Professor Wittke-Thompson and Five Students Publish Scientific Research Article

Dr. Jackie Wittke-Thompson

Joliet, Ill. – Dr. Jackie Wittke-Thompson, Professor of Biology at the University of St. Francis (USF), and five USF biology majors including Sarah Piane, Victoria Akinwotu Adewale, Alexis Fragoso, Mason Craig, and Genesys Haro, recently had a scientific research article published in microPublication Biology.

The students’ data collection efforts helped to identify the location of a point mutation in the genome in a fruit fly mutant. Data was collected in Fall 2021 in Dr. Wittke-Thompson’s BIOL151 Beginning Investigative Experiences in Biology course, and was a collaboration with four other universities as part of the Fly-CURE program, of which Dr. Wittke-Thompson is a member.

“USF first-year biology majors helped to identify the location of a point mutation in the genome in a fruit fly mutant – using genetic crosses, PCR, and DNA sequencing. The mutation identified is located in the GstE14 gene, which is involved in the regulation of tissue growth,” said Dr. Wittke-Thompson.

Read “Genetic Mapping and Phenotypic Analysis of GstE14E.4.1 on Eye and Antennae Development in Drosophila melanogaster”, which was originally published on April 13, 2024, at https://www.micropublication.org/static/pdf/micropub-biology-001019.pdf.

For more information on Dr. Wittke-Thompson, including links to her other published scientific research articles, visit stfrancis.edu/jacqueline-wittke-thompson.

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The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 3,300 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 53,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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USF Faculty Members Publish Academic Journal Articles

Joliet, Ill. – Three USF faculty members in the College of Arts & Sciences were recently published in academic journals in their respective fields of study.

Dr. Jackie Wittke-Thompson

Dr. Jackie Wittke-Thompson, professor of biology, had two articles published in notable journals in the biology education community. She is a member of FlyCURE and the Genomics Education Partnership.

“FlyCURE is a group of geneticists from across the USA that are working to locate specific mutations that were created in the fruit fly by Dr. Jacob Kagey (PI). All the research work is done by undergraduate students under the supervision of a faculty member. USF students in my BIOL151 Beginning Investigative Experiences in Biology and BIOL255 Genetics courses have been part of this project,” she explained.

“The Genomics Education Partnership is a group of geneticists, bioinformaticists, biochemists, and more that are working together to annotate genes in different eukaryotic organisms (such as fruit fly, parasitoid wasps, and the Puerto Rican parrot). All the work is done by undergraduate students under the supervision of a faculty member. USF students in BIOL255 Genetics, BIOL322 Molecular Biology, and BIOL375/376 Advanced Investigative Experiences in Biology have been part of this project,” she added.

Both publications are focused on the impact of these course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) on undergraduate students.

Read “Fly-CURE, a multi-institutional CURE using Drosophila, increases students’ confidence, sense of belonging, and persistence” at https://www.stfrancis.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/merkle-et-al-2023-fly-cure-a-multi-institutional-cure-using-drosophila-increases-students-confidence-sense-of-belonging.pdf.

Read “Supporting the democratization of science during a pandemic genomics Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) as an effective remote learning strategy” at https://www.stfrancis.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/lopatto-et-al-2023-supporting-the-democratization-of-science-during-a-pandemic-genomics-course-based-undergraduate.pdf.

Dr. Laura Honegger

Dr. Laura Honegger, associate professor of social work, co-authored a journal article with former USF professor Stacy Dewald and several members of the Will County Problem-Solving Court. Honegger and her team have been working together for the past few years and were thrilled that the article, about their collaborative research partnership and lessons learned, was published.

“The article describes an interdisciplinary researcher-practitioner partnership between the Will County Problem-Solving Courts and the University of St. Francis’s Departments of Criminal & Social Justice and Social Work. Collaborators reflect on the mutually beneficial relationship that produced policy-informed research, new internships, and enriched classroom experiences,” Honegger said.

Read “An interdisciplinary researcher-practitioner partnership: lessons and perspectives from researchers and problem-solving court personnel” at https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/CHVPQY25WNC7C8F2QKPV/full?target=10.1080/1478601X.2024.2306351.

Dr. Anna Ioanes

Dr. Anna Ioanes, assistant professor of English at USF, authored a journal article titled “Everybody’s Kathy: Acker, Laing, and the Autofictional Turn” published in the journal Women’s Studies. The article was about the literary influence of novelist Kathy Acker on contemporary autofiction.

“This work analyzes the contemporary attention being paid to late-twentieth-century feminist avant-garde author Kathy Acker. Critical and creative attention to Acker’s work is taking shape in conversation with the development of autofiction and auto theory as important contemporary genres,” Ioanes said.

“Analyzing one particularly significant example, Olivia Laing’s autofictional novel Crudo, the essay demonstrates that Acker’s paranoid disposition and appropriative aesthetic techniques meet a contemporary moment shaped by digital media, resurgent white supremacist political violence, and debates about the relationship between critics and artworks,” Ioanes added.

Read “Everybody’s Kathy: Acker, Laing, and the autofictional Turn” at bit.ly/3U3B4KN.

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The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 53,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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