Walpole Native Kyle Ryan Named Stonehill SURE Scholar

Walpole native Kyle Ryan, currently a junior at Stonehill College, will join a group of 50 students and 32 faculty members on a variety of research projects over the summer.

Ryan will work with two other students and Stonehill College Assistant Professor of Biology Bronwyn Bleakley on Mechanisms of Indirect Genetic Effects by using inbred strains of guppies.

Professor Bleakley's group will describe how genes in both focal individuals and their social partners interact to generate collective behavior in social groups. Ryan and another student will test the hypothesis that differential gene expression in response to different social partners affects cooperative antipredator behavior in the guppies, potentially through effects on the lateral line sensitivity and schooling.

The third student will try to determine if hormones serve as a chemical cue influencing the behavior of focal individuals in relation to their social partners and vice versa.

All three students are biology majors. The results of this summer's research will build upon the results of previous years' work and will be compiled and submitted for publication. In addition, Joseph and Ryan will serve as SURE leaders during the summer.

The scholars and their faculty mentors are the 18th group to work under the Stonehill undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program, which provides students with an opportunity to perform significant, publishable research under the guidance of an experienced faculty researcher.

The research experience will help to provide students with a competitive advantage in graduate and professional school applications and in post-college employment opportunities, as well as to provide assistance to faculty in research activities.