Visualizing Cells and Embryos: Integrating Modern Cell and Developmental Biology Techniques into the Undergraduate Biology Curriculum

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Biological Sciences (61). This project is transforming traditional undergraduate courses in cell biology and developmental biology, providing undergraduates with opportunities to design, execute, analyze, and report on original experimental questions in these fields using some of the most significant and broadly applicable techniques in modern biology. By adapting the research techniques of fluorescence microscopy, stereomicroscopy, digital imaging, microsurgery, and microinjection into new, innovative, inquiry-based undergraduate laboratory experiences, it is providing students with a real-world view of the process of modern biology while developing their technical, collaborative, and communicative skills. Inquiry-based modern investigations of topics in cell and developmental biology, such as cell morphology, organelle function, cell fate, tissue development and organogenesis, stimulate students' intellectual growth, foster ownership in their work, encourage initiative, and help prepare them to be effective citizens, teachers, and scientists in our increasingly technological society. By increasing opportunities for students to participate in the process of science earlier in their undergraduate experience, the project is increasing recruitment, retention, and the timely graduation of students in the sciences at an institution with a highly diverse student population, and increasing the probability that these students will successfully pursue careers in research.