Environmental Signal Transduction: An Interdisciplinary Research Experience for Undergraduates

该项目为西密歇根大学生物科学系和化学系的本科生提供了一个合作研究的氛围。参与的教师和他们的学生专注于从分子到生态系统的不同尺度的生物组织的信号转导级联的跨学科理解的基础和应用方法。信号转导是研究生物分子或化学试剂在细胞、组织、生物体或系统内启动作用的机制。该计划的重点包括(1)在环境信号转导的大保护膜下的跨学科研究，(2)学生对研究的所有权，(3)研究环境中的道德行为，(4)可辩护的科学方法的开发和实施，(5)积极招募代表性不足的群体从事科学事业，(6)在合作者群体中同伴激励和导师激励的互动，(7)沟通，研究成果的展示和发表；(8)跟踪研究后的经历，鼓励从事科学事业。小组内的相互作用导致新的和创新的方法来研究生物相关的信号，在农业，健康和环境有广泛的应用。该计划的研究项目各不相同，从细胞内可能引发对疾病免疫反应的信号级联，到对重金属胁迫的生理反应，再到基因工程植物产品对非目标生物的影响。学生将在实验室和现场环境中接触到广泛的科学方法和现代设备，并鼓励他们充分利用现有设施。学生从跨学科的角度解决高度集中的问题和团队努力的结果交流中科学地受益。参与的学生在社会和个人方面也受益于在一种深刻承诺、跨学科尊重和社会相关性的文化中深刻激励的互动。在当今竞争激烈的研究环境中，运用来自多个学科的广泛方法、技能、思想和理论的能力对于解决应用问题和概念问题至关重要。

The program provides a collaborative research atmosphere for undergraduate students in the sciences to work with faculty mentors in the Departments of Biological Sciences and Chemistry at Western Michigan University. Participating faculty and their students focus on basic and applied approaches to interdisciplinary understanding of signal transduction cascades at different scales of biological organization from molecules to ecosystems. Signal transduction is the study of mechanisms by which biological molecules or chemical agents initiate action within cells, tissues, organisms or systems.Emphases within the program include (1) interdisciplinary research under the broad umbrella of environmental signal transduction, (2) student ownership of research, (3) ethical conduct within a research environment, (4) the development and implementation of defensible scientific methods, (5) active recruitment of underrepresented groups to a career in science, (6) peer-motivated and mentor-motivated interactions within a cohort of collaborators, (7) communication, presentation and publication of research results, and (8) post-research experience tracking to encourage the pursuit of a career in science.Interactions within the group lead to new and innovative ways of studying biologically relevant signals that have broad applications in agriculture, health, and the environment. Research projects within the program vary from signal cascades within cells that may trigger immune responses to disease, to physiological responses to heavy metal stress, to the impact of genetically engineered plant products on non-target organisms. Students are exposed to a wide range of scientific methods and modern equipment, in both laboratory and field settings, and they are encouraged to take full advantage of available facilities.Students benefit scientifically from addressing highly focused questions from an interdisciplinary perspective and the communication of results from team efforts. Participating students also benefit socially and personally from deeply motivating interactions within a culture of deep commitment, interdisciplinary respect and societal relevance. In today's highly competitive research environment, the ability to apply a wide range of methods, skills, ideas, and theories from multiple disciplines is vital to the solution of both applied and conceptual problems.