Category: Students of Kinesiology

Celebrating Physiology Friday

With tPhysiology Friday logohe assistance of exercise science student, Thomas Bye, KIP Assistant Professor Steve Elmer, and Advisor/Outreach Coordinator Kathy Carter were recently awarded a $500 Physiological Society Outreach grant for funding activities that promote Physiology Friday. As part of Biology Week during October 9-13, Physiology Friday was an international event with students all over the world participating in events and celebrating Physiology,  the function of the human body.

Lead by Elmer and Carter, students from Kinesiology and Biomedical visited 6 area schools. Over 135 area high school students took part in numerous engaging activities that demonstrated how basic knowledge of physiology is important for understanding how we move.

In addition to bringing the awareness of Physiology to area high school students, this event creates learning opportunities for our students as well.  Here are a few quotes from the MTU students that participated:

“I learned a lot about myself in doing this project. It was really fun, I found that I wasn’t as nervous about presenting as I thought I would be and I sort of just let my enthusiasm and passion take over.  It’s really easy to present on a topic you’re already excited and possionate about!” 

– Abby Sutherland, Second Year Exercise Science 

“This experience actually alowed me to learn more about physiology, because when you educate others about a topic it helps you to better understand it as well.  I was also able to learn how to be a more effective speaker from my fellow outreach participants in our preparation meetings.”

– Jana Hendrickson, Second Year Exercise Science 

“I learned that I love teaching and I may want to try and pursue more things related to the area.  It was nice to step out of my departments and experience more of the physiology and athletic sciences research opportunities.”

– Levi Oxner, Fourth Year Biomedical and Electrical Engineering

“From this experience I learned how to problem solve, we had two mess ups during our activity but easily solved them.”

– Thomas Bye, Fourth Year Exercise Science

“I helped with this event because I enjoy teaching.  Also, when I was in high school I was unaware of what kinesiology was and all the cool job opportunities that came with a degree in this field.  It feels great to introduce students to this and help them realize what they may want to do in the future.”

– Kevin Phillips, PhD Student Integrative Physiology

 

Pic News

KIP Faculty and Students Attend Experimental Biology 2017

EB 2017 home logoExperimental Biology 2017 (EB) was held in Chicago, IL the end of April.   Faculty, numerous graduate students and one undergraduate student were in attendance from The Department of Kinesiology and Intregrative Physiology.  EB is an annual meeting of six societies comprised of more than 14,000 scientist and 50 guest societies.  The conference focus areas include anatomy, biochemistry and molecular biology, investigative pathology, nutrition, pharmacology, and physiology.  Conferences like EB provide faculty opportunities for collaboration with top scientists from around the world, preview latest technologies from exhibitors, and allows a platform to present their latest research.  Students gain valuable presentation experience and acknowledgment of their work through oral presentations and poster sessions.

Integrative Physiology Laboratory
Jason Carter, PhD

JasonCarter_Portrait.2011 (2)Dr. Carter, department chair and professor, participated in a Sleep, Circadian Clocks and Metabolism symposium where he presented “Consequences of Sleep Deprivation and Circadian Misalignment on Sympathoneural and Adrenomedullary Control”.  Carter had two students presenting work from his laboratory.

ida_portraitIda Fonkoue, recent PhD graduate
Oral Presentation Title: Black Adults Display Reduced Sympathetic Reactivity to Mental Stress Compared to Non-Hispanic White Adults, I.T. Fonkoue, C.E. Schwartz, B.M. Gervais, J.R. Carter

Poster Title:  Sympathetic Neural Control in Chronic Insomnia, J.R. Carter, D. Grimaldi, I.T. Fonkoue, L. Medalie, B. Mokhlesi, E.Van Cauter

WakehamTravis Wakeham, master’s student and laboratory supervisor (BIO)
Oral Presentation Title: Reliability of Heart Rate Variability as an Assessment of Cardiac Sympathetic Activity in Humans, TR. Wakeham, I.T. Fonkoue, J.J. Durocher, W.H. Cooke, J.R. Carter

Carter Lab Group Pic

Ida.Jason.EB2017Congratulations to Dr. Fonkoue who was the recipient of the Neural Control and Autonomic Regulation (NCAR) Research Recognition Award for her first author abstract.  This award recognizes an outstanding investigator in the early stages  of their independent career.   Dr. Fonkoue adds this to a long list of awards and accomplishments throughout her time as a Michigan Tech graduate student.

 

 

Electrophysiology Laboratory
Qing-Hui Chen, PhD

QinghuiChen

Dr. Chen, associate professor, chaired a section and presented an oral presentation.  He had two graduate students in attendance from his laboratory.
Oral Presentation Title: Small-Conductance Ca2+-Activated K+ (SK) Channels Regulate Pre-Sympathetic Neurons in the Hypothalamic Paraventricular Nucleus (PVN) and Parasympathetic Cardiomotor Neurons (CMN) in the Nucleus Ambiguus (NA): Pathological Changes, Z. Cheng, M. Lin, G.M. Toney, Q. Chen

Chapp

Andrew Chapp, PhD student
Poster Title: Acetate, an Ethanol Metabolite increases Neuroinflammation and Neuronal Death: Implications in Ethanol Neurodegeneration,  A.D. Chapp, K.M. Driscoll, J. Behnke, Z. Shan, Q.Chen

Jessica Behnke,  master’s student
Poster Title: Acetate, the Metabolite of Ethanol, Increases Cytosolic Calcium and mRNA Expression Levels of EGR1 and TNFα in Dopaminergic Like PC12 Cells,  J.E. Behnke, A.D. Chapp, K.M. Driscoll, Z. Shan, Q. Chen

Chen & Behnke Chen & Chapp

 

 

 

 

 

 

Molecular Physiology Laboratory
Zhiying Shan, PhD

Shan

Dr. Shan, assistant professor, also attended the conference.  There were three posters presented from her laboratory.

Taija Hahka, master’s student
Poster Title: High Salt Diet Plus Fructose Water Intake Induces Hypertension, T. Hahka, Y. Fan, E. Jiang, Q. Chen, Z. Shan

Enshe Jiang, visiting scholar
Poster Title: High Salt Intake Induces Sympathetic Activation in Dahl Salt-Sensitive Rats Through Activation of Orexin-TNFa Signaling in the PVN, E. Jiang, M. Huber, Y. Fan, F. Zhu, Q. Chen, Z. Shan

Yuanyuan Fan, visiting student
Poster Title: Orexin A Receptor 1 (OX1R) Activation Increases Cam K2 Expression in PC12 Cells, Y. Fan, E. Jiang, T. Hahka, Q. Chen, Z. Shan

Exercise Physiology Laboratory
Steven Elmer, PhD

Steven_Elmer

Dr. Elmer, assistant professor, attended and presented a teaching section poster.  He also had one undergraduate student attend from his labratory.
Poster Title: The “Locomotion”: Not the Pop Song But an Activity Designed to Link Energetics and Mechanics to Understand Human Movement

 

IMG_6206Thomas Bye, undergraduate student, presented a Physiology Understand (PhUn) Week poster.
Poster Title: Use of Course-Based, Required Service Learning Assignment to Increase Physiology Understanding in Local Schools, T. Bye, K. Carter, J. Carter, S. Elmer

Bye EB Poster 2017
Christopher Schwartz, PhD

Christpoher Schwartz

Dr. Schwartz, lecturer, also attended this year and was a co-investigator on an oral presentation.
Oral Presentation Title: Elevated Sympathetic Nerve Activity Mediates Increases in Large Central Elastic Artery Stiffness Independent of Changes in Blood Pressure in Humans, S.W. Holwerda, D.P. Credeur, L.E. DuBose, R.E. Luehrs, C.E. Schwartz, P.J. Fadel, G.L., Pierce

 

Local Students Win Portage Health Foundation Making a Difference Scholarships to Michigan Tech

1491240303Four students who are entering Michigan Tech this fall to pursue health-related careers have received $8,000 Making a Difference scholarships from the Portage Health Foundation. Another 10 entering first-year students received $1,000 awards.

 

The $8,000 scholarships went to:

  • Peter Alger, Houghton, computer engineering
  • Alexa Destrampe, Lake Linden, exercise science
  • Hannah Kariniemi, Calumet, biological sciences
  • Karmyn Polakowski, Houghton, biological sciences

Receiving $1,000 scholarships were:

  • Blake Dupuis, Lake Linden, exercise science
  • Lauren Gabe, L’Anse, biological sciences
  • Austin Goudge, Houghton, medical laboratory science
  • Bella Nutini, Hancock, exercise science
  • Celia Peterson, Calumet, biomedical engineering
  • Anna Pietila, L’Anse, biological sciences
  • Lindsay Sandell, Houghton, biomedical engineering
  • Brooke Tienhaara, Calumet, biological sciences
  • Nicholas Walli, Finlandia University, biological sciences
  • Sloane Zenner, Houghton, mechanical engineering

The students are from Houghton, Keweenaw, Baraga or Ontonagon counties.

The 14 recipients of the 2017 awards have an average GPA of 3.81. Their interests reflect a broad spectrum of majors including biological sciences, exercise science, biomedical engineering, computer engineering, medical laboratory science and mechanical engineering. The scholarship winners flip Michigan Tech’s male to female ratio of 3:1, with 10 female and 4 male recipients.

The scholarships are part of a Michigan Tech-Portage Health Foundation partnership established in 2015 to support health-related research and education, jobs and community health. The scholarships were first awarded in 2016.

“The awards reflect the high-caliber student talent we have locally, thanks to exceptional schools, outreach programming and parent support,” says Jodi Lehman, director of foundations at Michigan Tech. “We know that student talent is key in supporting the success of college peers and inspiring K-12 students to pursue health science and engineering pathways.

The Portage Health Foundation and Michigan Tech share the long-term goal of retaining or recruiting back local workforce talent — whether that be orthodontists, doctors, physical therapists, orthopedic surgeons, biomedical engineers or professionals in the field of medical informatics. Scholarships ultimately play a critical role in helping to grow our local economy while fostering healthy communities.”

At a dinner for finalists, the scholarship recipients heard from current students also supported by the Portage Health Foundation through the Undergraduate Research Internship Program (URIP). Both speakers shared their internship experiences and career goals.

Read the full story.

Stephanie Dietrich in Undergrad Research Symposium

StephanieDStephanie Dietrich’s research, Subjective and Objective Assessments of Sleep Differences in Male and Female Collegiate Athletes, was presented at Michigan Tech’s 2017 Undergraduate Research Symposium this past week.

With the assistance of Jason Carter, she hypothesized that female athletes would demonstrate improved objective, and worse subjective, assessments of sleep when compared to men.

A number of studies report that sex (i.e., male vs. female) can influence subjective and objective assessments of sleep. Specifically, women tend to report lower subjective sleep quality compared to men, yet objective assessment via actigraphy have shown a paradoxically higher sleep duration and sleep efficiency in women compared to men. The vast majority of work in this area has been limited to middle-age and older adults. Despite the importance of sleep in athletic performance, no studies to date have focused on young, healthy athletes.

The Undergraduate Research Symposium highlights the amazing cutting-edge research being conducted on Michigan Tech’s campus by some of our best and brightest undergraduate students.

The students showcasing their work today have spent a significant portion of the past year working alongside Michigan Tech faculty and graduate students to explore, discover and create new knowledge. They’ve spent long hours in the lab or out in the field designing experiments, gathering data, creating new models and testing hypotheses. They’ve applied their classroom knowledge in new and sometimes unexpected ways, and developed new skills that will propel them forward in their careers.

KIP Student Thomas Bye participates in Undergrad Research Symposium

IMG_6206Thomas Bye presented his research, The Effects of Respiratory Muscle Fatigue on Upper-Body Exercise Performance, at the 2017 Undergraduate Research Symposium.

With the assistance of Dr. Steven Elmer, Bye evaluated the effects of respiratory muscle fatigue on upper-body exercise performance. Through his research, we will have a better understanding of the respiratory system, elite sport performance, and exercise prescription for patients with COPD and asthma.

The Undergraduate Research Symposium highlights the amazing cutting-edge research being conducted on Michigan Tech’s campus by some of our best and brightest undergraduate students.

The students showcasing their work today have spent a significant portion of the past year working alongside Michigan Tech faculty and graduate students to explore, discover and create new knowledge. They’ve spent long hours in the lab or out in the field designing experiments, gathering data, creating new models and testing hypotheses. They’ve applied their classroom knowledge in new and sometimes unexpected ways, and developed new skills that will propel them forward in their careers.

KIP Student Sydney Smuck participates in Undergrad Research Symposium

unnamedSydney Smuck’s research, Smart Exercise Application with Wearable Motion Sensor: Validity & Usability, was presented at Michigan Tech’s 2017 Undergraduate Research Symposium this past week.

With the assistance of Tejin Yoon, Smuck looked to improve the commitment levels of a home-based exercise program, a smart exercise application with a wearable motion sensor.

The Undergraduate Research Symposium highlights the amazing cutting-edge research being conducted on Michigan Tech’s campus by some of our best and brightest undergraduate students.

The students showcasing their work today have spent a significant portion of the past year working alongside Michigan Tech faculty and graduate students to explore, discover and create new knowledge. They’ve spent long hours in the lab or out in the field designing experiments, gathering data, creating new models and testing hypotheses. They’ve applied their classroom knowledge in new and sometimes unexpected ways, and developed new skills that will propel them forward in their careers.

Michigan Space Grant Consortium Award Recipients Announced

gScmGaeKIP students received awards tallying $10,000 in funding through the Michigan Space Grant Consortium (MSGC), sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the 2017-18 funding cycle.

Michigan Tech Undergraduates receiving $2,500 research fellowships:

  • Thomas Bye (KIP): “NASAs Concern for Upper-Body Work Performance During Spaceflight: What Impact Does Respiratory Muscle Fatigue Have?” with Steven Elmer (KIP)
  • Marcello Guadagno (ME-EM): “Stratus Meteorological CubeSat: Payload Integration and Mission Level Design” with Lyon Brad King (ME-EM)

Michigan Tech Graduate Students receiving $5,000 research fellowships:

  • Matthew Kilgas (KIP): “Muscle Function Following Aerobic Exercise with Blood Flow Restriction: Implications for Spaceflight” with Steven Elmer (KIP) and Tejin Yoon (KIP)
  • Kevin Nevorski (Bio Sci): “Nitrogen in Space: An Examination of How Nitrogen Cycle Processes are Related in Streams and How Those Processes are Influenced at Multiple Special Scales” with Amy Marcarelli (Bio Sci)

NASA implemented the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program in 1989 to provide funding for research, education and public outreach in space-related science and technology. The program has 52 university-based consortia in the United States and Puerto Rico.

As an affiliate of the Michigan Consortium, Michigan Tech has been an active participant in MSGC for approximately 20 years. MSGC funding is administered through Michigan Tech’s Pavlis Honors College.

For more information, contact Paige Hackney in the Pavlis Honors College at 7-4371 or visit the MSGC website.

Kilgas and Bye Awarded Michigan Space Grant Consortium Awards

KilgasByeCongratulations to doctoral student Matthew Kilgas and undergraduate student Thomas Bye as both received fellowships for their proposed research through the Michigan Space Grant Consortium (MSGC).  Briefly, MSGC offers research fellowships to students pursuing projects directly related to NASA strategic interests, including aerospace, space science, earth system science, and other related science, engineering or mathematics fields.

Matt will be working with Dr. Elmer  and Dr. Yoon on his project entitled “Muscle Function Following Aerobic Exercise with Blood Flow restriction: Implications for Spaceflight”.

Tom’s project, “NASA’s Concern for Upper-body Work Performance During Space Flight: What Impact Does Respiratory Muscle Fatigue Have?” is the first MSGC award for an undergraduate student in the Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology.  He will be working with Dr. Elmer on his project.

We wish Matt and Tom the best of luck with their respective projects and strongly encourage other students to apply to MSGC in the future.

 

Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology student place at Graduate Research Colloquium

32897145312_f70a45955c_zKIP students Andrew Chapp placed 3rd in the Oral Presentation Competition and Mathew Kilgas placed 1st place in the Poster Presentation Competition at the 2017 Graduate Research Colloquium. Kate Glodowski won a Graduate Student Service Award for her work. Below is a complete list of winners.

The 2017 Graduate Research Colloquium (GRC) was held on February 15-16 in the Memorial Union Ballroom. There were oral and poster presentation. The banquet was held on the evening of February 16

ABC 10’s Keweenaw Bureau Reporter Rick Allen reported on the colloquium. Read more and watch the video at ABC10 UP, by Rick Allen.

Complete list of winners:

Oral Presentation Competition

  1. 1st Place: Kevin Sunderland, Department of Biomedical Engineering
  2. 2nd Place: Teresa Wilson, Department of Physics
  3. 3rd Place: Andrew Chapp, Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology
  4. Most Attended: Muraleekrishnan Menon, Department of Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
  5. Most Attended: Niranjan Miganakallu, Department of Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics

Poster Presentation Competition

  1. 1st Place: Matthew Kilgas, Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology
  2. 2nd Place: Brian Page, Department of Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics
  3. 3rd Place: Zichen Qian, Department of Biomedical Engineering
  4. People’s Choice: Mugdha Priyadarshini, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Graduate Student Service Awards

  1. Gorkem Asilioglu, Department of Computer Science
  2. Hossein Tavakoli, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  3. Kate Glodowski, Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology
  4. Erin Pischke, Department of Social Sciences

The GRC is held each year by the Graduate Student Government at Michigan Tech.

Randy Owsley Memorial Scholarship Winners Named

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Hali Evans, a participant in Michigan Tech’s Athletic Training Internship Program treats a student-athlete. Evans, an exercise science major, is one of five recipients of the Portage Health Foundation/Randy Owsley Memorial Scholarship.

Five undergraduate students at Michigan Technological University have been selected to receive inaugural Portage Health Foundation/Randy Owsley Memorial Scholarships.

Randy Owsley made an impact that would last a lifetime, in fact, beyond his lifetime. During the 18 years he was the Head Athletic Trainer for Michigan Tech, he worked with a group of student trainers who bonded with him and with each other. Even after Randy left Tech in 1988, he continued to influence them and their careers. That cadre of former student trainers have remained close today.

Owsley died on Thanksgiving morning, 2015. Although his former students are a living legacy of his impact, these former students wanted to establish a lasting tribute here at Michigan Tech. Working in partnership with Portage Health Foundation, these alumni have created and funded the Randy Owsley Memorial – Portage Health Foundation Scholarship. Every dollar the alumni gave, the campus-wide Portage Health Foundation grant matched to help them reach their initial goal of providing five, $1,000 scholarships this year to five student athletic trainers. The long-term goal is to endow the scholarship fund as a lasting tribute to Randy and his influence.

The scholarships are designed to create opportunities for students participating in Michigan Tech’s Athletic Training Internship Program, for those enter health science and engineering professions.

The $500 scholarships, which are renewable for an additional semester, are named after the late Randy Owsley, who spent 18 years as the Huskies’ head athletic trainer and passed away in 2015. Former student athletic trainers who worked with Owsley worked in launching the scholarship as a means of keeping his name associated with Michigan Tech and to show gratitude for the service he provided athletes and life lessons he taught student trainers.

The scholarships were presented at a ceremony this past fall.

This year’s scholarship winners are:

  • Marissa Kinney, Berkley, Michigan, a fourth-year medical laboratory science major now in her second year as a student athletic trainer.
  • Kelsey Saladin, Maple Grove, Minnesota, a third-year exercise science major in her second year as a student athletic trainer.
  • Emily Gilkes, Edgewood, Kentucky, a fourth-year biological sciences/pre-med major in her third year as a student athletic trainer.
  • Sydney Smuck, Traverse City, Michigan, a second-year exercise science major in her second year as a student athletic trainer.
  • Hali Evans, Lake Isabella, California, a third-year (transfer) exercise science major in her second year as a student athletic trainer.

In addition to submitting their resume, applicants were required to submit a 300-word written response or one-to-three minute video response addressing two questions; “How has athletic training internship played a role in health promotion in our local community” and “How has the athletic training internship helped you academically and in the profession that you desire.”

Jason Carter, Professor and Chair of Michigan Tech’s Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology, says he was impressed with the quality of the applicants.

“These are excellent students from multiple majors and I am very pleased they will have a chance to be rewarded for their high levels of engagement with our athletic trainers and our sports teams. They deal with amazing real-world situations that will prepare them well for careers in health care professions,” Carter said.

Read the full story.