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Amanda Shafer is double majoring in Psychology (BA) and Neuroscience (BS) and is set to graduate in Spring 2026. Shafer is a research assistant in three different laws and joined Dr. Lee Gilman’s Health and Behavioral Neuroscience Lab for the 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program. Shafer was inspired to join Dr. Gilman’s lab due to the neuroscience-intensive research being conducted. After reaching out to Dr. Gilman and completing a few necessary trainings, Shafer became a member of Dr. Gilman’s lab. Joining Dr. Gilman’s lab allowed Shafer to lead an independent project during the eight-week SURE program, and she is continuing this research during the academic year.

Shafer’s interests as a researcher focus largely on the physiological mechanisms of mental health conditions. For SURE 2024, Shafer researched cognitive flexibility and perseverative behaviors in mice. Shafer explained that cognitive flexibility “refers to our ability to adapt to new rules of situations,” while perseverative behaviors are when “an animal continues doing the same thing even when it is no longer appropriate or effective.” Shafer’s research analyzed the differences in PMAT-deficient mine compared to wildtype mice with no PMAT deficiency. PMAT, or Plasma Membrane Monoamine Transporter, is a “transported in the brain that regulates monoamine neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin.” The ultimate goal of Shafer’s research was to determine whether mice with PMAT deficiencies display more perseverative behaviors or cognitive flexibility.

In order to conduct her research, Shafer used four PMAT-deficient mice and four wildtype mice (not PMAT-deficient) and employed operant conditioning, which is a training method that uses rewards and/or punishments to modify behavior. The mice were placed in an operant conditioning box where they learned to press a lever to receive food. As time went on, the task became harder, and the mice had to press the lever an increasing number of times to receive a food pellet. Shafer monitored the rate at which the mice adapted to the change in tasks.

At the beginning of the experiment, two of the PMAT-deficient mice “could not learn the task quickly enough to continue the experiment.” However, out of the remaining six mice, the two PMAT-deficient mice “adapted slightly better than the wildtype group,” which was different from Shafer’s initial hypothesis.

When asked about the application of her research, Shafer explained that her finding suggest “PMAT deficiency could influence or even enhance cognitive flexibility in humans, with potential implications for understanding mental health conditions involving serotonin and dopamine regulation.” Shafer’s research has crucial implications for the understanding of mental health conditions and the role PMAT has in determining behavior. Shafer intends to repeat the experiment to better understand her findings.

Leading a project was incredibly enjoyable for Shafer, and she eagerly explored the unknown and uncharted territory in neuroscience, but research is not always easy. Shafer noted that at times she felt like she wasn’t good enough for her chosen profession, and that it can be overwhelming to understand the vast about of information necessary for her research. To combat her doubts and anxieties, Shafer pushed herself out of her comfort zone and has “dedicated [herself] to being a ‘sponge’ and soaking in as much knowledge as [she] can.” Shafer explained that she’s always striving to learn more, and quoted Hank Green: “Knowledge weighs nothing, carry all you can.”

Shafer’s time as an undergraduate student researcher has been greatly beneficial. She has formed close friendships with her lab mates, and Shafer has also created many professional relationships and expanded her network throughout her time as a researcher. On an academic level, Shafer learned about the “applications of neuroscience to real-world phenomena,” and she also “learned many beneficial skills and obtained extensive experience that increases [her] changes of getting into graduate school.” Undergraduate student research also helped Shafer determine her ultimate career goals, and she is interested in enrolling in an MD/PhD program focusing on psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience. Shafer hopes she will further our understanding of the “biological underpinnings” of mental health disorders, as well as “bridge the gap” between neuroscience and psychiatry.

Shafer’s biggest takeaway from undergraduate student research is understand that “you can truly do anything you set you mind to.” The SURE program provided Shafer with her dream opportunity of leading an independent project, and it also helped her cement her career path. Shafer recommends the SURE program to everyone, especially to those who aren’t quite certain of their future career. Shafer expressed her interest in returning to SURE for SURE 2025, stating that she “loved the program” and “would like to do it again next summer.”

Written by Lenore Kohl