Focusing on the perfect incision, not too big or too small, I keep in mind that the way I cut the skin will be the way I stitch it back together. My mentors have selected me out of thirty-some applicants to work alongside them as an extra hand in their research. Before my first day of work, I wondered what to expect. Would I be spending time filing? Recording data? Cleaning? Little did I know that within a few weeks I would find myself in a blue lab coat, wearing latex gloves, stitching an incision in a rat’s cerebral membrane. As I finish pulling through the last stitch, I think to myself, what if the rat wakes up soon? Maybe I didn’t inject enough anesthesia? I wonder, what is the overall point of this experiment? When I asked my mentor, he explained the general hypothesis "that fever and hypothermia represent two different strategies of fighting systemic inflammation, each developed as an adaptive response to certain conditions and, under these conditions, each is beneficial for its purpose." Fever is a common response, and in this particular experiment, the animal model was to be used to measure lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced fever. I learned that this research project using animal models is just one of many in biomedical research, the lifeline for many survivors of cancer, diseases, etc.

I never could claim a full appreciation for the use of animals in biomedical research until I understood the importance it made to my teacher. Teaching English II Honors for the 40^th year, my teacher has kept his standards high and has continued an educational tradition of excellence. In 1995, around Thanksgiving time, Mr. Davis experienced a sprain-like feeling in his left ankle after his routine jog. The next day, the pain was gone, but it came back once in awhile. As time progressed, the pain became more permanent, and Mr. Davis noticed a lack of balance after long periods of standing as well as a lack of strength. At first, Mr. Davis’s physician insisted that his symptoms were minor, and it was "nothing serious." Mr. Davis would not accept the Doctor’s claim and many blood tests were performed, trying to find the answer to his pain. Not until April of 1997 did Mr. Davis resort to a neurologist after seeing an orthopedist and rheumatologist. His neurologist suggested a diagnostic test. This nerve conduction study was performed by placing electrodes over specific nerve areas of Mr. Davis’s thighs and by administering an electrical impulse to activate the nerve. This study provided an explanation for the numbness, weakness, tingling sensations, and other neurological symptoms  Mr. Davis was experiencing. This was the first time Mr. Davis had been informed that his general diagnosis was Peripheral Neuropathy. When damage is done to the nerves, it weakens the impulses sent to and from the brain and spinal cord. The question Mr. Davis and millions of others are asking is what causes P.N. ? One explanation is that Peripheral Neuropathy can be a side effect of drugs, and this hypothesis has been tested using animals . The recorded results stated the ddC (the suspect drug) caused axonal damage (axons are the part of the cell which transports electrical messages to the muscles). This experiment also showed demyelination of rabbit neurons . Although, contradicting this study, rats were tested with the same method, and the results showed no nerve fiber degeneration. Only by further testing can researchers accurately conclude that Peripheral Neuropathy can be a drug side effect. Meanwhile, Hundreds of thousands of patients must remain optimistic because help may be close. Dr. McArthur, in the March 2000 issue of Neurology introduced the idea that a class of compounds called neurophilins may improve nerve damage. Through animal experiments, neurophilins have shown the ability to stimulate nerve fiber growth and repair damaged nerves.

Now when I find myself working in the lab, whether working with rat/mice training, closing experiments, cleaning the room, or making key tools for experiments, I realize that my assistance in animal research is just a small microcosm of the world of scientists who may discover a cure for my teacher. Mr. Davis now faces each day differently, but he can be well-assured that one day, animal testing will define the roots of P.N. and the possible treatments that may cure him. Teaching from day to day, Mr. Davis has no time to be slowed down by Peripheral Neuropathy. The only time that should be allotted for Mr. Davis is time to relax and enjoy his life. Thanks to biomedical research using animals, Mr. Davis may one day find answers to his questions.

Follow up - Jennifer, Internship at Barrow Neurological Institute

According to Mark Twain, "I never let my schooling interfere with my education." When I see this quote, I think about how for these last six weeks, I had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to work outside my high school lab.  By interning with Dr. Romanvosky's Trauma Research team, I learned the many aspects of lab work and how responsibility is crucial to developing a successful experiment. My work in his lab continued from early January, but during the summer, I had to focus and conduct experiments, rather than running errands.

 Another student and I collaborated to prepare all data/information needed, perform necessary surgeries, and analyze the collected data after experiments. The process required an efficient mind, but it would not have been possible if other researchers had not helped both my partner and I through the steps of this experiment. The whole idea of a "team" in research allowed flexibility in schedule and the dependence research associates have on one another.

 At the beginning of the summer, I spent hours in the research library using their computers to collect hundreds of abstracts from the very useful website, www.pubmed.com. I searched for abstracts using keywords such as " (Prostaglandin E2) AND (Temperature)." The idea was to find information about the hyper/hypothermic, inflammatory, or vasoconstricting response to certain injections of Prostanoids. After creating a chart full of Prostanoid descriptions, Dr. Romanovsky and Dr. Steiner chose certain Prostanoids to purchase for our experiments.

 After the data had been collected, my partner and I had to schedule days for surgery (inserting the catheter into the jugular vein), catheter flushing, daily training, and experiment preparation/closing. Other requirements we had to keep in mind were ordering the proper number of rats, purchasing our drugs in time for our experiment, and making sure we did not get behind with all our data analysis. Since our project required more than the time our summer offered, my partner and I will finalize all of our information from our experiments throughout the year. We have committed so much time in the lab and outside of the lab, that it would be meaningless unless we develop a presentable amount of data.

 Despite my many activities that will soon be in play during the school year, Mark Twain and I both agree that schooling will not interfere with education. I am completely satisfied with this great experience, and I hope to seek a future in the biomedical research area.