The Final TRIP by Martie Corcoran

I can’t believe my experience at TRIP is already over. The past weeks have flown by! I have learned so much from this experience about science, research, and about myself. I am so grateful to have been part of this program and to have made so many friends along the way! 

For my research, I wanted to focus on the effects of the food we eat and our sleep patterns on anxiety. I also wanted to test the differences between males and females. To see these effects, I had to learn to sort flies, set up food vials, use micropipettes, make agar plates, and conduct the open field assay to determine the fly’s anxiety levels. Through this experience, I have gained presenting skills, critical thinking skills, and much more that can help me with my career, personal life, at school, and in labs. Based on my experiments, I concluded that the combination of disrupted circadian rhythms and Vitamin B6 can decrease male anxiety, and may increase female anxiety. These results were definitely not what I was expecting, which makes it even more interesting! Presenting my findings at the final symposium was very exciting, and I loved seeing everyone’s experiments and results! 

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For my research, I wanted to focus on the effects of the food we eat and our sleep patterns on anxiety

It’s hard to believe I will no longer be spending every Saturday with my fellow lab mates conducting our experiments. I would love to take this opportunity to thank everyone who made this experience possible, including Dr. Purdy, Dr. Leystra, all the TAs, Fox Chase Cancer Center, William Tennent High School, all my friends, and most importantly, the flies! I can’t wait to see what the future holds for all of us!