PRECS student projects

PRECS is a program designed to provide community college students with authentic research experiences in the area of phenotypic plasticitythe phenomenon of a single genotype producing multiple phenotypes depending on the environment.

Parkland's Dr. C. Britt Carlson and Dr. Nathan Schroeder of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, are the program's creators. PRECS a three-year program funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation.

Students present their research at their home community colleges as well as at Illinois Summer Research Symposium on the University of Illinois campus. This collection contains their work as well as participant videos captured during the research process.

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Submissions from 2023

PRECS Student: Emily Beger, Emily Beger

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Evaluating the Enzymatic Activity of Transformed X. cucurbitae, Emily Beger, Iris Lee, and Sarah Hind

PRECS Student: Cassidy Constant, Cassidy Constant

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Revisiting the Reproductive Behaviors of Blackspotted Stickleback, Cassidy Constant, Megan Tucker, Colby Behrens, and Alison M. Bell

PRECS Student: Maya Davis, Maya K. Davis

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The Tomato Strikes Back: Plant Response to Environmental Stress, Maya K. Davis, Erinn Dady, and Esther N. Ngumbi

PRECS Student: Liam Kent, Liam Kent

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Fusarium Isolates Adapt to Specific Wheat Tissues, Liam Kent, Mara Krone, and Santiago Mideros

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Effect of Varied Macronutrient Ratios on Honey Bee Tolerance to IAPV Infection, Caitlin Lennon-Puthoff, Alex Payne, and Adam Dolezal

PRECS Student: Cameron Lewis, Cameron Lewis

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Role of Age and Sex in the Effects of Repeated Methamphetamine Exposure on Hedonic Tone in Sprague Dawley Rats, Cameron Lewis, Conor Strumberger, and Joshua M. Gulley

PRECS Participant: Hailie Liu, Hailie Liu

PRECS Student: Hannah Maher, Hannah Maher

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Potential Implications of Elevated CO2 for Enhanced Rock Weathering in Croplands, Hannah Maher, Megan Allen, and Lisa Ainsworth

PRECS Student: Lauren Mobo, Lauren W. Mobo

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ACTH Challenge: Stress Response Across Tadpole Development, Lauren W. Mobo, Lucas Jimenez, Lisa L. Surber-Cunningham, and Eva K. Fischer

PRECS Student: Ethan Perez, Ethan Perez

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Confirming Presence and Mobilization of Partner Quality Genes in Sinorhizobium meliloti, Ethan Perez, Ivan Sosa Marquez, and Katy Heath

PRECS Student: Caitlin Puthoff, Caitlin Puthoff

PRECS Student: Mya Reyes, Mya Reyes

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How Fungicide Alters the Hidden Mycobiome of a Restored Prairie System, Mya Reyes, Noah Brown, and Anthony Yannarell

PRECS Student: Jason Rivera, Jason M. Rivera

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Identifying Genes Influencing the Efficiency of Photosynthesis, Jason M. Rivera and Steven Burgess

Submissions from 2022

PRECS Participant: Kayleigh Ambrose, Kayleigh Ambrose

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The Effects of Temperature Changes on Bioluminescent Dinoflagellates (How Climate Change May Affect Our Ocean's Raves), Kayleigh X. Ambrose, Molly Fleming, and Carla Caceres

PRECS Participant: Olivia Barrett, Olivia Barrett

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Exploration of Squash Plant Floral Volatiles Influencing Beetle Attraction, Olivia Barrett, Nicholas Seiter, Esther Ngumbi, Joseph Spencer, and Sarah Hind

PRECS Participant: Richard Carr, Richard Carr

PRECS Participant: Chandra Davies, Chandra Davies

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Concentrating on Carbon Concentration in Algae, Chandra Davies and Steven Burgess

PRECS Participant: Kaithren Garcia, Kaithren Garcia

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How to Quantify Female Mate Preference in Threespine Stickleback, Kaithren Garcia, Megan Tucker, Meghan Maciejewski, Usan Dan, and Alison M. Bell

PRECS Participant: Anthony Lamb, Anthony Lamb

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Polinators in Peril - Are Illinois Native Bees Getting Smaller?, Anthony Lamb, Tristan Barley, and Adam Dolezal

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Stressed Out: Why Does Ancient Maize Thrive in High-Stress Conditions?, Alexander C. Lozano, Aaron Mleziva, and Esther Ngumbi

PRECS Participant: Sarah Porth, Sarah Porth

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Intra- and Interspecific Variation in Tadpole Lateral Line Cells, Sarah Porth, Lisa Surber, and Eva Fischer

PRECS Participant: Sarah Redman, Sarah Redman

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Exploring Amaranth’s Color Palette: Linking Phenotype, Plant Adaptation, and Human Health, Sarah Redman and Chance Riggins Ph.D.

PRECS Participant: Stephanie Thomas, Stephanie Thomas

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Bacterial Metabolism of Glucosinolates from Brassica: Association with Isothiocyanate Production, Stephanie Thomas, Jiaxuan Li, and Michael J. Miller

Submissions from 2021

GEMS Student: Brittney Bailey, Brittney Bailey

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GEMS Student: Can Improved Diet Quality Alleviate Harmful Effects of Pesticides and Viruses in Honey Bees?, Brittney Bailey, Ed Hsieh, and Adam Dolezal

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Nature & Nurture: Examining How Diverse Organisms Adapt to Changes in their Everyday Environment., Brittney Bailey, Soohyun Lee, and Faith Smith

PRECS Participant: Elijah Davis, Elijah Davis

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Effects of Color Polymorphism and Lighting Environments on Male Bluefin Killifish Behavior, Elijah Davis, Ratna Karatgi, and Becky Fuller

PRECS Participant: Harrison Hall, Harrison Hall

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Can In Vitro Phenotypes of Fusarium graminearum Indicate In Planta Aggressiveness?, Harrison Hall and Santiago Mideros

PRECS Participant: Min Rung "Nicole" Hsu, Min Rung (Nicole) Hsu

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Evaluating the Efficiency in the Application of Transformation and CRISPR/Cas9 Gene-editing Technique on Pumpkins, Min Rung (Nicole) Hsu, Maria Malvino, and Sarah R. Hind

PRECS Participant: Soohyun Lee, Soohyun Lee

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Bioinformatics Protocol for Assessing Contamination Level and Quality on Genomics Data of Ensifer meliloti, Soohyun Lee, Mario Ceròn Romero, and Katy Heath

PRECS Participant: Amiyah Moore, Amiyah Moore

PRECS Participant: Anh Nguyen, Thi Lan Anh Nguyen

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Determining the Causal Link of Honey Bee Gut Microbial Composition on Behavioral Maturation, Thi Lan Anh Nguyen, Cassondra L. Vernier, and Gene E. Robinson

PRECS Student: Gabi Ortiz, Gabriela Ortiz

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Mapping Traits in a Soybean Recombinant Inbred Line Population, Gabriela Ortiz, Chris Montes, and Lisa Ainsworth

PRECS Participant: Samta Oza, Samta Oza

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Behavioral Plasticity in Response to Environmental Cues in Poison Frog Tadpoles, Samta Oza, Lisa Surber, and Eva K. Fischer

GEMS Student: Faith Smith, Faith Smith

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GEMS Student: Biofilm Production in Rhizobia Influences Clover Drought Response, Faith Smith, Kevin Ricks, and Anthony Yannarell

PRECS Participant: Megan Tucker, Megan Tucker

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The Genetics of Aggression in Unique Three-Spined Stickleback Populations, Megan Tucker, Colby Behrens, and Alison M. Bell

PRECS Participant: Lauren Urie, Lauren Urie

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Sometimes, When it Rains it Pours: How Does Flooding Alter Plant-Herbivore Relationships?, Lauren R. Urie, Erinn Dady, and Esther N. Ngumbi

PRECS Participant Interview: Harvey Vela, Harvey Vela

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The Effects of Forest Management Practices on Wild Bee Abundance and Functional Traits, Harvey Vela, Marissa H. Chase, and Alexandra Harmon-Threatt

Submissions from 2019

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Fungal Endophytes Interact with Endophytic Yeast Isolated from Soybean Leaves, Baldemar Basurto, Natalie Christian, and Katy Heath

Precs Participant: Baldemar Basurto, Baldemar Basurto and Parkland College

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Plasticity or local adaptation?: Survival of L. parva larvae in varying salinity, Kaitlyn Cortez, Lauren McDaniel, and Becky Fuller

Precs Participant: Kaitlyn Cortez, Kaitlyn Cortez and parkland college

Precs Participant: Erinn Dady, Erinn Dady and Parkland College

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Verification of Successful Kainic Acid Injections in a Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Mouse Model, Adrian J. Garcia, Robbie J. Ingram, and Catherine A. Christian

Precs Participant: Adrian Garcia, Adrian Garcia and Parkland College

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Construction of a Tn5 mutant library in Xanthomonas cucurbitae, Keirsten Kline, Rikky Rai, and Sarah R. Hind

Precs Participant: Justina Lee, Justina Lee and Parkland College

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Direct Impacts of Heat Stress on Illinois Soybeans, Jessica O'Connor, Charles Burroughs, and Lisa Ainsworth

Precs Participant: Jessica O’Connor, Jessica O'Connor and Parkland College

Precs Participant: Isiah Ramos, Isiah Ramos and Parkland College

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Stress Induced Remodeling in the Nematode C. elegans, Becky Rose, Rebecca Androwski, and Nathan E. Schroeder

Precs Participant: Becky Rose, Becky Rose and Parkland College

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Comparative Efficacy of Novel Endolysins in Queso Fresco, Daniella Smith, Maxwell J. Holle, and Dr. Michael Miller

Precs Participant: Daniella Smith, Daniella Smith and Parkland College

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Effects of Mycorrhizae on Struvite Dissolution Can plant-fungus mutualism increase the viability of a sustainable phosphorus fertilizer?, Isako Battista Di Tomassi, Erinn Dady, Neha Chatterjee, and Andrew Margenot

Precs Participant: Isako Di Tomassi, Isako Di Tomassi and Parkland College

Precs Participant: Jessica Trueblood, Jessica Trueblood and Parkland College

Submissions from 2018

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PRECS Participant: Jessica Alvarez, Jessica Alvarez and Parkland College

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Methamphetamine Effects on Adolescent Brain Development in Both Sexes, Jessica Alvarez, Sarah Westbrook, and Joshua Gulley

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Finding dex-1 Phenotype Suppressing Components, Matthew Barnum, Kristen Flatt, and Nathan E. Schroeder

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PRECS Participant: Matthew Barnum, Matthew Barnum and Parkland College

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PRECS Participant: Lily Feeny, Lily Feeney

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PRECS Participant: Allison Houghton, Allison Houghton and Parkland College

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Identifying KIF Subtype that Mediates Axonal Targeting of Kv7 Channels, Allison Houghton, Jennifer Walters, Mary Hong, Dhruv Joshi, and Hee Jung Chung

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Production of Bioactive Isothiocyanates by Bacterial Myrosinase, Juan Isaiz, Xiaoji Liu, and Michael J. Miller

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PRECS Participant: Juan Isaiz, Juan Isaiz and Parkland College

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Sperm-mediated Effects of Predation Risk on Reproduction in Male Threespined Sticklebacks, Shayne Kempfer, Erika Carlson, Jennifer Hellmann, Jason Keagy, and Alison Bell

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PRECS Participant: Shayne Kempfer, Shayne Kempfer and Parkland College

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PRECS Participant: Seldon Kwafo, Seldon Kwafo

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PRECS Participant: Jami Martin, Jamilyn Martin

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The Effect of Imidacloprid on Honey Bee Queen Fecundity, Jamilyn Martin, Julia D. Fine, Amy Cash-Ahmed, and Gene E. Robinson