Summer Program Gives UA Students Scientific Research Experience

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Howard Hughes Undergraduate Research Intern Program has given a select group of University of Alabama students the chance to perform cutting-edge scientific research alongside a faculty mentor during the summer.

In projects ranging from researching protozoa’s relationship to human defense cells to finding a more efficient way to study pond scum DNA, the program gives undergraduates professional research experience, said Dr. Martha Powell, professor of biological sciences at UA who directs the program.

“It’s a great program. It’s fun,” Powell said. “Students find out very soon that you can read a paper and [research] seems real simple, but you do a lot of experiments that don’t work before you get them that do. And, a lot of doing research is believing in yourself, not getting discouraged and enjoying the moment that you do make a discovery.”

This is the 10th year the program has been at the University, and 12 students were accepted for the internship. To get into the program, Powell said students must be nominated by two faculty members and submit an application and essay. Students are then chosen for the program by a group of faculty members.

Once accepted, students are given a stipend of $3,200 and an additional $800 for food. Each of the students’ labs is given $2,000 for supplies and materials. In the past, the program was funded by two grants given by the Howard Hughes Foundation. Powell said grant money had run out this year and the University funded the program.

Students work on their projects for 10 weeks, which culminates into an open-house poster session where students present their work. The Hughes interns will present their research projects at the poster session on Friday, July 25 at noon in the main lobby of the UA Biology Building. The poster session is open to the public.

Britton O’Shields, a UA senior from Northport majoring in biology, is in his second summer with the program. Britton said he was more of an assistant last summer, but this year he has taken on his own research project and has his own small lab on campus.

O’Shields said he works with algae trying to find efficient and informative ways to decode a certain species DNA. He said he is decoding the algae DNA for the Barcode of Life project in which scientists around the world are trying to catalog DNA sequences of every living species on earth.

O’Shields said he works a normal 40-hour work week in the lab.

“It’s an opportunity that just doesn’t come along that often – it’s rare, especially for undergrads” he said. “Research is expensive, and to have someone give you money for supplies and give you the space and the chance to do a research project – it’s a great opportunity.”

Dr. Laura Busenlehner, UA assistant professor of chemistry, said her student researcher, Heather Moody of Livingston, is studying a protein in the human body that makes essential iron-containing components used by many enzymes and is trying to understand the protein’s function and structure.

Busenlehner said the program lets students step away from classes and apply what they’ve learned in a real world type situation.

“The Hughes program gives students the chance to do more in-depth research than they can do during the academic year,” she said. “They work all day, every day on their research projects. And it’s good for students to do that and to work hard to finally get some type of result from their project and from the hours they put in.”

In addition to O’Shields and Moody, the 2008 Hughes interns include Kalen Berry of Hartsell, Elizabeth Frost of Hazel Green, Taneika Head of Tuscaloosa, Connor Johnson of Cullman, Kyle Lee of Millry, Joe Lopez of Winfield, Melissa Pegues of Birmingham (zip code 35242), Alesia Pruitt of Hoover, Catherine Raulston of Bridgeport and Rachel Tucker of Tuscaloosa.