Cody Fretwell, (BioHealth Sciences, '22) switched from biology to biohealth sciences for the pre-physician assistant option. Four years later, he is happy with his decision. “I’ve enjoyed a lot of the classes specific to my major, focusing more on the human aspects of biology.”
Path-breaking innovations from the College of Science at Oregon State University hold answers to critical problems in the environment, energy and healthcare.
Christine Tataru receives the 2021-22 Larry W. Martin & Joyce B. O’Neill Endowed Fellowship for her work in computational modeling that seeks to understand how gut microbiomes impact their human hosts’ health. She develops tools and frameworks to advance microbiome research, then uses these tools to explore gut-brain axis phenomenon.
Research by Oregon State University suggests a pair of compounds originating from hops can help thwart a dangerous buildup of fat in the liver known as hepatic steatosis.
As a member of the Yakama Nation, Microbiology Ph.D. student Corbin Schuster is interested in the study of human diseases that have a higher incidence among Native peoples, such as toxoplasmosis (a parasitic infection), as well as diseases of salmon, which are central to the food, culture and religion of the Yakama people. He is thankful to not have to separate his culture from his career.
The COVID-19 pandemic is creating a surging interest in science and medicine, attracting a new generation of students to a career in medicine. Enrollment in the College of Science’s pre-med program at Oregon State University has also remained high, with numbers averaging 90-100 pre-med students annually since 2019.
The College of Science awarded two interdisciplinary teams funding to pursue promising leads in mental health and cancer research. One team will investigate the role of the gut-brain axis on sex differences in anxiety, and another will explore ways to develop an synthetic version of HHT-- a rare plant alkaloid that is showing great promise in the development of new medicines for multiple forms of cancer.
A study of early school-aged children shows a connection between the bacteria in their gut and their behavior, and that parents play a key role in their kids’ microbiome beyond the food they provide.
