Roanoke College Biology Professor Chris Lassiter and six of his former students authored a research paper that was recently published in the journal Zebrafish.
The paper, “Fipronil Affects Craniofacial and Heart Development in Zebrafish Embryos,” is the culmination of years of work into the impact of a broad-spectrum insecticide on developing vertebrate embryos.
“This project began as an experiment in an upper-level biology course, Developmental Biology, and then grew into a collaborative experiment published in a scientific journal. I’m very proud of these students,” Lassiter said.
The six students listed as co-authors on the paper are Zoe Krut ’20, Bennet Franz ’22, Ben Walker ’16, Alex Kramer ’17, Kasey Cooper and Jonathan Morgan ’16. In the paper, they report that when zebrafish embryos were exposed to high concentrations of the broad-spectrum insecticide Fipronil continuously for the first five days of development, the exposure caused shorter body length and a decrease in eye size in the embryos. They also quantified defects including enlargement of the heart and increased jaw length and width.
As a result, they concluded, further studies are needed to assess the reasons for Fipronil’s impact on development. The implications could be important to both environmental and human health.
Clockwise from top left: Kasey Cooper, Bennet Franz '22, Alex Kramer '17, Ben Walker '16, Jonathan Morgan '16 and Zoe Krut '20.
“Through this project, I was able to experience all of the highs and lows that are involved in research, and I think the culmination of this project is a testament to the perseverance of this lab,” Krut said.
Lassiter and his students often study the effects of hormones on embryo development in zebrafish. Zebrafish are an excellent model organism for scientific experiments because, like humans, they have a vertebral column. They also share about 70% of the same genes as humans.
Over the years, Lassiter has mentored dozens of undergraduate students in his zebrafish developmental biology lab. Those collaborations have resulted in several published papers with student co-authors, as well as numerous poster presentations at regional, national and international professional conferences.
This particular issue of the journal Zebrafish was a special issue dedicated to the use of zebrafish in undergraduate and K-12 education. Another study published in the issue, which looked at the use of estrogen supplementation to protect against weight gain, was authored by a former Roanoke College visiting professor, Samantha St. Clair, and students Rachel Yinger ’23, Colin Evangelisto ’23, Nicholas Tucker ’23 and Jessica Billingsley ’24.
The laboratory research conducted by students at Roanoke College can contribute not only to future publications, but to their future work. Since graduation, most of the students who are named as co-authors on Lassiter’s paper have gone on to careers in the medical field; some as physicians and some as researchers.
"Gaining hands-on research experience early in my time at Roanoke allowed me to solidify my passion for basic science and the impacts it can have on human health,” said Franz, who is now a medical degree candidate at Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans. “As I've continued my education, the experiences I had with Dr. Lassiter, both inside and outside of the lab, have provided an invaluable framework for exploring the balance of art and science in medicine."
Learn more about research at Roanoke College.
"Gaining hands-on research experience early in my time at Roanoke allowed me to solidify my passion for basic science and the impacts it can have on human health.”
Bennet Franz '22