| Affiliations: | |
| Project Leader: | Joseph Cichocki jcichocki@cvm.tamu.edu Veterinary Integrative Biosciences |
| Faculty Mentor: | Ivan Rusyn, Ph.D. |
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Meeting Times:
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Fall 2016: M 9:00AM-12:00PM |
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Team Size:
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5 (Team Full) |
| Open Spots: | 0 |
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Special Opportunities:
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Team members that contribute significantly to the scientific process of a project (performing experiments, analyzing data, generating figures) should expect co-authorship on any publications stemming directly from that work. However, there needs to be a significant contribution to the science (i.e. not just run one gel or help change a few mouse cages). The Society of Toxicology (our groups’ main professional Society) is very supportive of funding undergraduate trainees to attend their annual (and possibly regional) meetings. As the Toxicology Program continues to expand and acquire significant support from funding agencies, there is potential that undergraduate training in toxicology would make team members qualified potential candidates for the Toxicology Program here at TAMU. |
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Team Needs:
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Requirement: Take animal handling and basic lab safety courses The ability to perform basic science techniques (e.g. pipetting) is highly preferred. Applicants absolutely must be organized and motivated. |
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Description:
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One of the main interests of the Rusyn laboratory is investigating how different individuals respond to exposure to environmental chemicals. Using both in vivo (mouse) and in vitro (human induced pluripotent stem cells) approaches, we are characterizing and quantifying inter-individual variability in toxicokinetics (i.e. how the body processes a toxicant) and toxicodynamics (i.e. how the toxicant alters the body). This specific project will be focused on utilizing a mouse population model to characterize inter-individual variability in toxico-kinetics and -dynamics in response to trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene, two ubiquitous environmental pollutants. Many of us are familiar with the sharp, sweet odor of tetrachloroethylene, as this is the solvent which off-gasses from our freshly dry-cleaned garments. Currently, the main on-going study in the Rusyn lab which will require immediate attention is a large mouse study with ~500 mice that are being exposed to trichloroethylene for 90 days. As the concept of “”the dose makes the poison”” is paramount to toxicity testing, different doses of trichloroethylene have been administered to different groups of animals. What makes our laboratory unique from other toxicology labs is that we are using mice from a variety of different genetic backgrounds to investigate inter-individual variability in response to trichloroethylene. Animal exposures will culminate by November and thus this semester is the perfect opportunity for team members to join our team. A non-exhaustive list of some skills that team members can expect to acquire are the following: 1) a basic understanding of toxicology; 2) animal handling; 3) tissue processing, including extraction and analysis of nucleic acids and/or proteins; 4) acquire familiarity with using gas and or liquid chromatography coupled to mass-spectroscopy to analyze small molecules in tissue samples; 5) general laboratory safety and organizational skills; 6) effective collaboration and networking skills. |