URI_Research_Magazine_Momentum_Winter_2015_Melissa-McCarthy

Hydra

As part of their collaborative research, Kass-Simon and Hufnagel study a small freshwater animal called a Hydra . It turns out that this tiny creature has a simple central nervous system that has characteristics in common with higher animals, including people.

simple model nervous system with the aim of understanding fundamental concepts in neuronal functioning. This central nervous system research has implications for ALS, Alzheimer’s and other diseases. The twowere among a core group, including Zawia and Besio, as well as Professor of psychology Lisa Weyandt, Associate Professor of communicative disorders Leslie Mahler and Assistant Professor of biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences and chemical engineering David Worthen, who were the principal organizers of the INP. Soon after that, Alycia Mosley Austin became the coordinator of the INP. Austin received her doctoral degree from UC-San Diego in neuroscience and brought the most current knowledge into managing the INP. She plays a vital role in the day-to-day management of the program. Hufnagel recalls being surprised at how many faculty turned out for an initial meeting. “I only knew a few of the people who were there,” Hufnagel says. “It was an eye-opener, and I immediately saw that we could form a cross-fertilized program. From the start of the INP, students have been learning varied research methods, and it has allowed us to try procedures we weren’t really able to before.”

As part of their collaborative research, Kass-Simon and Hufnagel study a small freshwater animal called a Hydra. It turns out, this tiny creature has a simple central nervous system that has characteristics in common with higher animals, including people. Using behavioral, electrophysiological and microscopic methods, Kass-Simon and Hufnagel work together to determine how the Hydra performs its simple tasks such as somersaulting toward light and using its tentacles to capture prey. In the process, they are analyzing nervous systems, looking for clues that might answer questions about the “higher animals” and how their systems work. Hufnagel, using an electron microscope, is tracking proteins in the Hydra’s nervous system. She does it with new methods such as fluorescent tagging of anti-bodies, so that a cell’s movement can be tracked. Hufnagel says, “Basically we showed that Hydras could be a good model system for asking questions about all these issues. It’s easier to make a discovery with Hydra than with human beings.”

Linda Hufnagel, professor of cell and molecular biology and Gabriele Kass-Simon, professor of biology

Using Small Fish to Solve Big Problems

Linda Hufnagel, a cell and molecular biology professor, found personal motivation for becoming a scientist at a time when few women considered it. Her father died in 1956 of ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the famous baseball player who struggled with the disease. Hufnagel and her colleague, biology Professor Gabriele Kass-Simon, have collaborated for nearly 40 years on researching neuronal processing in a

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