Erskine Award
The Mary Erskine Undergraduate Research Award was established in 2009 in memory of former UROP director and CAS Biology professor, Mary Erskine. Dr. Erskine was a vigorous supporter of undergraduate research and a strong advocate of inclusion of women and minorities in scientific research.
The Erskine Award supports one student conducting summer research in the field of neurobiology. The UROP Faculty Advisory Committee selects the recipient of this award from the funded summer applicant pool.
Current Awardee
Summer 2024
Tina Zhang
Project Title: Defining the Lysosomal Proteome and Metabolome Across Subcellular Neuronal Compartments
Mentor: Lynne Chantranupong, CAS Biology
Previous Awardees
Summer 2023
John Lee
Project Title: To investigate the abnormalities of Neuronal Activity in NEXMIF knockout ASD mouse brain
Mentor: Hengye Man, CAS Biology
Summer 2022
Katie McCabe
Project Title: Does Social Complexity Select for Individual Simplicity? A Comparative Test of Theory Using Dolichoderus Ants and Automated Tracking Software
Mentor: James Traniello, CAS Biology
Summer 2021
Riley McDonald
Project Title: The Effect of 4-AP on Action Potential and Synaptic Potential in the Crayfish Neuromuscular Junction
Mentor: Jen Wei-Lin, CAS Biology
Summer 2020
Meaghan Connolly
Project Title:Examining the function of the C3 receptor in C4-induced connectivity deficits during early cortical development
Mentor: Alberto Cruz Martin, CAS Biology
Summer 2019
Shivani Raghunath Rao
Project title: Cellular Mechanisms Underlying Mint1 Autoinhibition in Alzheimer’s Disease
Mentor: Angela Ho, CAS Biology
Summer 2018
Frances Hausmann
Project title: Elucidating the role of microglia in complement-mediated synaptic elimination in the mouse prefrontal cortex
Mentor: Alberto Cruz-Martin, CAS Biology
Summer 2017
Sara Simpson
Project title: The Role of Acetylcholine in Temporal Plasticity
Mentor: Jeffrey Gavornik, CAS Biology
Summer 2016
Camila de Freitas
Project title: Hippocampal Neuronal Activity Following Inactivation of Lateral Entorhinal Cortex
Mentor: Howard Eichenbaum, CAS Psychological & Brain Sciences
Summer 2015
Benjamin Coleman
Project Title: Investigating the Flaws and Potential Improvements of the Diagnostic Protocols of Alzheimer’s Disease – Studies on Subjective Memory Complaints as a Preclinical Sign of Alzheimer’s Disease
Mentor: Karin Schon, MED Anatomy & Neurobiology
Summer 2014
Danielle Doctor
Project Title: Using Optogenetics to Inhibit Accessory Olfactory System Responses to Female Pheromones in Male Mice
Mentor: Michael Baum, CAS Biology
Summer 2013
Alyson Alfonso
Project Title: Novel Word Learning Task: A Model of Lexical and Nonlexical Reading Methods
Mentor: Jacqueline Liederman, CAS Psychology
Summer 2012
Curtis Hon
Project Title: A Sex Comparison of Lhx6 Expression in Specific Segments of the Murine Olfactory Pathway
Mentor: Michael Baum, CAS Biology
Summer 2011
Michael Connerney
Project Title: Possible Theta Oscillatory Mechanisms Enable Time-dependent Activity of Grid Cells
Mentor: Michael Hasselmo, CAS Psychology
Summer 2010
Kaltra Dhima
Project Title: Longitudinal Analysis of Vision, Visuospatial Cognition, and Daily Function in Parkinson’s Disease
Mentor: Alice Cronin-Golomb, CAS Psychology
Summer 2009
Ashish Bhandari
Project Title: Light Dependent Translocation of Gqa in Drosophila Retina
Mentor: Susan Tsunoda, CAS Biology