Wright State biology student wins fellowship to study treefrogs

Wright State student Naava Honer will study the gray treefrog, a local species with the unusual ability to tolerate being partially frozen.

A Wright State undergraduate biology major is one of 24 nationwide who has been named an American Physiological Society (APS) 2012 Undergraduate Research Fellow.

Naava Honer, a sophomore/junior-level biology major from Winston Salem, N.C., will receive a $4,000 stipend during the 10-week summer fellowship focused on a research project with David Goldstein, Ph.D., professor and chair of the biological sciences department. She will also have an opportunity to present her research results at the APS national conference in Boston, Goldstein said.

APS is the major national organization for basic and applied physiology. Its annual conference attracts more than 10,000 research presentations, Goldstein said.

The wife of an active-duty service member and mother of a 9-year-old son, Honer said she hopes to attend the Boonshoft School of Medicine after graduation and pursue a degree in radiation oncology.

The fellowship will enable Honer to gain more laboratory experience. “I learn so much in the lab and enjoy the hands-on experience that it provides me,” she said. It also gives her a unique opportunity to network with other investigators and make a contribution to scientific knowledge, she said.

Goldstein said Honer will study the gray treefrog, a local species with the unusual ability to tolerate being partially frozen. “We are particularly interested in the role played by proteins called aquaporins,” which allow the frog’s cells to regulate their volume and their biochemical environment, Goldstein said.