2011 Senior Comprehensives in Biology and Chemistry

Unique to Saint Mary’s College, the Senior Comprehensive, or Senior Comp, is a required research project that every student must complete in her major before graduation. Below is a list of the titles of the 2011 Senior Comps in Biology and Chemistry.

Biology Senior Comps

1.     Fish and coral surveying off the coast of Little Corn Island, Nicaragua.

2.     Monitoring of Caribbean reef fish species abundance and diversity surrounding Little Corn Island, Nicaragua.

3.     Water purification on Little Corn Island, Nicaragua. 

4.     Determining water quality on Little Corn Island, Nicaragua.

5.     Determining stress with heterophil to lymphocyte ratio of Budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulates).

6.     Activation-induced cytidine deaminase from a variety of species affects foreign DNA restriction.            

7.     The dispersal of Echinostoma caproni (Digenea: Echinostomatidae) cercariae between the first and second intermediate host.

8.     The effect of cercarial age on the phototaxis in Echinostoma caproni (Digenea: Echinostomatidae). 

9.     The effects of circadian rhythms on bitter tasting thresholds.

10.   Detection of mecA and SCCmec types in Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. 

11.   The effect of LH-RH agonists on advanced prostate cancer (Vantas vs. Trelstar).

12.   Sequence improvement and annotation of the Drosophila mojavensis genome.

13.   Allelopathic effects of Hesperis matronalis on Ipomoea purpurea.

14.   Stream scare: riparian species richness and fish diversity as indicators of stream health.

15.   Relationship between dominance, color and heterophil to lymphocyte ratios in Budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulates

16.   How does light environment affect scent emission: floral odor plasticity in Ipomoea                           purpurea.

17.   Heterophil to lymphocyte ratio relationships between mating Budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulates) pairs.

18.   Protein extraction and sequencing from photosynthetic tissues of albino Zea Mays.

19.   The effects of hydrogen sulfide and hypoxia in Coho salmon intestinal smooth muscle. 

20.   Factors influencing accrual to cancer clinical trials.

21.   Erythromycin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. 

22.   Superantigens in Streptococcus pyogenes.

23.   Assessing leukocyte profiles to indicate stress in Canis familiaris            .

24.   Importance of annotating and sequencing Drosophila genomes.

25.   Choice diet induces obesity and a prediabetic state in mice.

26.   Transmission of penicillin resistance among Staphylococci. 

27.   A morphometrics study of red maple (Acer rubrum; Sapindaceae) in the Eastern United States.

28.   Annotation and finishing of the heterochromatic region of the dot chromosome of Drosophila mojavensis. 

29.   The effects of hydrogen sulfide and hypoxia on sea lamprey and rainbow trout intestinal smooth muscle.

30.   A morphometric study of red maple (Acer rubrum; Sapindaceae) in the Eastern United States.

31.   Circadian rhythms of bitter taste perception in humans.

32.   Food habits of nesting bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) in New Jersey.

Chemistry Senior Comps

1.    The Quantitative Analysis of Diethyl Carbamazine Using Paper Analytical Devices

2.    Synthesis of Benzyl Bromides with Hexabromoacetone: A Green Path to Drug Intermediates

3.    Ferritin: The Iron Storage Protein

4.    Ultrafast Imaging of Energy Flow in Phycobilisomes

5.    Phospholipase A1 Enzymes

6.    Quantifying DNA Methylation Using PNA-Probe Hybridization and MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

7.    Model Biomembranes for Sensing Applications

8.   Chemical Kinetics - Determining the Rate Constant Rate Law Using the Iodine Clock Reactions and the Method of Initial Rates

9.   Function and Detection of Artemisinin-Family Antimalarial Drugs

10. Polymeric Materials in Dental Composites

11. Incorporating Microwave Technology in the Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory

12. The Strobilurin Fungicides