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Biology major Arielle Fields ’08 (Newtown, Pa.) plans to attend medical school in the future, but in the meantime she is studying how aquatic micro-organisms get the iron they need out of their watery environment.
Fields is conducting research with Steven Mylon, assistant professor of chemistry, to determine the mechanisms by which these tiny creatures are able to obtain necessary amounts of iron despite its limited bioavailability.
This summer, Fields and Mylon will travel to Australia to continue the work they are currently performing at Lafayette with David Waite, professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the Center for Water and Waste Technology at the University of New South Wales. The collaboration will be funded through a National Science Foundation-International Research Education and Engineering grant. Upon their return, Fields will present the data at the national American Chemical Society meeting.
“I was fascinated to learn about marine micro-organisms’ ability to influence their surroundings by synthesizing and exuding compounds that facilitate in acquiring the nutrients they need,” says Fields.
Although the research appears to be unrelated to Fields’ medical ambitions, Mylon explains that it has potential medical applications.
“Iron is very important in aquatic systems and micro-organisms have developed interesting ways to sequester it. Chelation therapy in medicine works on the same principles,” he says.
In chelation therapy, drugs are used to remove excess iron from the body. Such iron overload could be caused, for example, by regular red blood cell transfusions to treat medical conditions like B-thalassemia, a genetic disorder that affects the production of hemoglobin in blood.
“My research with Dr. Mylon has broadened my focus and taught me the importance of looking beyond human biology in our search for medical breakthroughs in the treatment of human diseases,” says Fields.
“The applicability of my research on the biogeochemistry of iron to the medical field has revealed the exciting potential of iron in biomedicine that could be further employed as research continues to provide more information about this substance,” she continues. “For example, what role does iron play as a limiting nutrient for invasive bacteria, or how does iron, as a main component of hemoglobin, affect treatment of B-thalassemia? Moreover, as iron nanoparticles can be employed to transport magnetically tagged biological entities in anticancer drugs, the potential employment for iron in both the area of gene therapy for possible blood diseases as well as in the design of various medical drugs, is an area I’d like to explore.”
Mylon has given his research assistant a good deal of autonomy on the project.
“Arielle has helped me forge an entirely new research direction. I bought some equipment and helped her design the experiments, but she has done all the work. She has read the literature, done some of the experiments, worked up the data, etc.,” he says.
The researchers are collaborating through Lafayette’s distinctive EXCEL Scholars program, where students conduct research with faculty while earning a stipend. The program has helped to make Lafayette a national leader in undergraduate research. Many of the more than 160 students who participate each year share their work through articles in academic journals and/or conference presentations.
“Lafayette’s EXCEL program is a great opportunity for students,” adds Fields. “Since we are purely an undergraduate school, more undergraduate students have the rare opportunity of working on independent research programs. The ability to do such in-depth research provides students with experience and knowledge of research that is usually awarded at the graduate level.”
Fields is a member of the student chapter of the American Chemical Society, a peer tutor in general biology and organic chemistry, and a volunteer for the Boys and Girls Club of Easton and Easton Hospital. A member of the women’s varsity soccer team, she was named to the 2005 Patriot League Women’s Soccer Academic Honor Roll. She also is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.
As a national leader in undergraduate research, Lafayette sends one of the largest contingents to the National Conference on Undergraduate Research each year. Forty students were accepted to present their research at last year’s conference.