Associate professors of Biology, Dr. Stephanie Conant and Dr. Jacob Kagey along with School of Dentistry assistant professor Dr. Joshua Thomson are among the co-authors of an article appearing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.
The article, An inclusive Research Education Community (iREC): Impact of the SEA-PHAGE program on research outcomes and student learning, highlights the importance of engaging undergraduate students in research early in their college education.
At Detroit Mercy, many science freshmen in their first semester take part in SEA-PHAGE course, a unique mentored, authentic research experience which is part of a larger national consortium.
After collecting a variety of soil samples, students isolate, purify and amplify their phage in the laboratory and are further examined by electron microscope.
The article finds when students are exposed to scientific discovery early in their education, there is increased accessibility to research experiences, increased persistence in STEM and increased scientific productivity for students and faculty.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2017 Dec 19;114(51):13531-13536. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1718188115. Epub 2017 Dec 5.