Journal Of Biology 2011

ALSO IN THE JOURNAL

Volume XCVII

SPECIAL FEATURE The Year in Biology FEATURED STUDENT RESEARCH Sleep problems and Americaâ€&#x;s childhood obesity epidemic: Is there a link?

“Only within the moment of time represented by the present century has one species - man - acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world.�

-Rachel Carson

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SENIOR STAFF

Vinay Mehra „11 Rachel Miceli „11 Michelle Nava „11 Kaity Tung „12 PRODUCTION EDITOR

Julie Chen „11

CONTRIBUTORS

Ryan Chiew „12 Scott Hong „12 Samantha Lau „12 Sophia Zweig „12 FACULTY CONSULTANT

Erin O‟Leary, PhD

EDITOR

Mei Luo „11

2010 Volume XCVI

THE BRONX HIGH SCHOOL of SCIENCE 75 West 205th Street Bronx, New York 10468 Telephone: (718) 817 -7700 Fax: (718) 733 -7951 www.bxscience.edu VALERIE REIDY Principal JEAN M. DONAHUE, PhD Assistant Principal The Journal of Biology is published annually by the students of the Bronx High School of Science

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The Table I. More than Spring Cleaning Ryan Chiew Page 8 II. South Bronx: A Magnet for Asthma Rachel Miceli Page 9 III. Tap Water System in New York City Kevin Mu Page 11 IV. The Aftermath of Sept. 11th Tracey Brown Page 13 V. An Urban Invasion Julie Chen Page 15 VI. Construction by Wildlife Mei Luo Page 18 VII. When It All Drains..

Mei Luo Page 20

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Of Contents VIII. Discoveries in 2009 Page 21 IX. Featured Student Research: Sleep Problems and America‟s Childhood Obesity Epidemic: Is There a Link?

Gabrielle Milner Page 26 X. Abstracts of Student Research Page 40

Commentary

What is Urban Ecology?

The new trend “going green” has started to influence many aspects of our daily routines in the city. And why shouldn‟t it? Humans have been noted for their contribution to the destruction of nature and with the estimated 60% increase in the number of people living in an urban setting by 2030 it is essential that this trend continues to become a part of our daily lives. (1) This trend is involved in many of the simple activities we participate in often. For instance, people turn off the water when they‟re not using it or pull out the plugs of their appliances when they are not in use. However, even with an increase participation in “going green,” it will not save the earth. Many have the mindset that by doing their part alone, the earth will replenish itself and reverse the damage done. As dismal as the idea seems, going green is

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only a method to prolong the earth‟s ability to sustain the growing human population and will not solve the issue completely. Moreover, although some urban dwellers have committed themselves to a nature-friendly lifestyle, most of the population is still unable to adopt this way of life. As in America, where a large part of the population is low income immigrant families, going green just isn‟t an option. Businesses have taken advantage of the increased popularity of the new lifestyle by heavily inflating the prices of “green” products. Because of this, people who want to contribute to the cause are unable to. It was human avarice that created the environmental problems to begin with and now the same materialism has returned to halt the rescue effort. How will the average person be able to stop the deterioration of the earth when going green has become a luxury?

Blindly following the words of advertisements and politicians alone is not an effective means to minimize the damage done to the earth. The public can not only commit themselves to eco-friendly activities and habits, but also educate themselves on the positive and negatives human interactions with the earth. Only with large scale human intervention in the slow decaying of nature, will the burden of pollution be lessened for future generations.

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Urban Ecology (n): Urban ecology is a subfield of ecology which deals with the interaction of organisms in an urban or urbanized community and their interaction with that community.

How do we evaluate urban ecology in NYC?

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POETRY

More than Spring Cleaning

By Ryan Chiew

When is it too late to right our wrongs?

We‟ve already committed so much harm A water bottle near, a can of soda there Where can we possibly go from here?

I confess, you confess We‟ve all contributed to this mess I smile at the sky with a squint in my eye There‟s the real reason to try Imagine the ocean as it kisses the shore Picture a flourishing valley in all its galore The shining sun gleaming so bright The peaceful tranquility of a starry night The earth is our birthplace The earth is your birthplace Let us join hands And clean our mother‟s womb.

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Urban Ecology: Public Health & Communities

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rate is 11 asthma patients per 100,000 people, which is eight times the national average (3).

The neighborhood hit hardest by asthma is the South Bronx. According to doctors working at the area‟s main hospital, Lincoln Hospital, they have received an astonishing 13,000 visits a year from people suffering from asthma related health problems (4).

South Bronx: A Magnet for Asthma

By Rachel Miceli

One of the risks of living in a large city, such as New York, is the higher risk for catching a communicable disease. The characteristically high population density in a city increases the probability of interactions contributing to the spread of disease. However, it is not only communicable diseases, like AIDS, that are more common in cities than in suburban areas, but also chronic diseases such as asthma (1).

Around the world, many adults and children suffer from asthma. Asthma is a chronic lung disease in which the bronchi are inflamed, causing airflow obstruction. Recent studies show a slight decline in asthma rates around the world, as better medical treatments have been able to control symptoms (2).

However, in contrast to other areas of the world, the Bronx has not seen a decline in asthma patients. In fact, hospitalization rates for asthma attacks are as high as 17.3 asthma patients per 1,000 people and the asthma death

Not only are doctors noticing the large amount of asthma related problems affecting people in the Bronx, but also teachers working in schools in the region. Teachers have to take special precautions before beginning activities in the classroom. Almost 25 percent of school-age children have asthma in the South Bronx, compared to 8 percent elsewhere around the nation (5). Children as young as two years old experience wheezing and coughing every day.

So the question arises, why do so many children in the South Bronx suffer from asthma? The most obvious of these causes is the pollution present around the five boroughs. According to a study done by Reader’s Digest, New York City is the second dirtiest city in United States, cleaner only than Chicago (6). Air pollution can account for the high asthma rates in the city overall, but why are these figures drastically higher in the South Bronx? Many children around New York City are exposed to emissions by vehicles, but children of the South Bronx, especially in the Hunts Point district, are exposed to the harmful vehicle emissions to a more drastic extent. Several major highways run through the area and much of the traffic in the area is due to trucks.

Twelve thousand trucks pass through the Hunts Point Market alone daily (7). Unfortunately, many elementary schools are located in this unhealthy environment.

Another cause of the high rates of asthma in the Bronx is the environment of the children‟s homes. The South Bronx has always been associated with crime and drug usage, leading to squalid living conditions (6).

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Urban Ecology: Public Health & Communities Although the area has been gradually improving, over half the inhabitants in the South Bronx still live under the poverty line. These residents are more likely to be exposed to conditions that can cause asthma. Unsanitary inner -city characteristics that make asthma symptoms worse include the abundant amount of cockroach feces and mouse urine (3). These indoor air pollutants aggravate asthma conditions.

There have been many actions taken by the New York community to help stop this epidemic. In July 2007, residents at Hunts Point sued the city and waste recycling companies for the excess sludge and sewage in the area, which had been causing putrid odors and aggravating asthma in children (5). The New York City Asthma Initiative, or NYCAI, an organization that works towards reducing asthma morbidity and mortality, also tried to help children with asthma in the South Bronx.

The main goals of this organization are to improve medical standards of care for children and adults with asthma, to reduce asthma triggers in both homes and communities, to enhance self-management support for individuals with asthma, to develop citywide asthma education standards, to create “asthma friendly� schools and daycare settings, and to monitor and track individuals with asthma (4).

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While many people associate disease in big cities with sexually transmitted diseases and other infections, there are also many other diseases affecting urban areas like New York City. With a quarter of Bronx elementary school children having asthma, it has definitely been a problem for the city (2). Many factors from heavy traffic to dirty environments to poor fruit and vegetable supply have contributed to the dire situation. In response, many community projects and organizations have helped to raise awareness of these problems and work towards preventing the high rates of asthma in the New York area.

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Urban Ecology: Social convenience & Infrastructure

Tap Water System in New York City

By Kevin Mu „09

As citizens of a post modern city, we enjoy the luxury of choosing from a variety of different drinking waters. There‟s Dasani, Aquafina, Poland Spring, Evian, Fiji, Snap2O, Deer Park, Ethos and then there‟s also the water that comes out of the faucet (1). Such a large repertoire of different waters may be quite overwhelming to the consumer. However, many of us often pass over water that comes from the tap. After all, if we have to pay for it, then it must be good, right?

Well, before we decide on what type of water we want to drink next, it is perhaps better to get to know our waters better. Both bottled and tap water in New York City has a long and complex history, often paralleling the

history of the city itself. Since the city‟s founding as New Amsterdam in 1614, ensuring a clean water supply for residents has always presented a formidable challenge for the municipal government. In the city‟s infant years, public sanitation was completely non-existent.

Residents drew water for everyday purposes, such as laundry, from privately owned wells.

These wells were often unsanitary, making the water unsafe to drink. From these rather humble beginnings, history ran its course. In 1644, the Dutch relinquished control of New Amsterdam to the British, who renamed the city New York. As Colonial America developed, New York became an important center of trade and commerce. When the American colonies gained independence from Great Britain in 1781 and became the United States, New York City secured its position as one of the most prominent cities in the world. In 1800, the government built the city‟s first reservoir system. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution came an unprecedented rise in the population. New York City witnessed wide scale immigration from Western and Eastern Europe. During the nineteenth century, the Industrial Era also brought about the trend of urbanization in the United States.

Strained beyond its capacity, New York‟s reservoir system became plagued with pollution.

It was thus imperative to develop a more sophisticated method of distributing water to residents. In 1842, the Croton Aqueduct system was built, carrying water from the Croton River in Westchester to New Yorkers. This served as the basic framework for what would become New York City‟s modern water reservoir system. As the years progressed, the water supply was expanded with new reservoirs and aqueducts. In 1908, the Catskills was developed as another source of water in New York. Tap water witnessed further development in 1966 as concerns over dental health prompted initiatives to fluoridate water. Today, a tap water system consisting of three main reservoir systems located in upstate New York serves all five boroughs (2).

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Urban Ecology: Social convenience & Infrastructure Three centuries of work into developing and improving the water system have allowed New York to have one of the cleanest tap water in the world. In order to comply with standards set by the Federal Food and Drug Administration as well as the New York State Department of Health, water entering New Yorkâ€&#x;s tap water system is treated with chlorine, fluorine, phosphoric acid and sodium hydroxide. Treatment programs are utilized to keep tap water free of harmful bacteria & disinfectants, regulate water pH and prevent excess metal precipitation. Fluoride treatment, while not necessary to ensure clean drinking water, has been shown to improve the dental health of New Yorkers. To ensure that water remains safe to drink, the NYC Department of Environmental Protection performs routine tests on samplings of tap water (3).

With such a reliable water supply, how did the concept of bottled water come into vogue?

Similar to tap water, the development of bottled water is also rooted in the annals of history. During the nineteenth century, the concept of water spas came into fruition. These water spas, which were located at “pure water� springs, heralded the rise of bottled water. In 1845, Poland Spring was founded as a bottled water company; to this day, its water source comes from a spring located at a resort in Maine(2).

Other bottled companies which were founded during the 1800s include Perrier, Deer Park, and Great Bear. In its nascent years from the mid nineteenth to early twentieth century, bottled water was considered a luxury only available to the wealthy. Railroad companies commonly sold bottled water in first class compartments. In 1910, Perrier became the first company to mass market its bottled water. Since that time, bottled water has grown from a rather exclusive commodity to the basis of a mass market industry. Modern day bottling industries usually subject their water to purification treatment in order to comply with standards set by the Food and Drug Administration. Examples of such purification processes

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include distillation and reverse osmosis (4). Today, we are lucky enough to have a choice between consuming bottled water and tap water.

However, which water is cleaner and tastes better? Most experts agree that in terms of safety, both New York City tap water and bottled water are the same. Tap water and bottled water have identical concentrations of metals and similar pH levels. The principle exception is fluoride concentration, which is much higher in tap water than bottled water. High fluoride concentration in tap water has helped improve the dental health of New Yorkers. Recently, medicinal drugs have been reportedly found in tap water, thus bringing the safety of tap water into scrutiny. However, tests performed on samples have revealed that such medications are found at infinitesimal concentrations of parts per trillion. Thus far, there have been no reported effects of these medicinal contaminants. Furthermore, the New York Department of Environmental Protection has begun investigating this issue. Bottled water has also come under investigation for questionable safety. In 1994, Perrier was forced to launch a major recall of its products when the chemical benzene was found in their spring. Water purification processes apparently failed to filter out this contaminant(4).

Now, whether one type of water tastes better than another is really a matter of personal preference. Blind taste tests conducted by 20/20 news have found that surprisingly, Evian water ranked lowest. Quite ironically, Evian happens to be the one of the most expensive brands of water. In that same test, tap water ranked third, tied with Iceland Spring water. Furthermore, the more widely distributed Poland Spring bottled water ranked fifth. Thus, in this case, perhaps price does not directly correlate with quality. After all, tap water, which is free of charge, ranks higher in terms of taste than the moderately priced Poland Spring and the highly priced Evian water(1).

Despite the fact that bottled water and tap water are identical in terms of quality, an increasing percentage of people prefer bottled water

Urban Ecology: History & Public Health over tap. (5) Increased bottled water consumption has prompted environmental concerns.

According to the Pacific Institute, 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce bottles, producing more approximately 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide. (6)

It is important to acknowledge that bottled water has its merits. In regions of the world without access to clean water, bottled water is a guaranteed safe source of drinking water. But New Yorkers are fortunate enough to purchase bottled water that is not necessary.

The Aftermath of Sept. 11th

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Energy is also required to fill bottles and trans port them via truck (6). Furthermore, the Pacific Institute estimates that the process involved in producing one liter of bottled water actually consumes three liters of water. Yet, even with its price impracticalities, most of us still prefer bottled water over tap. One possible reason could be die-hard cultural connotations.

Bottled water, after all, traces its origins from high class luxury resorts while todayâ€&#x;s tap water evolved from the squalid, disease ridden water of the seventeenth century. According to personal interviews, those who preferred bottled water over tap water cited unsanitary pipes and the effect of other peopleâ€&#x;s activities on the water system as concerns regarding tap water quality. Thus, the obstinate belief that bottled water is cleaner and tastes better than tap water is perhaps not completely unfounded. During the early twentieth century, bottled water was associated with the elite class while everyone else only had access to tap water (1).

By: Tracey Brown

The terrorist attacks of September 11th on the World Trade Center had a great impact on the publicâ€&#x;s health, causing 2,630 deaths and numerous health concerns. These deaths were primarily because of the dispersion of building materials and electronic equipment, smoke and dust clouds. The dust clouds were particularly harmful, since they contained numerous toxins, ranging from asbestos to heavy metals, such as lead, mercury and cadmium. Of these pollutants, some are known to be carcinogenic, while others can cause deterioration of vital organs and respiratory illnesses. Many encountered these pollutants without adequate protection. For example, some firefighters used insufficient face masks that were designed to only last twenty minutes. This resulted in many respiratory illnesses (1).

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Urban Ecology: History & Public Health Respiratory illness is one of the most prevalent health issues reported by New Yorkers after the September 11th attacks. What was once known as the "World Trade Center cough" is now developing into asthma and other more serious lung diseases (2). Diseases known to scar the lungs, such as sarcoidosis, have been found in rescue workers who were exposed to Ground Zero toxins for extended periods of time. The New York City Fire Department has tracked cases of the disease and found its incidence has risen to “five times the expected rate in the two years after Sept. 11 (3).” Dr. Stephen M. Levin, the director of the World Trade Center Worker and Volunteer Medical Screening Program, has examined twelve thousand union employees who worked at Ground Zero in the months following September 11th, most of whom were firefighters or police officers. He has found that more than sixty percent of them have developed some form of respiratory illness. He believes that many serious lung problems have not yet developed and expects the numbers of affected workers to rise (4).

In January 2006, Detective James Zadroga, a rescue worker at Ground Zero, died of granulomatous pneumonitis. An autopsy of his lungs showed severe scarring as the result of “foreign material.” Studies later showed that this “foreign material” was consistent with the dust from September 11th (5).Zadroga‟s death was the first to be attributed to Ground Zero exposure. However, the similar illnesses of many others have yet to be recognized as the result of their rescue work at Ground Zero.

While the New York City Uniformed Firefighters Association has stated the rise in sarcoidosis among firefighters is due to rescue work at Ground Zero, the Police Department has not yet commented on the issue. In fact, the City of New York has attempted to deflect any responsibility for the death of Zadroga, claiming drug abuse, not Ground Zero exposure resulted in his death (6).

Although most evidence points towards Sep-

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tember 11th as the cause of these illnesses, scientific causation has not yet been conclusively determined.

As shown by Detective James Zadroga's case, a great deal of the information related to the health impact of September 11th is based on the health records of rescue workers. These rescue workers, including firefighters and police officers, are often offered medical care from their employers—which has allowed for more detailed analysis of the health effects. In addition , many other New Yorkers experienced health problems. However, the full extent of these illnesses is less known than those of rescue workers because these New Yorkers were most likely treated by private doctors (6).

In addition to the physical health effects of the September 11th attacks, a number of agencies have reported various mental health effects.

According to the NYC Department of Mental Health and Hygiene, in the weeks following the attacks, it was very common for New Yorkers to experience stress and feelings of helplessness. Most of the symptoms disappeared within a short period of time. However, some people continued to experience mental health conditions, most commonly in the forms of posttraumatic stress disorder, general anxiety disorder, depression and substance abuse. Persons experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder may experience flashbacks of the events and try to avoid any such reminders. Affecting more people in comparison to the number of people affected by the physical health effects, the mental health effects not only affected the rescue workers and people living in the area surrounding the World Trade Center, but also affected the families that have lost loved ones and the countless New Yorkers exposed to the images of September 11th(4).

As shown by these physical and mental effects the September 11th tragedy largely affects the health of our city‟s inhabitants. Consequently, the twin towers will be remembered by the generations to come.

Urban Ecology: Globalization & Ecosystems

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own backyards. Few people are aware of the major impact of harmless looking non-native organisms in the five boroughs of New York (1).

An Urban Invasion By: Julie Chen

Today, humans are traveling longer distances than ever before. Often when we travel, we bring other organisms with us, sometimes on purpose and other times, unknowingly. Due to globalization and technological growth, there is a constant immigration of people, leading to the introduction of invasive species in North America.

Invasive species is a term applicable to any species that is introduced in non-native areas, causing a disruption to local ecosystems. Invasive species often have no natural predators in their new environment. Thus, these species flourish easily and often end up taking the place of native plants or organisms, just as our ancestors are thought to have once out-competed the Neanderthals in their native environment. Today, invasive species can be found all over the world, including in our

The Bronx is tied down with the Japanese knotweed that was first introduced in the United States in the late 1800s. Japanese knotweed was first prevalent in Britain and then in North America as an ornamental plant(2). This organism is easier planted than destroyed. In China and Japan, it is usually present in a volcanic environment. However, it also thrives in nonnative areas where there is a lack of predators and more fertile soil. It is able to withstand unusual conditions such as high temperatures, droughts, shading, and high levels of salt (2). The knotweed can grow from a small amount of tissue and can be transported by river, soil, and wind.

It has remarkable regenerative ability, which makes it difficult to get rid of. The Japanese knotweed can develop from its crown, stem or underground root (rhizome). Even cut rhizomes can produce a shoot, and digging can increase the density of the stems. Amazingly, the rhizome is even impermeable to freezing and dehydration, making controlling the knotweed very difficult. According to the Wildlife and Countryside Act, it is illegal to knowingly spread Japanese knotweed. Moreover, due to the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, soil containing rhizomes is considered “controlled waste,� and as such, it must be disposed at a landfill and covered at least 5 meters deep (3).

Japanese knotweed, like all invasive species, eliminates native plant life and is costly to eradicate. It also makes rivers more susceptible to flooding by leaving masses of dead stems behind (3).

Staten Island's Brook's Pond in Clove Lakes Park has been invaded by the Asian clam. There are many possibilities as to how the clam was introduced. One way is that they were attached onto the feet of birds migrating from New Jersey or Long Island. Another is that they were used as bait, but fisherman tossed them into running water afterwards, which allowed

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Urban Ecology: Globalization & Ecosystems travel downstream (4).

Asian clams favor high levels of oxygen, running water and sandy areas. They also have high reproduction rates and their offspring drift towards the bottom of the water column where intake pipes are usually located. This creates a problem since shells, clam tissue, and live clams clog up these pipes (5). Thus, it affects many water systems. Like other invasive species that crowd out native organisms, Asian clams outnumber native clams, creating a ripple effect on the food chain. According to College of Staten Island biology professor Dr. Albert Burchstedk, “There's not going to be anything left for the other guys to eat...If the [native] clams die, then the fish don't have a good base for food. Of course, when the fish go, the fish-eating birds have problems. It dominates all the way up the food chain.�

There are various ways to address the problem of invasive clam species. One of these is by mechanical means, using screens and traps to prevent and remove mature clams from the water system. An additional method is by chemical means, releasing concentrations of chlorine or bromine can kill young clams. However, environmental agencies are strict regarding the release of chemicals into the water. Some states such as Massachusetts have just outlawed the introduction of Asian clam into their waters. It is not yet known if that method will be successful, but it is a preventive measure (5).

Manhattan, with its great diversity of people, also has a great diversity of invasive species including the mitten crab, zebra mussel, and Asian long horned beetle. The Chinese mitten crab, as well as the zebra mussel, live in the Hudson River. While the zebra mussel first appeared in 1988, there have been reports of the mitten crab in the United States since 1965. The Chinese mitten crab may have been introduced by live release or the release of ship ballast water, which is water carried on the bottom of the ship that is released at the destination site (6). Mitten crabs compete

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with blue crabs that live in the Hudson River.

As for human health, the crabs are intermediate hosts for oriental lung fluke, transmitted to humans if crabs are eaten raw or poorly cooked. Because mitten crabs tolerate highly contaminated water, they are a source of bioaccumulation and when eaten, can poison humans.

Another threatening species in the Hudson River is the zebra mussel. Zebra mussels are a well known invasive species that have been incredibly successful in the Great Lakes. Currently, this species also populates the Hudson River. The zebra mussel originated from Eurasia. It is thought to have been introduced into the Great Lakes through the dumping of ballast water. There are several reasons why Zebra mussels are hard to get rid of. First, this species can form colonies and attach themselves to boats and trailers. Thus, wherever boats travel, the zebra mussels follow as well. This leads to the spread of the species. They can attach to a wide variety of fabrics, including metal, rubber, glass, and cloth (7). This capability becomes an issue when they attach themselves to pipes and water systems. However, it is advantageous for them because the pipes provide constant running water, which contributes to their growth.

They clog intake pipes, wells, and water systems and also reduce the water flow. As a result, there have been water shortages and it is costly to repair damaged water structures due to their colonization. Zebra mussels also create difficulties for other organisms, as they attach to crayfish, turtles, and other mollusks. However, a positive impact of their presence is their ability to filter water. They can filter up to 1 liter a day (7). Scientists have noticed cleaner water in the Great Lakes ever since they were introduced. However, that also limits food for other organisms.

Some solutions consist of creating a law which limits boaters to travel from infected areas in order to prevent the spread of mussels.

An additional invasive species that populates Manhattan is the Asian long horned beetle. It was introduced by wood packing material from

Urban Ecology: Globalization & Ecosystems China and pose a large threat to many types of trees. The specie creates tunnels that harm the living part of the tree trunk and limit water flow, killing the tree. Female beetles create oval holes in the surface of the trees to lay their eggs. Researchers can indicate the existence of these beetles through the presence of oval holes with sap and nearby sawdust and insect waste. There has not been an effective way to eradicate Asian long horned beetles. The only way is to remove and destroy infested trees (8).

pests in their native land as they feed on cereal grain and fruits. But, the main issue in New York is their construction of nests, which damages power lines and causes electricity shortages. There has not been a definite solution; however, it is always helpful to restrict its introduction from other places (9).

A threatening species was found in Flushing Meadows Lake, Queens. This snakehead fish was thought to be introduced by live fish trade as produce at a local food source. Some people might have bought it at a fish market and released it in the lake for it to reproduce.

The snakehead fish has the stereotype to walk on land and devour everything in its path.

However, that is not accurate. Yes, it can breathe air. In fact, it can survive for only a few days out of water as long as it is in moist conditions. It is a top predator in the lake and devours all the fish. A chemical, Rotenone, is an effective way of killing snakehead fish, but it also kills other fish in the pond. Some states have banned the transportation, possession, and the release of snakehead fish species all together (10).

There are many more invasive species in each borough but people may believe they are natural organisms of New York. These species have a great impact on the food chain, the economy, and human health. However, the problem can be solved by tracking the development and introduction of invasive species and getting rid of them in the most efficient and eco-friendly way.

Source: http:/ farm4.static.flickr.com/3141/3025106752_151e1df83c.j pg

Brooklynâ€&#x;s Quaker parrots or Monk parrots are an attractive sight but these parrots are an invasive species. They originate from South America including the countries of Bolivia, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil. But, they were introduced into the U.S. through a pet trade, where there was an accidental release of Monk parrots from damaged crates at JFK airport (9). These parrots are known to be agricultural

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Urban Ecology: Adaption

ARTICLE

Construction By Wildlife By: Mei Luo

Conventional wisdom says that the changes people made to the natural environment has been detrimental to wildlife. Human developments have forced countless organisms out of their native habitats. New York City streets are contaminated with litter, and filled with fumes from cars and buses. Nonetheless, some organisms have adapted to these changes in natural conditions. In fact, some even find city life to be advantageous. As a result, New York still exhibits abundant forms of non-human life, despite high levels of pollution. In a world where the boundary between wildlife populations and the human population is rapidly disappearing, certain animals have found ways to deal with the obstacles of city life through the process of adaptation. Humans have gotten a better understanding of exactly how these animals learn to live under certain conditions by observing their interactions with the environment created by humans.

It may seem ironic, but industrialized cities that are packed with waste and air pollution can actually provide favorable conditions for some organisms. Although many habitats that previously existed have been destroyed, some new niches have been made available for new organisms. A niche is an organism's role in the ecosystem, and includes all the various ways the organism interacts with its environment in order to fulfill its life functions. For an organism to be successful in a new environment, it must find a unique niche to occupy.

Several different species have made a very successful living off of humans' garbage. Common park wildlife such as squirrels and pigeons are often fed with bread and peanuts. Although this practice is now prohibited due to the possibility of contagious diseases carried by these organisms, many visitors continue to feed them. Plus, there are plenty of dropped sandwiches, halfeaten hot dogs, and melted puddles of ice cream to be found in the parks. These practices help to provide a surplus of food for organisms that are looking for food throughout the year.

Other animals, such as the swan in the Central Park Zoo, utilize human litter to construct their nesting grounds. Using plastic bags, carriers, old clothing and a shoe, this swan prepared a comfortable and durable nest for the birth of its offspring.(1) Ospreys display similar behavior, using soda bottles, television antennas, or power lines as materials to construct a nest (2).

In addition, we may be unknowingly "feeding" plants with everyday activities like driving and using electricity. Such activities are usually powered by the burning of fossil fuels, which releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contributes to harmful long-term effects, such as global warming. However, carbon dioxide is also the molecule that plants convert into sugars through the process of photosynthesis. Since this is the only way that most plants can gain nutrition, photosynthesis powers nearly all plant growth. Studies have shown that some plants grow significantly faster in warm, carbon

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Urban Ecology: Adaption dioxide-rich urban environments than in more pristine rural landscapes (3). For example, researchers with the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that the weed Chenopodium album grew much taller and produced significantly more pollen in downtown Baltimore than in the more pristine environment of an organic farm in Western Maryland: the city plants reached 10-12 feet high, in contrast to a maximum height of six to eight feet on the farm (4).

The same conditions that promote fast growth in cities have also been found to speed longterm ecological processes, like succession, in urban environments. However, the succeeding species are as likely or more likely to be invasive species as they are to be native ones. Succession can be seen at Pelham Bay Park in the Eastern Bronx, the site of a former landfill. With time and contributions from microorganisms, a meadow was born. This meadow now serves as a home for diverse species of insects, such as butterflies and bees. Thus, a former waste land has been transformed into a productive, fertile living ground for organisms that migrate over the continent (1).

It is obvious that although a cityâ€&#x;s environment is unsuitable for certain types of wildlife, other organisms have adapted well to take advantage of its few benefits. However, their adaptability has a consequence: a decrease in biodiversity. (5).

While some organisms adapt to the hazardous human environment, many others fail to accomplish the same feat. Loss of biodiversity ultimately makes ecosystems unstable and prone to collapse. Although the human environment may temporarily nurture some wildlife, its continuation will only lead to long-term destruction.

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POETRY

When It All Drains…

By: Mei Luo

Her fingers caress the knob Slowly releasing the gate that holds Gushing forth from its gates Its clear droplets slither off her skin And on she walks, All the while the substance of life drains…

Off in the distance Two children trudge up the mountain trek, In their small palms hang two pails Their feet battered, their will damaged, In front lies a puddle rested inside a brick well Their smiles revealed, their strength regained, And on they ran with their buckets dangling, Holding the liquid that heals…

Off beyond the horizon The cliffs cave in, The river sinks, becoming all the more invisible The fishes scamper, The people look on desperately, Reaching for a need that is gone…

All the while, The tap runs, Lost as it descends…

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SPECIAL FEATURE

THE YEAR IN BIOLOGY Compiled by Mei Luo, Kaity Tung, Julie Chen

The Journal of Biology‟s choice of the top 25 headlines in Biology for the year 2009.* *Stories were chosen by the senior editorial staff, using DISCOVER magazine’s 2009 “The Year In Science” issue as a primary guide.

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1. In response to the widespread fear of vaccinations causing autism in children, the court issued a decision stating that vaccines were not the cause of autism. This fear has caused many parents to prohibit their children from taking vaccinations.

3. Revived by the Obama administration, the Futuregen -a coal-fired power plantplan will bury 60 percent of its carbon dioxide deep underground.

22

4. An AIDS vaccine may prevent HIV. However, its effectiveness is debatable since it is only 26 percent.

Despite this, researchers say its still a modest percentage.

2. Since the first outbreak in Veracruz, Mexico, facilities have been shut down to prevent further infections. Despite its name, swine flu is only transmitted from humans to humans, not through eating pork-related products. The symptoms are similar to a common cold, but when it infects young children or the elderly, the effects are harsher.

5. Scientists are now working to build a battery using microbes that produce methane gas and viruses to store energy

6. Once thought to be a radical resort to treat severe mental diseases, brain shock therapy is being considered as an alternative to treat a variety of mental disorders like anorexia and obsessive compulsive disorder.

7. Scientists have uncovered a computer program that can analyze data as well as come up with theories like those of Isaac Newton in a matter of hours.

8. In a study to treat bubble baby disease, a disease associated with a nonfunctional immune system in babies, scientists injected stem cells infected with bacteria containing a gene which is suppose to spawn a functional immune system. The result was as expected; the babies were able to have a functional and healthy immune system.

9. In a study, scientists found similar regions in the genome of Rhinovirus strains, which are all the known types of the leading cause of the cold. This provides insight to potential treatments to assist in common colds.

Furthermore, scientists note that little bits of differences in the strains may explain why some colds are worse than others.

10. To prevent diarrheal diseases in developing countries, Mahdi Saeed developed a possible vaccine by attaching a larger molecule onto the toxins produced E. coli. Thus, the immune system can produce antibodies against the E. coli toxin as a pathogen, which is usually undetectable because of its tiny size.

11. A new eye drop containing nerve growth factors may help reverse glaucoma. Glaucoma, caused by the accumulation of pressure, damages nerve cells and leads to blindness. The eye drop induces the growth of nerve cells, reversing effects of Glaucoma.

12. Scientists demonstrated a way to replace defective mitochondria with healthy ones to treat failing organ systems, which suffer from defective mitochondria even before the egg is fertilized.

23

13. In a study involving 20,654 young Chinese girls, researchers discovered that girls are maturing a year earlier than they did 40 years ago. This may be due to better nutrition and the mimicking effects of certain chemicals in the environment.

15. A type of fat in the human body burns energy rather than stores it. By this tissue, researchers may be able to find the secret to increase bodyâ€&#x;s metabolism and induce weight loss

16. In a study with monkeys over a 20 year period, researchers have concluded that the restriction of the number of calories that a person consumes may help to extend someoneâ€&#x;s lifetime.

14. After Craig Venterâ€&#x;s successful analysis of the bacterial genome in 1992, he aims to customize new organisms that could treat cancer, feed the planet and produce clean energy.

17. Last year President Obama expanded the federal funds for stem cell research.

18. The discovery of a 4.4 million year old hominid suggest that humans evolved from ancestors who walked on two legs and lived in lush woodlands

24

22. Scientists are considering another way the collision between asteroids on earth millions of years ago could have rendered earth lifeless.

Clues suggest that these asteroids may have in fact made earth inhabitable.

19. Researchers shown that anxiety in a person can be transmitted to another, allowing one to detect fear.

23. Traffic has been represented as alternating waves of heaving and light density allowing scientists to form mathematical equations to help solve the problem.

20. The proposal of the smart grid system will create a flexible and interactive relationship between consumers and energy suppliers. The grid will be able to contain and direct power to homes.

21. In an attempt to find an alternative way to regenerate hydrogen for power, researchers have developed a catalyst that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen after being coupled with a photovoltaic cell.

24. Miniature probes, which can move around easily in a personâ€&#x;s blood , are made to treat diseases more effectively.

25. A U.S communications satellite crashed into a Russian Orbit and both were destroyed upon impact, creating a cloud of debris that shrouded the entire planet earth. This kind of collisions is expected to occur again if no action is taken.

25

FEATURED STUDENT RESEARCH

Sleep Problems and America’s Childhood Obesity Epidemic: Is there a link?

Gabrielle Milner Abstract Background and Aims: Childhood obesity is a public health epidemic in the United States that is associated with serious psychosocial and medical consequences. Ascertaining potential targets for early intervention efforts is important because these sequelae may be harder to prevent once an individual becomes overweight in middle childhood. Recent studies identifying short sleep duration as a possible risk factor for childhood obesity did not account for the potentially confounding effects of other clinical or demographic characteristics, and did not examine the reasons for subjectsâ&#x20AC;&#x; reduced sleep time. This study presents a secondary analysis of data collected from 1,285 children aged 9-18 years old. Sleep insomnias were significantly associated with obesity (p<0.05), particularly among girls aged 9-12 (p<0.006). This association remained strong after considering a range of confounding factors, including major depressive disorder, socioeconomic status, and ethnicity, which finding suggests a possible direct biological link between insomnia and obesity. This discovery warrants exploring the efficacy of insomnia treatment in deterring obesity progression and persistence in at least some children. The data also suggest investigating the biological mechanism mediating insomnias and obesity, particularly the role of the hypothalamicpituitary-adrenal axis, a pathway that has been implicated in both obesity and sleep deprivation.

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INTRODUCTION Childhood obesity is a major public health epidemic in the United States. Obesity is an excessive accumulation of fat such that health is impaired (Aronne and Segal, 2002). It is usually determined using the body mass index or “BMI,” a measure of body fat based on height and weight measurements, that is related to morbidity and excess fatness (Seo and Torabi, 2006). It is estimated that between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents in the United States may meet the definition of obese (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (the “CDC”), children who are overweight or obese are more likely to become obese adults and are at increased risk of suffering from serious health complications such as type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Adult obesity is more “severe” if a person becomes overweight before the age of eight (Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). Unhealthy weight gain contributes to over 300,000 deaths each year (American Academy of Childhood and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008), and the cost to society is staggering. In the year 2000, the cost of obesity in the United States was $117 billion (Reeves, et al., 2008).

This paper attempts to identify a possible focus for early obesity intervention. This is essential because treatment options after obesity onset are limited (Velasquez-Mieyer et al., 2005). Existing research suggests a relationship between sleep problems and obesity. The link between sleep problems and obesity may be mediated by a shared pathophysiological mechanism, likely the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (“HPA”) axis. The HPA axis connects the part of the brain that controls the nervous system with the pituitary and adrenal glands, which control the production of various hormones (Lawson, 2003). Sleep disorders are a particularly attractive area to explore as a therapeutic target be-

cause sleep can be measured objectively and there are known pharmacological and behavioral options for treatment of sleep problems (Reeves et al., 2008). If certain sleep disorders are demonstrated to independently increase the risk of obesity, then recognition and treatment of these sleep problems may help to prevent obesity.

Some studies have identified short sleep duration as potentially increasing the risk of childhood obesity (Kohatsu et al., 2008). However, it is not clear from these studies if the reduced sleep resulted from sleep disturbances or harmful sleep habits (Vgontzas et al., 2008). Also, analyses of the relationship between sleep and obesity in these studies have been confounded by the presence of other conditions or factors that may affect the development or occurrence of poor sleep, obesity or both. For example, some research suggests that a depressed mood may be a potential risk factor for the development and persistence of obesity in adolescents (Goodman and Whitaker, 2002). In view of these reports, there is a possibility that psychological disturbances known to affect sleep may confound analyses of the relationship between sleep and obesity. Also, depression in late adolescent girls has been found to be associated with adult obesity (Richardson et al., 2003). This association was not observed in boys, and thus gender also may be a confounder and effect modifier that should be factored in any study of the development of obesity in the child and adolescent population.

Similarly, sleep deficits have been observed at a higher rate among individuals with lower socioeconomic status (“SES”) than those with a high level of SES, and sleep loss may mediate the development of chronic conditions such as obesity (Richardson et al., 2003). According to the U.S. Department of Education, SES is a measure of an individual‟s or family‟s relative economic and social ranking. Taveras et al. (2008) acknowledged that the association

27

they found between short sleep in infancy and overweight in early childhood may reflect SES confounding rather than a causal relationship because children who were non-white or of lower SES slept fewer hours in a 24 hour period. Therefore, how and to what extent decreased sleep time and quality impacts obesity onset may be complicated by these interrelationships.

Based on the above observations, my aim was to more particularly characterize the relationship between sleep and obesity by addressing four research design insufficiencies found in the literature: (1) failure to control for demographic and clinical features that the published medical literature suggests are independently associated with either sleep disturbances or obesity or both (i.e., confounding variables); (2) failure to distinguish among different types of sleep disturbances or harmful sleep habits that may lead to obesity-related sleep deficits; (3) reliance on clinic-based samples recruited because of existing pathology; and (4) use of data sets lacking in complete information for variables of interest. To accomplish this, I performed a secondary statistical analysis of previously collected de-identified data collected from a large study and looked at the association between sleep disorders and obesity while controlling for the most prominent confounding factors that have emerged as clinically relevant in the medical literature, particularly depressed mood, gender, and SES. I also classified the data related to sleep into categories reflecting symptoms of major sleep disorders to better identify the specific nocturnal problems that may lead to obesity.

Materials and Methods The study focused on the relationship between sleep and obesity and used data collected as part of the 1992 Methods for Epidemiology of Child and Adolescent Mental Disorders (“MECA”) Study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (“NIMH”).

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Participants: The MECA Study was a nonclinical probabilistic sample of 1,285 children aged 9-18 years old from households located in four diverse regions of the United States: Hamden, East Haven and West Haven, Connecticut (N=314); DeKalb, Rockdale, and Henry Counties, Georgia (N=299); Westchester County, New York (N=360); and San Juan, Puerto Rico (N=312). These sites were chosen for their diverse socioeconomic, cultural and ethnic populations, as well as their proximity to the universities of the researchers conducting the MECA study. Subjects were selected through multistage sampling as described by Lahey et al. (1996) in greater detail.

In 90% of the cases, the adult respondent was the biological mother of the interviewed youths. Household income of the interviewed youth-adult pairs was less than $10,000 for 15%, between $10,000-$24,999 for 18%, $25,000-$64,999 for 42%, $65,000-$99,999 for 17%, and above $100,000 for 8%. Of the interviewed youths, 51% were classified as nonHispanic whites, 15% as African-American, and 28% as Hispanic. The remaining 6% reported Asian, Pacific Islander, American Indian or other ancestry.

MECA Data Collection Procedures: Once consent was met, trained lay interviewers collected data from both the participating children and their adult caretakers through structured in-person interviews conducted in the participants‟ homes.

Measures: Psychiatric Disorders: The diagnostic instruments used in the MECA Study included the (i) NIMH Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, consisting of (DISC-Y) and (DISC-P), administered to the children and to the adults respectively (Shaffer et al., 1996) and the (ii) Service Utilization and Risk Factors interview was likewise administered to both the children (SURF-Y) and to the adults (SURF-P); together, SURF-Y and SURF-P are referred to herein as “SURF.” The DISC instrument was developed to assess whether participants exhibit the most common symptoms

of over thirty mental disorders, including Major Depressive Disorder (“MDD”). Caretakers also were asked to report if the child ever received a diagnosis of MDD. The DISC includes questions directed to sleep problems, such as sleep deprivation.

more tired than usual when sitting around or when sad, grouchy or bored, (v) if they had much less energy than usual, or less energy when sad, grouchy or bored, or if they had no energy most days for more than two weeks.

Sleep problems: The MECA study included questions that targeted responses about the participant‟s sleep and the existence of any sleep problems. I analyzed the questions and classified them as relating to one of three major sleep disorder categories largely based on those suggested by Schwartz et al., 1987: (1) insomnias (disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep); (2) hypersomnias (disorders of excessive somnolence); and (3) parasomnias (dysfunctions associated with sleep, sleep stages, or partial arousal). Insomnia may include trouble falling asleep, trouble staying asleep, or both (Kandel, et al., 2000). Seven questions from the DISC-Y fell within this category. These questions asked the youth interviewees to report (i) if they had more trouble sleeping than usual, trouble sleeping most nights over the past two weeks (or longer), trouble sleeping when they were sad or grouchy, or trouble sleeping when they were worried or nervous, (ii) if they needed an attention figure nearby to fall asleep or if they needed an attention figure nearby to fall asleep over the past two weeks (or longer), or (iii) if they became restless when they were sad, grouchy or bored.

Parasomnias are sleep disorders that feature abnormal behaviors (Aschochoff, 1981). Questions from the DISC-Y used to measure this type of sleep problem related to if the youth had experienced a time when they had a lot of nightmares, experienced nightmares often for two or more weeks, would awaken to check on people because they were afraid for two weeks (or longer), or checked on people for at least two weeks in the last six months.

Hypersomnia is excessive sleepiness regardless of sleep duration (Webb et al., 2005). Excessive tiredness may be a common complaint of patients with hypersomnia (Slaby, 1994). Ten questions from the DISCY were classified as identifying symptoms of hypersomnia. These included questions that asked the youth interviewees to report (i) if they slept a lot more time than usual, if they slept more for the past two weeks (or longer), (ii) if they slept more when sad, grouchy or bored, (iii) if they were easily tired when worried or nervous, (iv) if they were

Body Mass Index: Caretaker and self-reports of each child‟s height and weight were available from the interviews.

Information about height and weight permitted an evaluation of each child subject‟s BMI. The BMI measure is calculated by dividing weight (in kilograms) by height (in meters, squared), and then adjusting for age and gender according to guidelines published by the “CDC.” Overweight was defined as a BMI value equal to or greater than the age and sex-specific 85th percentile values from the CDC BMI charts, and obesity was defined as a BMI value equal to or greater than the age and sex-specific 95th percentile values from the CDC BMI charts.

Additional Factors: The SURF instrument was designed to assess the presence of risk factors associated with mental disorders, such as family environment, parental supervision and life events, and covers demographic factors including family socioeconomic status, age group, gender, race/ethnicity, stress level and insurance status.

Analysis of MECA Data: All analysis was performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Program (SPSS, 2006).

(1)Bivariate Analysis. Analysis was conducted

29

on the combined data from all study sites. Cross tabulation and multiple regression analyses were performed to explore the association between each of the categories of sleep variables and (2) obesity and overweight, controlling for gender, presence of symptoms consistent with major depressive disorder, SES, age and ethnicity. Additionally, the wide age distribution among the 1,285 child subjects in this study permitted an appreciation of the development of obesity in association with sleep disorders.

(2) Bivariate Analysis Stratified by Major Depressive Disorder. Bivariate stratification was conducted to fully investigate the existence of a link among sleep, obesity and MDD because MDD has been strongly associated with both obesity and sleep problems. The connection between obesity and depression has only been reliably reported in females (Richardson, et al., 2003), and thus this analysis focused on data collected from interviewed female youths and their caretakers. To remove MDD as a potentially confounding variable, each subject was categorized as either positive or negative for symptoms suggestive of an MDD diagnosis. Within each category, subjects were further classified into one of three age groups: 9-12 years old, 13-15 years old, and 16-18 years old.

Girls in each age group were additionally classified as having insomnia, parasomnia, or hypersomnia, all of these disorders, or none. Next, BMI trends and BMI were recorded within each subgroup. The number of subjects falling within the various categories is presented below.(Table 1).

RESULTS BMI was available for all 1,285 children interviewed in the MECA study. Sleep information was available for 1,244 of these subjects. Cross tabulation analysis was used to

30

assess the relationship between overweight and obesity and each of the previously defined categories of sleep problems: (i) insomnias, (ii) hypersomnias, and (iii) parasomnias. Cronbachâ&#x20AC;&#x;s Alpha was used to check the reliability of these sleep disorder categories based on the questions that were selected to represent each sleep disorder. All values were about or above 0.7; therefore, the individual items within the sleep categories may be considered consistent and reliable. Chisquare statistic was used to compute the statistical significance of any observed associations in the cross-tabulation tables.

A significant relationship between various indicators of insomnia and obesity was identified such that pathologically increased BMI was associated with increased likelihood of insomnia symptoms (overall p< 0.05). This was confirmed by multiple regression analysis (odds ratio 1.15, 95% confidence interval (1.06; 2.13)). A significant relationship was not identified between overweight and obesity and hypersomnias or parasomnias. As such, it appears that where sleep disturbances have been identified as a general risk factor for obesity, it is difficulties falling asleep and not other sleep troubles that are associated with a child being at risk for overweight or obesity.

(Graph 1).There was a significantly higher incidence of insomnias among children and adolescents with pathological BMI values compared with children and adolescents with normal BMI. (Table 2).

Among female children, symptoms of insomnia were significantly associated with obese BMI scores (p<0.005). This relationship was not identified with respect to male subjects.

(Table 4). Further analysis showed a trend toward a strong relationship between insomnia and obesity in girls. The data suggest that the link between insomnia and obesity may be particularly significant among younger age females

-ion and gender, a significant relationship was still detected between insomnia and obesity (p<0.05).

Multiple regressions were used to confirm an independent relationship between insomnias and non-normal BMI in girls when controlling for SES, age, ethnicity, and the presence of major depressive disorder (odds ratio 2.00, 95% confidence interval (1.24; 3.21)).

Table 5- Odd Ratios of Overweight or Obesity

by Sleep Problems Among Girls and Boys DISCUSSION In this study, it was found that the prevalence of obesity was greater in those children and adolescents who reported behaviors consistent with insomnia disorders than those children and adolescents who reported no sleeping problems. These associations existed independently of adjustment for a variety of potential confounders, including socioeconomic status, presence of symptoms consistent with major depressive disorder, age and ethnicity. The significance of this relationship was particularly strong in girls aged 9-12 years old. This studyâ&#x20AC;&#x;s findings suggest that having an insomnia disorder may independently predict obesity, even in the absence of MDD. Particularly, this study confirms previous experiments in this area that suggest that sleep disorders are linked with obesity in children and adolescents and may be a potential target for preventing obesity onset. Von Kries et al. (2002) found that a longer sleep duration was associated with a lower prevalence of overweight, obesity and excessive body fat in a sample of over 6,000 children in Germany between the ages of five and six years old; however, this study used a lower percentile range (overweight was defined as BMI above the 90th percentile) to calculate what is considered overweight compared to the percentages considered cutoffs by the CDC in which

overweight is deemed to be equal to or greater than the 95th percentile. Two other non-United States-based cross-sectional studies also demonstrated a negative relationship between sleep duration and BMI. One of these studies found a strong inverse association between late bedtime or short sleeping hours and childhood obesity in a group of Japanese children aged between six and seven years old (Sekine et al., 2002). The second study found that in a population of five year olds in France, short sleep duration increased the risk of obesity nearly five times (Locard et al., 1992). More recently, Taveras et al. (2008) observed that infants who slept less than 12 hours per day were more likely to have a higher BMI score and increased odds of being overweight at 3 years of age based on assessments made at ages 6 months, 1 year and 2 years. As such, the Taveras study provides evidence that short sleep time may be risk factor for obesity, although any conclusions are limited to toddlers.

The present study expands upon these previous findings in several respects. The results increase an understanding of the observed connection between short sleep duration and obesity by demonstrating that obesity is particularly associated with reduced nighttime sleep caused by trouble initiating and maintaining sleep (rather than disruptions due to abnormal sleep-time behaviors or excessive daytime sleep). Additionally, much published research examining a potential link between sleep and obesity have used a clinical population sample. However, recruiting subjects because they have the conditions being studied (or related conditions) may overemphasize statistical trends and also may not result in findings generalizable to the general population (Mustello et. al. 2003). As such, by analyzing data obtained from a representative sample of the general population, the present study provides information relevant

31

to a broad spectrum of individuals rather than just a particular clinical population.

Next, the present study tested the association between sleeping problems and overweight and obesity while controlling for a range of potentially confounding factors. This is important considering the existence of research showing that certain clinical or demographic features may contribute to both obesity and sleep disorders. For example, Pine et al.

(2001) found that youth aged 6 to 19 with major depression were more likely to have a higher BMI as adults than children and adolescents who had not been clinically depressed. Gupta et al. (2002) found that obese subjects slept significantly less than non-obese subjects (p < 0.01), but as Currie and Cappuccio (2007) point out, the Gupta study did not control for psychological disturbances known to affect sleep, such as depression. Sleep deficits are reported to be higher among individuals with lower SES compared to individuals with a high level of SES (Goodman and Whitaker, 2002), and sleep deficits are also associated with chronic conditions such as obesity. In turn, it has been reported that these chronic diseases tend to occur more frequently in patient populations from lower SES backgrounds (Van Cauter and Spiegel, 1999). SES itself has emerged as a confounding variable in studies of sleep and obesity, for as mentioned above, Taveras et al.

(2008) observed that the results of their study might have been confounded by SES factors. As such, showing that the link between obesity and sleep disorders exists independently of the influence of major depression, along with socioeconomic status, age and ethnicity, is a particular strength of the present study. It is principally important that this study supports the need to further explore those theories that have emerged in the literature that conclude that it is depression that mediates the association between sleep problems and obesity, because it seems that insomnia and obesity are related even in the absence of MDD.

32

The finding of a direct relationship between insomnias and obesity in the absence of the influence of potential confounders suggests that insomnia may be an appropriate target for obesity intervention efforts because insomnia may be a contributing factor to the onset and maintenance of obesity in children. The basis for the identification of an association between obesity and insomnia, but not with the other sleep categories may possibly be related to the theory that insomnias result from a heightened state of arousal, a feature that is not associated with the other two categories. According to Horvath, et al. (2005), over-activity of certain neuron (hypocretin) cells in the hypothalamus area in mice brains seems to lead to a state of sustained arousal, which in turn may lead to overeating.

Although I controlled for many potential confounding variables, there are remaining design limitations that should be noted. First, this study was a secondary analysis of already collected data (as a prospective design was not possible), and as a result was limited to data collected from subjects at only one time period. Generally, it is believed that longitudinal analysis (taken across several time periods) provides better evidence from which causation may be inferred (Goldman, 1994), because longitudinal data permit observation of the time order of events and avoid confounding with unobserved individual characteristics that do not change with time (Shklovski, et al., 2004). Even though the large sample provided by the MECA study does permit insight on trends that may emerge over time, it is recommended that a prospective longitudinal design be employed to confirm that insomnia is a risk factor that leads to obesity. Additionally, it must be acknowledged that the data relied on in this study were self-reported. There may be some element of error in, for example, the height and weight measurements reported by study participants compared to measurements that might have been obtained by direct measurement (Hart

and Tomazic, 1999). Also, sleep reports may not be as accurate as direct observation in a sleep laboratory. For example, adult insomniacs have been reported to underestimate their total sleep time and to overestimate the time it takes them to fall asleep compared with findings on a polysomnography sleep test (Conroy, 1996). Future studies may address these deficiencies to confirm a causal relationship between insomnia and obesity.

Nonetheless, the present results, that find an apparently independent link between insomnias and pathological BMI values, has public health importance because it identifies a possible therapeutic target for deterrence or progression of obesity in young girls. In general, children who are overweight and/or obese are more likely to become obese adults (Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). The results of the present study suggest that parents and health care workers should be particularly alert to possible insomnias in children as such a condition may lead to the development or persistence of a weight problem. Addressing a child‟s insomnia through early intervention may help deter obesity and temper the likelihood that the child will become an obese adult. Additionally, as noted previously, sleep has been identified as an appealing target for such obesity interventions (Reeves, et al., 2008). Sleep may be measured relatively easily in the sleep laboratory, and sleep disorders have also been observed to be less stigmatizing than obesity (Reeves, et al., 2008).

tion may be indicative of an over-activation of the HPA-axis. Also, non-response to the Dexamethasone Suppression Test, a sign of elevated HPA-axis activity, has been found to be significantly and positively associated with BMI (p=0.03) (Stunkard, Faith and Allison, 2003). The role of the HPA-axis in mediating a connection between insomnia and obesity should be explored in subsequent studies (i.e., possibly by collecting salivary samples by which to measure a subject‟s cortisol levels). This approach seems warranted in light of the findings of the present study that the relationship between insomnias and obesity is particularly strong in young girls. Several brain regions involved in HPAaxis regulation are not yet mature as a child enters adolescence (Sowell et al., 2007), and significant sex differences in this area have been demonstrated into adulthood (Cahill, 2006). It is possible that behaviors or experiences that disrupt the HPA axis, such as lack of sleep, would particularly affect younger children, whose brains are not as further along the developmental pathway as compared to older teenagers.

It is important that steps be taken to address the serious medical issue of obesity and stop its development and persistence in youth. This study contributes to these efforts by alerting parents and medical professionals that symptoms of insomnia are independently associated with obesity. Efforts to address insomnia may thus be an effective component of a treatment plan taken to curtail the onset of overweight or obesity.

The findings of the present study also suggest that the next phase of research may be to better understand the biological mechanism underpinning the relationship between insomnias and obesity. As noted previously, the link between sleep problems and obesity may be mediated by a shared pathophysiological mechanism, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (“HPA”) axis.

Sleep deprivation has been found to significantly raise cortisol concentrations (Spiegel et al., 1999), and cortisol secre

33

N

%(N=1285)

Hypersomnias

247

19.2

Insomnias

361

28.1

Parasomnias

300

23.3

Normal Weight (BMI<85th percentile) Overweight (BMI 85th-95th percentile) Obesity (BMI >95th percentile)

867

67.5

208

16.2

169

13.2

Girls

681

53.0

Boys

604

47.0

9-12 years

593

46.1

13-15 years

408

31.8

16-18 years

284

22.1

Major depressive disorder

91

7.1

Mother did not graduate high school Black, not of Hispanic origin

157

12.2

190

14.8

Hispanic

364

28.3

Other Racial/ethnic group

690

53.8

Table 1- Frequencies of Sleep Problems, Relative Weight and Potential Correlates Among Children 9-18 Years Old

Graph#1: Percentage of Children Normal Weight, Overweight, or Obese According to Presence of Insomnias.

34

Hypersomnias

Insomnias

Parasomnias

Odds Ration (95% CI)

Odds Ration (95% CI)

Odds Ration (95% CI)

Overweight

0.95 (0.65;1.40)

1.19 (0.85;1.66)

0.90 (0.63;1.30)-+

Obesity

0.96 (0.63;1.47)

1.15 (1.06;2.13)

1.08 (0.75;1.59)

Table 2- Odd Ratios of Overweight or Obesity by Sleep Problems Among Total Sample

N Girls

Normal 650

66.3

Overweight 16.3

Obese

P-Value

17.4

Hypersomnias Y

112

69.6

12.5

17.9

Hypersomnias N

538

65.6

17.1

17.3

Insomnias Y

166

59.6

15.1

25.3

Insomnias N

484

68.6

16.7

14.7

Parasomnias Y

134

62.7

15.7

21.6

Parasomnias N

516

67.2

16.5

16.3

Boys

594

73.4

17.2

9.4

Hypersomnias Y

128

71.1

19.5

9.4

Hypersomnias N

466

74.0

16.5

9.4

Insomnias Y

183

70.5

20.2

9.3

Insomnias N

411

74.7

15.8

9.5

Parasomnias Y

156

76.3

15.4

8.3

Parasomnias N

438

72.4

17.8

9.8

<0.001 0.485

0.008

0.344

(Gender) <0.001 0.723

0.419

0.637

Table 3- Relative Weight (Normal, Overweight, and Obesity) by Presence of Sleep Problems (Hypersomnias, Insomnias, Parasomnias) Among Both Genders Further analysis showed a trend toward a strong relationship between insomnia and obesity in girls. The data suggest that the link between insomnia and obesity may be particularly significant among younger age females (9-12 years old) (p<0.05).

35

Normal

Overweight

Obese

N 283

57.2

18.0

Hypersomnias Y

44

61.4

13.6

Hypersomnias N

239

56.5

18.8

Insomnias Y

79

46.8

15.2

Insomnias N

204

61.3

19.1

19.6

16.5

26.6

Girls 9-12 years old

57.0

P-Value

24.7

0.001

25.0

0.701

24.7 38.0

0.006

Parasomnias Y

79

Parasomnias N

204

57.4

18.6

Girls 13-15 years old Hypersomnias Y

221

71.5

15.4

13.1

0.248

34

73.5

14.7

11.8

0.955

Hypersomnias N

187

71.1

15.5

13.4

Insomnias Y

38

65.8

21.1

13.2

Insomnias N

183

72.7

14.2

13.1

Parasomnias Y

36

66.7

19.4

13.9

Parasomnias N

185

72.4

14.6

Girls 16-18 years old Hypersomnias Y

146 34

Hypersomnias N

76.0

0.860

24.0

0.558

0.733

13.0

14.4

9.6

0.210

76.5

8.8

14.7

0.339

112

75.9

16.1

8.0

Insomnias Y

49

75.5

10.2

14.3

Insomnias N

97

76.3

16.5

7.2

Parasomnias Y

19

78.9

5.3

15.8

0.273

0.33 9

Parasomnias N

127

75.6

15.7

8.7

Table 4- Relative Weight by Presence of Sleep Problems Among Girls of Specific Age Groups

36

Hypersomnias

Insomnias

Parasomnias

Odds Ratio (95% CI)

Odds Ratio (95% CI)

Odds Ratio (95% CI)

Overweight

0.69

(0.37;1.27)

1.03

(0.63;1.71)

1.02

(0.60;1.74)

Obesity

0.97

(0.57;1.67)

1.98

(1.27;3.09)

1.43

(0.88;2.32)

Model of girls adjusted for MDD Overweight

0.70

(0.37;1.30)

1.05

(0.63;1.75)

1.03

(0.60;1.76)

Obesity

0.89

(0.51;1.56)

1.92

(1.22;3.01)

1.39

(0.85;2.26)

Model of girls adjusted for MDD, age group, SES, and race Overweight

0.74 (0.39;1.40)

1.04

(0.61;1.76)

0.91

(0.52;1.61)

Obesity

0.93

(0.52;1.67)

2.00

(1.24;3.21)

1.14

(0.68;1.90)

Overweight

1.23

(0.74;2.04)

1.35

(0.86;2.13)

0.82

(0.49;1.36)

Obesity

1.03

(0.52;2.04)

1.04

(0.57;1.90)

0.80

(0.42;1.56)

Model of boys adjusted for MDD Overweight

1.04

(0.59;1.82)

1.21

(0.75;1.97)

0.70

(0.41;1.20)

Obesity

1.00

(0.48;2.09)

1.02

(0.54;1.92)

0.78

(0.39;1.53)

Overweight

1.12

(0.63;1.99)

1.11

(0.68;1.83)

0.63

(0.36;1.09)

Obesity

1.15

(0.54;2.45)

0.95

(0.50;1.81)

0.72

(0.36;1.43)

Model of girls

Model of Boys

Model of boys adjusted for MDD, age group, SES, and race

Table 5- Odd Ratios of Overweight or Obesity by Sleep Problems Among Girls and Boys

37

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS I gratefully acknowledge and thank my advisor, Mr. Richard Lee, for his guidance, support and steadfast encouragement. I also appreciate and thank the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Columbia University-New York State Psychiatric Institute, for its combined support of my mentor, Cristiane S. Duarte, Ph.D., M.P.H., and Christina W. Hoven, Dr. P.H., who helped to make this research possible.

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Research

Abstracts of Student Research

A Model Of A Protein Signaling Pathway Of Xlinked Inhibitor Of Apoptosis Protein Predicts Earlier Diagnosis In Hepatocellular Carcinoma

By Steven Lin Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been a deadly cancer in many countries because diagnosis discovers the cancer at late stages, where the tumor is difficult to remove. Current diagnosis methods include serum testing, X-ray imaging and ultrasounds, which all indicate HCC at its late stages. This study investigated methods of diagnosis to discover HCC at earlier stages, where the tumor is manageable and removable.

These methods include analyzing a protein biomarker and using protein signaling pathways that could indicate the presence of HCC at early stages. To conduct the experiment, a list of candidate protein biomarkers, which included many proteins associated with the growth and death of cells, was gathered and run on gels of normal liver cell lines and HCC cell lines. The images of the gels were analyzed using the Quantity One image analysis software. This determined a numerical level of expression of each candidate protein biomarker. After using the Student‟s t-test for statistical analysis of the expression levels, X-linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein (XIAP) was chosen as the significantprotein biomarker. By combining the findings of other studies and database information on the

40

activity of XIAP in a network of proteins, a map of pathways that links XIAP and HCC was derived.

When specific XIAP signaling pathways, which stimulate the growth of HCC, are determined by pathway validation experiments, drugs can be developed to inhibit those signals and thwart the further growth of HCC. However, the XIAP pathway described here may be just one of the many significant pathways in HCC growth.

An Investigation Of The Determinants Of Fat Class And Weight Gain In Migratory Passerines Caught In Bronx Park, NYC. By: Phoebe Mankiewicz Data on migratory birds collected in a park in Bronx, NY were analyzed to find possible correlations between variations in age, gender, wing/tail length, and weight to determine which of these characteristics were affecting each bird‟s fat class and their ability to gain weight and survive. Histograms, r/r-squared values, and scatter plots were utilized during the analysis of the data. At the conclusion of the study, multiple trends were found. Migrants generally had higher fat classes in the spring then in the fall, most likely due to the “spring fatter hypothesis” and the advantages of arriving to breeding grounds with higher levels of fat/energy. Larger, omnivorous birds with similar diets had lower fat classes, which may

mean that the habitat in which these birds were caught had few of the resources they needed. There were high percentages of individuals in each of the focal species in the middle of the range of observed wing and tail lengths (including those with high fat classes). This may mean that wing and tail length is a determining factor in weight gain, and the birds at the extreme ends of the spectrum have already died off. There were few differences between the fat classes of male and female birds – although the data was skewed because more females were caught than males, and there was a high correlation between fat class and weight.These findings show that birds are acted upon, and their fat and subsequent survival is determined by a culmination of many factors.

Antimicrobial Activity Of 1,4 Diazabicyclo [2.2.2] Octane-Substituted Dulcitol And Its Derivatives

By Caroline Hong 1,4 diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane (dabco) derivatives attached to various sugars such as surcrose, cyclodextrin and starch are known to exhibit antimicrobial activities. The goals of this study are to investigate the varying nature of the dabco derivatives. The attachment of dulcitol, a sugar alcohol, to the disubstituted dabco derivatives with 4-chlorobutanoyl chloride linkages and the hexasubstitued derivatives of dabco was attempted. After this molecule was peracylated, each chloride was substituted with different lengths of dabco to determine the optimal length for antimicrobial activity. The symmetrical structure of the product was then determined through NMR techniques. Further testing of the samples is underway.

Cationic Derivatives Of Sucrose

By Christopher Awad The development of antibiotics which effectively dispose of harmful bacteria in the human body has been a question which scientists have been trying to answer for the past three decades. To date antibiotics have been developed which effectively inhibit bacterial cell wall synthesis, protein synthesis, and DNA replication. The molecule “DABCO”, 1,4 diazabicyclo[2.2.2] octane, has been shown to hold significant antimicrobial properties when incorporated into a carbohydrate derivative of a polycationic salt. This salt will gain antimicrobial and antifungal properties.

For the modification of this carbohydrate, its primary alcohol sites were tosylated and then reacted with DABCO, which was previously modified to incorpo-

rate a sixteen carbon alkyl chain. Upon addition of Dabco to the three primary hydroxyl site s of Dabco, it gains a positive charge on the nitrogen increasing its overall positive charge and its membrane disrupting capability. Conceptually, as compared to previous experiments, the alkyl chain on the modified DABCO will be accepted by the bacterial cell and, upon entry, disrupt the negatively charged membrane of the bacteria cell, due to Dabco‟s highly positive charge.

N-glycosylation Affects The Expression Level Of Kv1.3 Potassium Channels In Breast Cancer Cells

By JingYi Yan Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases in the world, and deregulation of potassium channels has been implicated in breast cancer proliferation and cell cycle progression. This research addresses the potassium channel protein Kv1.3 as a regulator in breast cancer proliferation and aims to test whether modification of N-glycans on Kv1.3 affects its expression levels. Kv1.3 glycosylation mutants were generated by using PCR and quick change mutagenesis. Total protein level of Kv1.3 was measured by immunoblotting, and surface protein level of Kv1.3 was measured by cell surface biotinylation and immunoblotting. Exogenous and endogenous expressions of Kv1.3 were studied in CHO cells and MCF7 breast cancer cells, respectively. This research identified that either of the two Nlinked sites on Kv1.3 could be glycosylated. N-glycans were pivotal on Kv1.3 stability, trafficking, and surface expression, and supplementation of monosaccharides affected Kv1.3 expression level. Furthermore, Kv1.3 was over-expressed in human breast cancer cell MCF7, and supplementation of monosaccharide L-fucose reduced MCF7 cell density and altered Kv1.3 protein level. Thus, N-glycans play an important role in Kv1.3 surface expression, and targeting the N-glycans of Kv1.3 by monosaccharide supplements may be a promising way to suppress breast cancer cell proliferation.

Role Of Font In Judgment Of Content

By Sushi Subburamu Beauty is a quality that gives pleasure to the senses.

This may shape the decisions we make. While it is often supposed, in literary criticism, that we can ignore the beauty of appearance to make a pure judgment about content, in typography it is a widely accepted principle that the text design should be neither pretty nor ugly; it should be “transparent” so as not to distract from the content. We tested this directly, measuring the

41

movie, based on reading the summary. We tested a common and an ugly font. We wondered whether the ugly font would distract the reader enough to make them a poor judge of the text‟s content. We find that the ugly font substantially reduced the movie ratings, but did not reduce the differences. Thus, the ugly font did bias the movie rating, but, contrary to conventional typographic wisdom, did not impair judgment of content. In real life, the movie-summary font would affect whether the reader goes to the movies, but would not affect, once there, which movie is chosen.

Synthesis of Potential Single Molecule Diode

By Aamir Khan A diode is used in circuits and is the simplest semiconductor that allows current to flow through only one direction. [4,3,3] and [4,4,4] were successfully synthesized as possible candidates to act as diodes when placed between two gold surfaces. Gordan Moore, founder of Intel, predicted in his Moore‟s law that the number of transistors on a circuit will double every two years. This theory reveals a limitation as the capacity of a circuit will run out. A single molecule diode can solve this problem as it will make a circuit many magnitudes smaller and increase its capacity.

Taking into consideration Bochkarev‟s synthesis of 1,3,5-tri(phenylethynyl)benzene, also known as [0,0,0], I used the sonogashira coupling method used

by Tour to synthesize [4,3,3] and [4,4,4], which have yet not been properly named, but were successfully synthesized as possible diodes by reacting 4-[3,5Diiodo(phenyl-ethynyl)]pyridine with 4-Ethynylpyridinium and 1,3,5-tribromo benzene with Ethynylbenzene respectively. These molecules have a similar molecular structure to the structure of [0,0,0], but have pyridine rings instead of benzene rings at the “head” and “legs”. Since the nitrogen is electronegative, while gold is electropositive, the elements bond and form a bridge which allows the current to cross over into and out of the molecule, which isn‟t possible with [0,0,0].

Mass Spec and NMR spectrum have shown that these molecules are pure and the exact ones intended. Final tests to evaluate the ability of [4,3,3] and [4,4,4] to work as diodes are underway using a scanning tunneling microscope.

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The Effects Of Priming On The Production Of The English Locative Construction

By Alicia Holland This experiment explores the effect of priming, the tendency to reuse syntactic structures one has recently been exposed to, on the production of the English locative alternation, which appears in two forms, container-locative (I sprayed the roses with water) and content-locative (I sprayed water onto the roses). Subjects will view pictures and hear them described with locative sentences, then describe other pictures with locative sentences. If priming works, language instruction should include more exposure to infrequent structures. If syntax in a speaker‟s first language correlates to his/her usage of English, language instruction should be specialized for speakers of specific languages.

The Efficacy Of The BioRing-A Revolutionary Non-Hormonal Contraceptive

By Priam Chakraborty The objective of the BioRing research was to create a non-hormonal, intravaginal contraceptive which will prevent unwanted pregnancies as well as protect women from HIV infection. This form of birth control will encompass all essential factors to reduce adverse effects on the body and act as a convenient alternative to hormonal birth control. The two base components of the ring were acacia gum and gelatin. The BioRing also contains biocompatible components: ferrous gluconate, L-ascorbic acid, and ampholines. Ferrous gluconate immobilizes the sperm tail; L-ascorbic acid increases the viscosity of cervical mucus; ampholines maintain the acidic environment of the vagina and reduces the pH of the sperm. Four ring combinations were made, all incorporating microbicides PMPA and Boc-LBA to protect against HIV. All rings contained L-Ascorbic Acid, but rings B and D did not contain Ferrous Gluconate. These BioRing combinations will prevent pregnancy and protect women against the transmission of HIV. The purpose of this project was to measure the efficacy of the BioRing. The rings were put into a simulant vaginal fluid solution and the eluates were collected daily to measure concentrations of Ascorbic acid and Ferrous Gluconate. Once these results are reviewed and evaluated, the BioRing will be sent for human trial.

The Mapping Of A Signaling Transduction Pathway For Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

By Anna Liang Malignant mesothelioma is currently one of the deadliest and increasingly ubiquitous cancer in the world. The extensive use of asbestos, since the early 1900s, lead to the rise of malignant mesothelioma.

Diagnoses and treatment of mesothelioma is hindered by its long latency period. In an attempt to better diagnose, in terms of accuracy, researchers searched for reliable biomarker. The purpose of this study is to formulate a tentative pathway, which depicts tumorigenesis of malignant pleural mesothelioma, to reveal other biomarkers and to monitor the cancerâ&#x20AC;&#x;s progression. Western blots were performed, in the laboratory, which helped to elicit proteins that were significantly expressed in malignant pleural mesothelial cells. Published studies were reviewed for a collection of candidate proteins that may participate in regulation of mesothelioma. The list of candidate proteins, generated by Western Blot analysis and published studies, was used to formulate the tentative pathway on Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA), through data-mining. Based on the pathway, hypoxia inducible factor 1, alpha subunit (HIF1a) appears to play a significant role in the tumorigenesis of malignant pleural mesothelioma. Further investigations should be made to elucidate possible relationships between asbestos fibers and HIF1a.

White Matter Deficits Determined by Electron Microscopy in an Animal Model of ADHD

By Reffat Manzur Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) help uncover the role that white matter plays in the Central Nervous System (CNS) by investigating the consequences of an abnormal white matter volume. These methods are effective in understanding part of the significance of white matter but do not fully clarify the necessity of white matter which has long been thought of as a passive structure. Brain scans reveal a link between white matter deficit and impaired coordination as displayed in ADHD patients.

To further understand white matter and its components, it is necessary to view white matter in more clarity as provided by a transmission electron microscope (TEM) which is able to generate high resolution images of the major structural component of white matter, myelin. Therefore by use of TEM, this study imaged myelin and analyzed morphology as well as percentage counts of myelinated and unmyelinated

axons in the corpus callosum region of a valid animal ADHD model. Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (SHR) served as the experimental modelin comparison to Wistar Kyoto rats. By use of EM, results reflect a 33 % decrease in the overall volume of myelinated axons and of white matter and a decrease in astrocytic processes for the SHR.

Manufacture of a Metal Nanoparticle Optic Device

By Xing Tian Metal nanoparticles have optical properties distinct from those of bulk metals. Therefore they are used in optical devices for various purposes. A photonic crystal is a composite structure made with alternating layers to achieve enhancement of optical fields. In this report, metal nanoparticles are integrated into polymer host materials to build a one-dimensional photonic crystal.

To find out optimal parameters for the structure, effect of concentration of silver nanoparticles on absorption was investigated. Silver nitrate solution was mixed with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) to form silver nanoparticle dissolved in PVA. The film was made by spin-coating a layer of Ag-PVA material onto glass substrate and developing in a heated environment. Their absorption spectra vary with respect to the maximum amount absorbed. It has been found that longer develop time, lower spin speed, and higher concentrations all lead to higher absorption spectra. Using these results, the extinction coefficient of layers of specific silver concentration could be calculated. Parameters, including the calculated k value, the thickness of both Ag-PVA and poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) layers helped generate a simulation of the spectra of light shed on the multilayered structure. Based on this simulation, the real structure was built using the same procedure and tested with ellipsometry. The simulation and actual reflectivity spectra agree with each other, with a general trend of the peak shifting toward 420nm where the peak was expected. This shows some promise for potential application in optical shielding and switch applications.

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plasma of septic patients. The system filters out HMGB1 selectively by using Heparin-Agarose beads because of heparin‟s highly negative nature, and

By Deborah Ok HMGB1‟s highly positive nature. To characterize the functionality of the beads, a breakthrough curve was created. However, true data was not received, because of The objective of this project is to test for bone formation using osteoblast cell‟s conditional medium in mus- the difficulties in packing a column with beads, and the obscurity of western blots. The beads were also pressure cle tissue. From past in vitro experiments, the conditested through the use of a syringe pump. The Heparintional medium was seen to promote bone marrow stem Agarose beads were shown to have a low crosslinking, cells differentiation in osteoblasts. In this experiment causing compressibility, and ultimately leading to presmedia from these cells were collected and encapsulated sure increases in the extracorporeal system. into Poly Lactic-Co-Glycolic Acid (PLGA) microspheres (3). The PLGA microspheres are the preferred vehicle for the control release drug delivery because they steadily release the encapsulated media over a long period of time, not discharging everything all at once.

These microspheres with the media from osteoblasts were injected into the leg muscle in a mouse to see if the muscle cells would transform into the injected differentiated cell media for a period of 4 weeks. The left leg was considered the control and just had micropheres in PBS, and the right had the microspheres from the osteoblast media. After four weeks the muscle cells in the mouse legs were then observed to see if there was calcified. The same will be done for neural cells. However because neural cell growth had not been cultivated before, the rate of proliferation and death was unknown.

After experiencing massive cell death experimentation was done with media of retinoic acid and B27 and just with B27 to understand in which media the cells grew better in.

Bone Density Formation Using Osteoblasts

Removal of HMGB To Prevent Sepsis

By Ampadi Karan Sepsis is a medical condition associated with infection that can develop after trauma or surgery. About 700,000 people are affected by it annually and it is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. The pathway causing sepsis involves immune cells such as macrophages, which not only engulf and destroy invading pathogens but also cause an inflammatory response upon bonding with the pathogens molecular patterns.

This response involves the release of multiple cytokines such as TNF and HMGB1. It has been shown that high levels of High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) are produced in humans and animals with sepsis and reducing these levels lowers the severity of the condition.

HMGB1 has been associated with causing a greater severity of sepsis in patients. HMGB1 is a late mediator, therefore there is a greater therapeutic window to treat the condition. This research paper describes an extracorporeal system that removes HMGB1 protein from the

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Award Winners in Biology 2010 American Academy of Neurology Neuroscience Prize Theresa Tharkin Intel Science Talent Search Semi-Finalists Award Soo Kyoung Kim, Oliver Shetler, Jason Shieh, Ho Chit Siu, Jingyi Yan ISEF Finalists Soo Kyoung Kim, Ho Chit Siu Junior Science and Humanities Symposium Third Place Award in Chemistry Christopher Awad Junior Science and Humanities Symposium Third Place Award in Physics Soo Kyoung Kim New York City Science and Engineering Fair Finalists Award Hasan Ali, Christopher Awad, Vilkalpa, Dammavalam, Robert Esnard, Diego Guerrero, Caroline Hong, Soo Kyoung Kim, Anna Liang, Reffat Manzur, Saima Mir, Oliver Shetler, Jason Shieh, Ho Chit Siu, Theresa Tharakan, Tiffany Win, Jingyi Yan Siemens-Westinghouse Contest Regional Finalist Award Jason Shieh Young Naturalist Finalist Award Erik Zeidler

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Photo Credit: Ferguson Photography, Creative Commons.

The Journal of Biology is published annually by the Students of the Bronx High School of Science.

The Bronx High School of Science The Journal of Biology, Rm 329D 75 West 205th Street Bronx, NY, 10468

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