By Ellie Vogl
SUNY Oneonta
Hello! I am Ellie, an upcoming Senior at SUNY Oneonta with a major in Biology and a Pre-Veterinary concentration. I am a proud transfer student from Monroe Community College, where I obtained my Associate’s degree back home in Rochester, NY. I am a huge animal person and spend my time outside of school interning and volunteering at Superheroes Humane Society in Oneonta, NY, as well as hanging out with my pets when school is not in session. I am very passionate about animal welfare, both in shelter and veterinary hospital environments. I also love being involved in the community through my work as a tour guide, volunteering, and in clubs and organizations. During the school year, I spend my Saturday evenings volunteering at Club Odyssey, a young-adult clubhouse that promotes health and wellness in a drug-free environment. I am also involved in clubs and organizations such as Hippies for Hope, the Pre-Health Honor Society (Alpha Epsilon Delta), and the Pre-Health Club at SUNY Oneonta.
I will be heading to Tokyo, Japan this summer to conduct research at Tokyo Metropolitan University in the Molecular Neuroscience Laboratory. I will be at TMU for a 1-month internship in which I will study the response of mice, who have been genetically altered to have Alzheimer’s, when they have a protein called MARK4 inhibited. While one month seems like a long time, it is very short in terms of mouse studies, which can take years to finish! I will be working with something called lipopolysaccharide or LPS, which, when purified, can be used to study the inflammatory immune response in animals. While it affects the whole body, LPS affects the brain through neuroinflammation and fever. I will be examining whether mice without MARK4, or inhibited MARK4, have different reactions to LPS.
With the help of Dr. Ando, Dr. Weitemier, and the rest of the molecular neuroscience laboratory team, I will measure physical changes such as changes in body temperature, behavioral reactions, and possibly cellular responses. I can monitor behavioral changes through tests on simple activities, appetites, and social levels.
I am looking forward to visiting a new country and observing how research and culture compare to what I am used to at home in New York. This research journey will allow me to visit a country I have never been to before while gaining valuable laboratory experience and participating in my own project! I will be working with mice, which I am unable to do at my home institution. I plan to leave for Tokyo in mid-July and will return mid-August, with some extra days to help with jet lag and any issues while traveling.
While I am excited for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I am anxious about the time constraint while working in a laboratory. As I mentioned, one month is a short amount of time, and I am unsure of how I will fit in everything I’d like to do. I plan to make the most of my time in Japan by asking questions, saying “yes” to any opportunities, and learning new laboratory techniques I would have been unable to learn at home. I also plan to explore Japan when I am not working on my project.
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