Research News Archive
On July 25, 2025, Marshall University’s Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) students took center stage at the Chemistry Symposium to present the results of their summer research projects. Throughout the program, participants not only shared their work every two weeks but also bonded over a high-energy paintball outing. Funded by the West Virginia Challenge Fund
In her lab at Marshall University, Dr. Nadja Spitzer and her students are exploring one of science’s final frontiers — the brain. As part of the NSF-funded West Virginia Network for Functional Neuroscience & Transcriptomics (WV-NFNT) project, Dr. Spitzer collaborates with researchers across the state to study how the brain’s intricate connections change in response
Dr. Pamela Puppo, together with European collaborators, has published exciting new research exploring how plant species on islands form syngameons—networks of hybridizing species that exchange genes while still maintaining their distinct looks. Using wild thyme as a model, the study found that these genetic networks are especially large and complex on younger islands, where species
July was a busy—and global—month for Dr. Tom Cuchta of Marshall University’s Department of Mathematics and Physics. He was an invited speaker at not one, but two international conferences spotlighting cutting-edge research in mathematical theory. First stop: Guangzhao, China, for the 30th International Conference on Difference Equations and Applications (ICDEA 2025). Dr. Cuchta co-organized a
This summer, the Department of Mathematics and Physics at Marshall University welcomed ten undergraduate researchers from across the country for the second annual Appalachian Mathematics and Physics Site (AMPS) REU program. Funded by the National Science Foundation (award #2349289), AMPS gives students a chance to spend the summer as full-time, paid researchers working alongside faculty
The Department of Chemistry recently wrapped up an exciting summer of science with the 2025 Chemistry Research Summer Program (CRSP) and Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) Final Symposium. Over the course of 10 weeks, student researchers dove into hands-on projects—and the results were on full display at this high-energy event! A total of 17 presentations
The Herpetology and Applied Conservation Lab hit the road last week, traveling to St. Paul, Minnesota, for the 2025 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (JMIH)—a major national gathering of scientists passionate about fish, reptiles, and amphibians. Dr. Jayme Waldron was joined by former graduate student Emily Gray and current graduate students Tucker Cribb, Sydney
The Kolling Lab in Marshall University’s Department of Chemistry is making headlines again—this time in collaboration with the Hicks Lab at UNC Chapel Hill. Their new publication in Journal of Proteome Research explores how bacterial bile acid metabolism shapes the human gut microbiome, providing new insight into the complex interactions between our bodies and the
Dr. Cheyenne Tait and recent Marshall Biology graduate Kia Booth recently made a splash at the Animal Behavior Society’s annual conference in Baltimore! Representing the Department of Biological Sciences, Kia presented a research poster on the lab’s fascinating work with the nudibranch sea slug Berghia stephanieae—a tiny but mighty creature with some seriously cool behaviors.
Dr. Tom Cuchta, faculty member in Marshall University’s Department of Mathematics and Physics, recently served as both a speaker and organizing committee member at the sixth Dynamical Equations on Time Scales workshop, held this June at the prestigious Banach Center in Bȩdlewo, Poland. This international gathering brought together mathematicians from around the globe—including Australia, Brazil,