: Erica O'Hare, Marly Rohrer, Onyinye Ogbuachi, Nicholas Efran, Autumn Germick, Annalise Gray, Maya Patterson, Carola Petrucci; all fourth-year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Daniel HJ Lee

Flourishing in the Community: Exploring How Human and Social Service Organizations Support Community Well-Being

Flourishing is a multidimensional concept that extends beyond the absence of illness and includes physical and mental health, relationships, meaning and purpose, and other aspects of well-being. Human and social service organizations play an important role in creating conditions that may support the flourishing of individuals, families, and communities.

Flourishing in the Community is an undergraduate social work research project examining how human and social service organizations understand and support flourishing within the communities they serve. The project focuses on School of Social Work practicum sites providing human and social services in Allegheny County. Working in small research teams, students identify a population or social issue relevant to their practicum settings and develop research questions related to flourishing and community well-being.

Students review relevant literature, conceptualize and operationalize key constructs, and develop a research design to explore their questions. As part of the research design process, students develop surveys and/or semi-structured interview guides intended for staff members at participating practicum agencies. These instruments explore organizational perspectives on community strengths, needs, resources, barriers, and factors that may promote or hinder flourishing among the populations they serve.

The project provides undergraduate social work students with hands-on experience translating research concepts into feasible community-based research designs while strengthening connections between social work research, practice, and community well-being.

Nat Kallet - Hand Grip Devices to Increase Inclusivity in Sports and Recreation Activities 

Swanson School of Engineering: Mechanical Engineering
Fourth Year
Research Program: ASPIRE Program at HERL
Faculty Mentor: Jonathan Duvall

Hand Grip Devices to Increase Inclusivity in Sports and Recreation Activities 

There is currently a gap in the development of assistive tech in sports in recreation, despite its positive impact on quality of life and health. To combat this, this project aimed to develop multiple low-cost easy to assemble devices made from readily available parts such that people with disabilities would be able to construct them at home. The scope of the devices in this project focused on grip strength, to aid in playing pool and table tennis with minimal gripping force. These devices are made from 3D printed parts, bolts, and Velcro straps. Each device has an open source document containing instructions for assembly and where to obtain parts on the University of Illinois' website. The final constructed device assists people with joint pain, spinal cord injuries, or other disabilities affecting grip strength to participate in sports and recreation.

Shivani Kandula - Distinct Effects of FUS, MATR3, and C9orf72 G4C2 Repeat Expansion on Motor Function and Survival in Drosophila ALS Models

College of General Studies: Natural Sciences
Third Year
Research Program: Pitt PRAM Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Faculty Mentor: Udai Pandey

Distinct Effects of FUS, MATR3, and C9orf72 G4C2 Repeat Expansion on Motor Function and Survival in Drosophila ALS Models

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rare, progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by degeneration of upper and lower motor neurons, leading to motor dysfunction, paralysis, and respiratory failure. Approximately 10% of ALS cases are familial, caused by inherited mutations. Although more than 40 genes have been linked to ALS, mutations in FUS and MATR3, and hexanucleotide repeat expansions in C9orf72, are among the most well-characterized. FUS and MATR3 encode RNA-binding proteins regulating RNA metabolism, while the G4C2 repeat expansion in C9orf72 drives pathogenesis through RNA foci formation and toxic dipeptide repeat proteins, disrupting RNA homeostasis. We investigated the effects of ALS-associated FUS, MATR3, and G4C2 repeat expansion on motor function and survival using Drosophila expressing wild-type or mutant human transgenes. The Gene Switch system, induced by RU486, enabled temporal control of transgene expression in adults; flies were treated with 5mM or 10mM RU486 to assess dose-dependent effects. Phenotypes were assessed via survival and motor function assays. ALS-associated transgene expression produced distinct effects on motor performance and lifespan. FUS and G4C2-36 repeat expansion caused the strongest, most significant declines in motor velocity relative to controls. Survival similarly declined progressively across models, with FUS and G4C2 repeat expression producing the most pronounced reductions. Western blot analysis confirmed human FUS expression in Drosophila. These findings demonstrate that ALS-associated genetic factors produce distinct but progressive impairments in survival and motor function, supporting the use of these Drosophila models to investigate ALS mechanisms and therapeutic strategies.

Aaryan Karthikeyan - Combined expression of somatostatin and cerebellin4 marks a population of interneurons in the CA3 hippocampus

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience and Philosophy
Affiliation with Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR)
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Simon Chamberland

Combined expression of somatostatin and cerebellin4 marks a population of interneurons in the CA3 hippocampus

The hippocampus is involved in episodic memory. This is enabled by computations performed by circuits of excitatory cells and inhibitory interneurons. However, inhibitory interneurons are highly heterogeneous, and new genetic targeting strategies are required to selectively and specifically target functionally homogeneous subpopulations. We developed a novel intersectional transgenic mouse line (Sst-FlpO;;Cbln4-Cre) hypothesized to provide access to a subpopulation of inhibitory neurons. Mice were bred with transgenic reporter lines to express genetically encoded fluorescent reporters or optogenetic actuators. Sst;;Cbln4-INs were visually targeted for whole-cell patch-clamp recordings and filled with biocytin for anatomical reconstruction. 

First, labelling of Sst;;Cbln4 INs using a genetically encoded fluorescent reporter revealed a subpopulation of interneurons restricted to the CA3 hippocampal region. Second, single cell anatomical reconstruction revealed axonal projections confined to the dendritic layers. Third, whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology revealed that these interneurons show a fast-spiking firing pattern and most enter a depolarisation block. Fourth, optogenetic circuit mapping in the CA3 hippocampus revealed that Sst;;Cbln4-INs primarily target pyramidal cells. 

Together, these data indicate that the Sst;;Cbln4 intersection selectively and specifically marks a subpopulation of understudied hippocampal inhibitory neurons. We see a possible long-range axonal projection from these cells, based on our observations that axonal branches are myelinated, some axons enter the fimbria, and the medial septum contains a large density of target axons. Thus, we hypothesise that Sst;;Cbln4 INs contribute to hippocampal-septal communication, a vital circuit for encoding of episodic and spatial memories. 

Paul Kokoska - A Comparative Timeline Between the French and Haitian Revolutions 1789-1804

History 
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Second Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Pilar Herr

A Comparative Timeline Between the French and Haitian Revolutions 1789-1804

Many historians, often due to methodological restrictions, do not employ comparative evidence that may greatly influence their conclusions. This is apparent in studies of both the French and Haitian revolutions. The two occurred simultaneously and provided mutual ramifications for their respective revolutionary struggles; despite their intersections, studies of the French revolution do not always weigh the occurrences on the island colony into their research; this is likewise for the Haitian revolution, though to a lesser degree. To better analyze the two revolutions, it may be better to conceive them in conjunction. As a part of my BPhil research, I have created a comparative timeline between the French and Haitian Revolutions from the years 1789-1804 to better visualize the two as a continuing revolution. With this timeline I am claiming that the two revolutions are more intricately tied than previous historians have given them credit for.

Pari Lakhia - Effectiveness of a Mindfulness Intervention on Sustained Attention

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Psychology and Neuroscience
Fourth Year    
Faculty Mentor: Danella Hafeman    
Effectiveness of a Mindfulness Intervention on Sustained Attention    
Adolescents at familial risk of bipolar disorder are susceptible to reduced executive functions like sustained attention. A mindfulness intervention has been supported by the literature to improve sustained attention. Sustained attention is usually measured by the SART (Sustained Attention to Response Task), and commission errors and reaction time variability are accurate measures of SART performance. After an 8-week mindfulness intervention, there was a weak intervention effect (p<0.1) for commission error in the random SART (p=0.0503) and reaction time variability in the random SART (p=0.0618). No interaction effect was seen in commission error and reaction time variability in the fixed SART. This may suggest that the cognitive resources required to complete the random SART may improve most with the mindfulness intervention. 

David Lenard - Programming the Yolk Sac to Shape Neural Morphogenesis in Human Embryoids

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Molecular Biology
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Mo Ebrahimkhani    
Programming the Yolk Sac to Shape Neural Morphogenesis in Human Embryoids    

How much of neural development is programmed outside the neural tissue itself? In the developing embryo, neural morphogenesis unfolds through coordinated interactions with surrounding embryonic and extraembryonic tissues. Yet many neural organoid and assembloid strategies rely on exogenous patterning cues that replace these interactions while suppressing alternative lineages. This raises a fundamental question for synthetic developmental biology: can genetic programming of one tissue reshape the architecture and identity of another?

Here, we use heX-embryoids, a human model in which yolk sac-like and epiblast-derived tissues develop together, to investigate how extraembryonic programs influence neural morphogenesis. By varying GATA6 expression in yolk sac-like tissue, we observe the emergence of distinct neural architectures alongside cell populations corresponding to forebrain, neural crest, and cranial placodal identities. Neural organization, tissue architecture, and lumen formation vary with the composition of surrounding yolk sac-like tissues, linking specific extraembryonic populations to discrete ectodermal outcomes.

This coordinated development provides an experimental framework to explore how starting cell number, geometry, and cell positioning influence subsequent tissue formation. Because yolk sac-like populations persist alongside developing neural structures, heX-embryoids also offer an opportunity to investigate interactions between emerging neural tissues and yolk sac-derived immune populations, including macrophages and microglial progenitors.

Together, these findings position the extraembryonic environment as a programmable participant in neural morphogenesis. By reconstructing neural–extraembryonic co-development, heX-embryoids provide a platform to uncover how tissues coordinate their development—and how engineering one developmental compartment can reshape another.

Kate Leshniowsky - AI-Assisted Content Coding: Case Study of Relevance Coding with The Pitt Reddit Data

School of Public Health: Public Health 
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Beth Hoffman
AI-Assisted Content Coding: Case Study of Relevance Coding with The Pitt Reddit Data    
Background: Social media platforms such as Reddit provide large amounts of publicly available data that can be used to examine discussions surrounding medicine and public health. However, the volume of social media content creates challenges for efficiently identifying relevant posts and comments using human coders. This study examined the feasibility of integrating human coding with AI to identify content relevant to medicine and public health within a large Reddit dataset.

Methods: Using the RedditExtractOR package in RStudio, we collected 99,651 posts and comments (hereafter referred to as posts) from the r/ThePittTVShow subreddit. Posts were extracted weekly as new Season 2 episodes of The Pitt aired. A subset of 500 posts from each week’s dataset were human double-coded for relevance to medicine or public health. The remaining posts were coded using Claude (Anthropic) with a standardized prompt referencing human-coded posts as established coding criteria. Human coders reviewed the AI output for accuracy.

Results: Claude coded posts in batches of 500. Research assistants found the process simple, with no major technical errors. Claude maintained high agreement with human coders, although review identified several instances in which Claude incorrectly coded posts as not relevant, likely because it missed contextual information that human coders could identify. No instances were identified in which Claude incorrectly coded a post as relevant. Claude also generated summaries of discussions within each batch that aligned with human coder observations.

Conclusion: Combining human and Claude coding allowed a large volume of Reddit content to be efficiently screened for relevance to medicine and public health. Future research should examine the optimal amount of human coding needed to establish criteria and support accurate AI-assisted classification, as well as whether Claude can reliably perform more complex qualitative coding.

Kaitlyn Limbaugh - Diffuse and Overlapping Projections from Auditory Cortex to Superior Colliculus for Sound Localization in C57 and CBA Mice

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Ross S. Williamson    
Diffuse and Overlapping Projections from Auditory Cortex to Superior Colliculus for Sound Localization in C57 and CBA Mice
Sound localization in natural environments is a complex system of multi-sensory integration. The auditory cortex (ACtx) has not been shown to have an organized map of auditory space, so we look to other brain regions to which the ACtx projects to. The superior colliculus (SC) is established as a hub for sensory-guided orienting behaviors. Therefore, ACtx→SC projections are well suited to convey signals to the organized map in SC.

Head/body movements are important for sampling the auditory environment and help improve localization accuracy. In a freely moving sound localization task, both C57 and CBA strains of mouse can learn the task to an expert level using these movements, but we are unsure if the circuits by which they complete the task are the same because these animals have been shown to have different spatial responses in the SC. This motivates the hypothesis that their anatomical organization might be different. Our hypothesis is that the ACtx→SC projections overlap and diverge from the ACtx to diffuse locations in the SC, which would allow for a more complete response to stimulus information.

To answer this question, we injected three retrograde tracers (CTB-488, 555, and 647) at three rostral, middle, and caudal stereotaxic coordinates of the SC and observed the labeling of the ACtx. Preliminary results suggest that in both CBA and C57 mice, inputs to subdivisions of SC are spatially overlapping in ACtx and some individual cells diverge and project to multiple areas.

These findings help to support our hypothesis of spatially non-specific projections of ACtx to SC on the rostro-caudal axis. ACtx projects information across this axis, which helps to support the idea that these signals are more general for orienting rather than specific to a location or sound. These findings will also help to further investigate the processes of naturalistic, freely moving sound localization behaviors across different animals.

Siming Lin - Identifying enteric pathogen exposures to infants living in low- and middle-income countries

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Applied Statistics            
BS/MA Student    
Research Program: Iowa Summer Institute in Biostatistics
Faculty Mentor: Daniel Sewell    
Identifying enteric pathogen exposures to infants living in low- and middle-income countries    
Diarrhea is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity among infants in low- and middle-income countries. Infant exposure to enteric pathogens through soil remains high, despite investments into local health systems. Our project aimed to explore if children are exposed to Salmonella, Shigella, and E. coli, and how likely they are to be exposed to multiple of those pathogens. We analyzed data collected from soil samples in two Kenyan cities as a part of the broader PATHOME study (Baker et al., 2023). We created a spatial logistic regression model in a Bayesian framework to predict pathogen presence at geographic locations where infants interacted with soil. This was made possible through the use of geotrackers and structured observations, which recorded the time and place of specific infant behaviors (Busienei et al., 2024). Our model predicted the probability of an infant’s exposure to Salmonella and/or Shigella within a 10-hour period, comparing across cities and socioeconomic statuses. We found that on average, infants encounter at least one of the pathogens when interacting with soil and that the odds of exposure to a pathogen are higher in low-income areas than middle-income areas. Our results provide awareness to local health departments about the prevalence of enteric pathogens, allowing caregivers to make informed protective decisions for the wellbeing of their infants.

Henry Liu - Characterization of Disrupted Flow on Membrane-Anchored Streptavidin

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Biochemistry and Physics
Third Year
Research Program: Lehigh Physics REU    
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Aurelia Honerkamp-Smith
Characterization of Disrupted Flow on Membrane-Anchored Streptavidin    
It is well known that mammalian endothelial cells have the ability to sense and respond to flow. This response is involved in the release of NO, which regulates vasodilation, neurotransmission, control of metabolic function, and inflammation. However, the precise mechanism for this process remains unknown; past results from our group suggest the formation of protein gradients by flow-induced forces may be responsible. We have previously shown loosely bound membrane proteins are sensitive to femtonewton-level hydrodynamic forces present in blood vessels, producing gradients in response to flow (2). We can observe the same phenomena in living cells. However, cellular measurements of hydrodynamic area, the area of the protein exposed to fluid flow, are smaller than predicted values (4), even proteins whose membrane-associated structures are well known. We hypothesize this discrepancy is due to the glycocalyx, a mesh of glycolipids and glycoproteins surrounding the cell. To improve our artificial model, then, we must reproduce the shielding effects of the glycocalyx. To this end, we utilize polyethylene glycol (PEG), a simple polymer which can be embedded in lipid membranes, mimicking the disruptions to fluid flow created by the glycocalyx. The question we want to answer is: Can PEG reproduce hydrodynamic shielding observed in cells on artificial membranes?

Kate McManus - Isolation and characterization of novel Klebsiella pneumoniae-targeting bacteriophages

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Microbiology and International Studies
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Daria Van Tyne
Isolation and characterization of novel Klebsiella pneumoniae-targeting bacteriophages    
Due to the rapid increase of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, bacteriophages (phages) are currently being explored as alternative therapeutics to treat multidrug-resistant infections. As bacteria-targeting viruses, an advantage of phage therapy is its host range specificity, which relies on the bacterial surface receptor phages use to infect. However, this high specificity complicates phage therapy against Klebsiella pneumoniae infections. K. pneumoniae, a gram-negative bacterium, is a leading cause of multidrug-resistant infections in hospitalized patients. As many K. pneumoniae infections are resistant to last-resort antibiotics including carbapenems, phage therapy is an attractive alternative therapeutic method. Most K. pneumoniae-targeting phages have been reported to use the capsule as their target receptor. However, the highly diverse nature of capsules across K. pneumoniae complicates the use of phage for therapy. Additionally, bacteria can develop resistance to phages, which has previously been associated with decreased virulence, but the mechanism behind this tradeoff remains poorly understood. The aim of this project is to isolate novel K. pneumoniae-targeting phages and evaluate their host range specificity to increase the number of available K. pneumoniae-targeting phages in our library. At the same time, the mechanisms and collateral effects of phage resistance will also be investigated through the isolation of phage-resistant mutants. Preliminary screening from wastewater yielded one new phage, which was a jumbo phage with a genome greater than 250kb. 

Ava Millard - Greater ADHD symptoms are associated with more problematic sleep among preschool-aged children​

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Psychology and Studio Arts
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Heather Joseph    
Greater ADHD symptoms are associated with more problematic sleep among preschool-aged children​    
Objective: ADHD is highly heritable, and individuals with ADHD have elevated rates of sleep problems across the lifespan. Less is known about how parental ADHD symptoms may be related to children’s sleep. This analysis examined whether household chaos and child ADHD symptoms at the preschool-age help explain the relationship between parental ADHD symptoms and child sleep problems. Design: The sample included 128 parent-preschool-aged dyads. Parents completed measures on their own ADHD symptoms (BAARS-IV), household chaos (CHAOS), their child’s ADHD symptoms (ADHDRS-P), and their child’s sleep problems (CSHQ). A serial mediation model was tested controlling for parent gender, education, child sex, child race/ethnicity, and child age. Results: Higher parental ADHD symptoms were associated with greater household chaos. Parental ADHD symptoms and household chaos were associated with greater child ADHD symptoms. Child ADHD symptoms were also associated with more sleep problems. The full indirect pathway from parental ADHD symptoms to household chaos, child ADHD symptoms, and then child sleep problems were significant. Household chaos alone did not significantly mediate the relationship between parental ADHD symptoms and child sleep. Conclusions: Household chaos may matter for child sleep in families with ADHD symptoms, but mainly due to the child's own ADHD symptoms. The findings deepen our understanding of how parental ADHD symptoms are connected to sleep difficulties in preschool-age children.

Danny Miller - Behavioral Interference and Mitigation Strategies During Intraoperative Cognitive Mapping in Awake Craniotomy

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Computational Biology
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Fourth Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Natalie Sherry
Behavioral Interference and Mitigation Strategies During Intraoperative Cognitive Mapping in Awake Craniotomy
INTRODUCTION: Awake craniotomy with intraoperative mapping (IOM) seeks to maximize brain tumor resection, but the efficacy of this approach necessitates sustained patient engagement to adequately localize function. Varying types of behavioral interference can negatively affect the integrity of IOM, but these phenomena are poorly characterized in the literature. The goal of this study is to develop an initial classification framework for behavioral disruptions and to identify associated mitigation strategies.

METHODS: Retrospective mixed-methods analysis was conducted on intraoperative video/audio recordings from 39 asleep–awake–asleep craniotomies for tumor resection near eloquent cortex. Patients (mean age 46.6±16.3 years; 62% male; 90% right-handed; 77% left hemisphere tumors) were preoperatively deemed appropriate for awake mapping. Thematic analysis (n=4) was conducted to identify behavioral interference factors and mitigation strategies. Mapping success (completed vs not completed) was used as a procedural outcome, and Fisher’s exact tests examined associations with behavioral interference types.

RESULTS: Five types of behavioral interference were identified: disrupted task engagement (87.2%), speech/language errors (71.8%), behavioral/emotional dysregulation (66.7%), sensoriperceptual interference (59.0%), and seizure-like activity (23.1%). Most patients required ≥1 mitigation strategy (82.1%), and 46.2% required ≥3 strategies. Prompting/cueing was consistently applied across all behavioral interference types, representing a near-universal intervention. Mapping was successfully completed in 75.8% of awake cases; IOM failure was associated only with baseline speech/language errors (p=0.04).

CONCLUSIONS: IOM is affected by a multitude of behavioral and physiological disruptions. Identifying interference patterns and associated mitigation strategies provides an initial framework to optimize patient engagement and outcomes.

Killian Moreau - Zinc Entry into Mouse Sperm is Concentration-Responsive and pH Sensitive

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Biological Sciences
Affiliation with TRIO McNair, Frederick Honors College
Fifth Year
Research Program: McNair Scholars Summer Research Institute
Faculty Mentor: Anne Carlson    
Zinc Entry into Mouse Sperm is Concentration-Responsive and pH Sensitive     
Zinc is the most abundant trace element in the human body, and seminal fluid contains roughly 250 times more zinc than any other bodily fluid, at concentrations of approximately 1–3 mM. During mating, sperm are exposed to this zinc-enriched environment, and zinc is understood to be an important regulator of the fertilization process once it enters the sperm cell. However, how zinc enters sperm remains incompletely understood. To investigate this entry process, we monitored real-time zinc uptake using fluorometry on sperm loaded with FluoZin-3 AM as an intracellular zinc indicator, in a fluorescence plate reader assay. Mature mouse sperm were isolated from the cauda epididymis and vas deferens and exposed to a range of zinc concentrations spanning the physiological seminal fluid levels, alongside negative and positive controls (chelator TPEN and ionophore zinc pyrithione, respectively). Zinc entry into the sperm cell was concentration-dependent but saturable, with fluorescence plateauing at higher concentrations. This pattern points to active regulation of intracellular zinc rather than passive accumulation. Testing across a pH range of 6.5 to 8.5 showed reduced zinc entry at acidic extracellular pH and increased entry at alkaline pH. This pH dependence is consistent with a role for histidine residues, which coordinate zinc binding in ZIP (SLC39A) transporters and whose protonation state is pH-sensitive near physiological pH, leading us to hypothesize that a ZIP transporter facilitates zinc entry. in line with a role for the protonation state of the transporter. These results identify zinc entry as a concentration-responsive, pH-sensitive process under active cellular control. Future experiments will directly test this hypothesis and characterize the transporter's role in fertilization. 

Polly Naneva - Characterizing and Modeling of Neural Population Activity in Bottom-up Engineered Neurite Networks

School of Computing and Information: Computer Science, DNID
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Second Year
Research Program: Montana State University REU
Faculty Mentor: Anja Kunze
Characterizing and Modeling of Neural Population Activity in Bottom-up Engineered Neurite Networks
Understanding how neurons communicate within geometrically defined circuits is central to uncovering how network architecture shapes neuronal function. Dissociated neuronal cultures are a common model system but typically form homogeneous networks with limited diversity, lacking the structured connectivity of in-vivo cortical circuits. Recently, it has been shown that topological patterning using microembossed agarose can reintroduce structured ensemble dynamics otherwise absent in dissociated cultures. Dissociated rat cortical neurons were constrained into defined five-microwell circuits connected by microchannels, producing varied connectivity topologies. Calcium imaging of these patterned circuits revealed that each pattern produced distinct and structured activity. Building on this, we aimed to develop a computational model that incorporates these topological constraints to better understand how circuit architecture influences the formation of synchronous calcium spiking. We constructed a pipeline integrating the Auryn spiking neural network simulator with the Lütcke calcium forward model, allowing us to control circuit connectivity, replicate each topology, and generate the resulting synthetic calcium signals. The model reproduced key features of the experimentally observed activity and indicated that circuit topology modulates the rate of synchronous calcium events.

Sai Narla - Referral Patterns and Telehealth Utilization in Neuropsychological Services Across Rural, Suburban, and Urban Communities

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience
Third Year
Additional Presenter: Anna Getz, First Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Glen Getz    
Referral Patterns and Telehealth Utilization in Neuropsychological Services Across Rural, Suburban, and Urban Communities     
Neuropsychology is a field that examines the relationship between brain function and behavior through the assessment of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral abilities. Healthcare equity and access to neuropsychological services may be influenced by distance, town type, median household income, referral source, and telehealth utilization. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, inter-organizational practice in neuropsychology supports the utilization of video-based assessment (Bilder et al, 2020). However, it is unclear as to who utilizes telehealth options in neuropsychology. This study examines referral patterns to a neuropsychology clinic in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Specifically, it evaluates whether healthcare access and telehealth utilization differs across rural, suburban, and urban communities.  Referral data from June 2025 through May 2026 was obtained and analyzed for 292 referrals. Of the 292 referrals, 155 (53.1%) originated from urban communities, 117 (40.1%) from suburban communities, and only 20 (6.8%) from rural communities. Despite their substantially lower representation among referrals, rural referrals demonstrated a telehealth utilization rate of 30.0%, compared to 41.9% among urban referrals and 25.6% among suburban referrals. These patterns support that rural patients utilized telehealth at a rate comparable to suburban and urban patients. This supports despite the barriers that often exist in rural and urban communities for mental health care and assessment, including for neuropsychological assessment, such as available providers, distance to travel, means for transportation, and cost of travel, could be mitigated through telehealth measures. Further research is needed to understand which specific factors in the referral process contribute to the low number of referrals for people living in rural communities.

Allison Naydan - Hydroponics for Sustainability: A Cost-Benefit Analysis

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Economics
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Second Year
Research Program:Martison Applied Projects: Sustainable food production and distribution through hydroponic research
Faculty Mentor: Joaquin Rodriguez Alonso    
Hydroponics for Sustainability: A Cost-Benefit Analysis    
Food insecurity is a rampant problem throughout the United States. In fact, according to Map the Meal Gap (2024), every county/district faces food insecurity. One approach towards mitigating this complex problem is to examine the affordability of food. Specifically, food affordability can be examined through the costs that accumulate throughout the stages in food chains as an approach to examine the inefficiencies at each step. This project aims to examine the inefficiencies associated with production through analyzing the costs associated with hydroponics, a farming method that offers cost minimization by producing high yields while using significantly fewer resources than standard farming. By applying data collected from Pitt’s hydroponics system and market reports, this project models the theoretical costs a large-scale hydroponics system could incur and the potential profitability of a system in Pittsburgh. The model ultimately suggests that aspects of hydroponics greatly minimize standard costs and suggests that this system could lower food insecurity. However, this model excludes high costs such as labor and start-up costs, which are common barriers that could dampen the observed benefit. To remedy this, future research could integrate the data collected in this model with the other stages of the food chain. This would assess the viability of hydroponics in terms of a market rather than through an isolated perspective. Additionally, through this assessment, hydroponics could be compared with standard farming to more definitively determine which system better supports sustainability and the minimization of food insecurity. 

Ivan Ng - In Situ Visualization of Mitochondrial Complex V in Postmortem Human and Mouse Brain Tissue by Cryo-Electron Tomography and Subtomogram Averaging

Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences: Neuroscience
Second Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jill Glausier
In Situ Visualization of Mitochondrial Complex V in Postmortem Human and Mouse Brain Tissue by Cryo-Electron Tomography and Subtomogram Averaging    
The brain is among the most energetically demanding organs in the body, and in neurons, nearly all this energy supports cell-cell communication, including action potential generation and synaptic transmission. This energy is produced almost entirely by mitochondria through oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), which depends on the electron transport chain (ETC), a series of protein complexes (Complexes I–V) embedded in the inner mitochondrial membrane. Their coordinated activity generates the proton motive force that drives ATP synthase (Complex V) to synthesize ATP. However, the structural basis of Complex V dysfunction in brain disorders remains poorly understood. Here, we used cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) to visualize Complex V directly in postmortem human and mouse brain tissue. Cryo-ET images frozen-hydrated cellular structures at the nanometer scale by capturing a series of 2D images at fixed angular increments from −60° to 60°, which are then reconstructed into a 3D volume. Tomographic data were processed in RELION, a software package developed by STFC-UKRI, to perform subtomogram averaging (STA), a method that aligns and averages many subvolumes of the same structure to improve signal-to-noise. Unlike conventional STA, which is typically applied to purified protein preparations imaged at ~1 Å, we intentionally imaged at a lower resolution to preserve the surrounding cellular structures, allowing us to localize Complex V within its native subcellular compartment. We successfully collected tilt series and generated tomograms from mitochondria within neuronal compartments, including axonal boutons, in both mouse and human brain tissue. Within these tomograms, we identified putative Complex V particles by their characteristic "lollipop-like" nanostructure, manually picked them, and subjected them to STA. This yielded a preliminary 3D reconstruction of Complex V, revealing a smooth, blob-like density. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of cryo-ET for resolving intact nanostructures, such as Complex V, within their native tissue environment, establishing a foundation for investigating Complex V structural abnormalities in diseases.

Sumana Nori - Impact of Social Determinants of Health on Longitudinal Swallowing Outcomes in Head and Neck Cancer

School of Public Health: Public Health
Affiliation with Frederick Honors College
Third Year
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Marci Nilsen
Impact of Social Determinants of Health on Longitudinal Swallowing Outcomes in Head and Neck Cancer    
Objectives: To evaluate the association between socioeconomic factors, health literacy, and longitudinal swallowing
outcomes among patients undergoing treatment for head and neck cancer.

Methods: Secondary analysis of a prospective longitudinal cohort study with swallowing assessments at baseline, 1
month, and 6 months following radiation therapy. Outcomes included FEES-DIGEST, FOIS, and EAT-10.
Mixed-effects regression models were adjusted for age, sex, radiation duration, treatment type, tumor
stage, radiation dose, and time. False discovery rate correction was performed.

Results: Higher BRIEF health literacy scores were associated with improved swallowing outcomes, including
higher FOIS scores and lower EAT-10 scores. Difficulty paying for basic needs was associated with
poorer swallowing-related outcomes, while occupation category was associated with functional oral
intake. After false discovery rate correction, occupation remained significant for FOIS outcomes, whereas
BRIEF health literacy and financial hardship remained significant for EAT-10 outcomes.

Conclusion: Socioeconomic disadvantage and limited health literacy were associated with poorer swallowing-related
outcomes following head and neck cancer treatment, supporting the importance of incorporating social
determinants of health into dysphagia management and survivorship care.

Keywords: Head and Neck Neoplasms; Dysphagia; Health Literacy; Social Determinants of Health; Survivorship

Level of Evidence: 4

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