Gut–Brain Reprogramming Induced by Acute and Chronic Pathogen Exposures: The Role of G Protein–Coupled Receptors in Male Aggression

Kunau, J, Phillips, A, Isern, E., and Certel, S. Division of Biological Sciences, The University of Montana, Missoula, MT, United States.

Organisms must continuously interpret environmental change and rapidly adjust physiology and behavior. Ingested microbes are a powerful, understudied driver of this process because they can reshape gut to brain communication and alter behaviors such as feeding and aggression. Here we test whether acute, 24-hour ingestion of E. coli is sufficient to shift male aggression in Drosophila.

The gastrointestinal system communicates with the brain through signaling pathways that begin in the gut epithelium, where enteroendocrine cells detect nutrient and microbial cues and release peptides that influence neural circuits and behavioral state. Prior work shows that bacterial infection can alter neuromodulatory systems linked to aggression, motivating our experiments testing that microbial ingestion can change aggression thresholds.

To answer our question of whether pathogen exposure affects gut adrenergic signaling and aggression, we use Drosophila as our model system. We are comparing two exposure levels: an acute high-dose ingestion of E. coli for 24 hours and a chronic low-dose ingestion for 10 days.

After being aged to 3 days, the adult males are placed on either experimental E. coli, or two controls; heat-killed E. coli or culture medium treatment for 24 hours. We use a “Killed” E. coli treatment to see if any changes might simply be due to ingesting bacteria whether live or not. The fights are run in a standard aggression assay. Aggression is quantified using measures including latency to the first lunge and the number of lunges. Fights are scored for 20 minutes following the first lunge. If lunges do not occur within 20 minutes of pairing, the fight is excluded from analysis.

At this time, our preliminary data shows that bacteria increases latency time to fight, while our data on lunging is inconclusive. However, we are continuing to perform and score fights and will soon have enough data. These ongoing experiments will establish whether short duration microbial ingestion alters male aggression. This outcome will provide the foundation for future work testing how gut signaling mechanisms, including octopamine-mediated pathways in enteroendocrine cells, contribute to any observed behavioral shifts.

This research investigates the sustainability literacy levels of first-year Davidson Honors College (DHC) students at the University of Montana (UM) to develop a baseline for average sustainability knowledge at the beginning of students’ post-secondary education. The goals of this research are to (1) determine if there are differences in sustainability literacy scores between students in sustainability-related fields of study and their counterparts, (2) identify weaknesses in students’ current sustainability literacy, and (3) develop curriculum suggestions to improve sustainability knowledge. To address these research questions, all first-year DHC students in 2024 and 2025 were surveyed using a modified version of the Assessment of Sustainability Knowledge. The survey consisted of 18 multiple-choice questions on the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability, and one open-ended question asking for field of study. The survey yielded 533 responses total. Results showed that the average ASK sustainability literacy score for first-year DHC students is 11.11 out of 18 (61.7%), with students in sustainability-related fields scoring significantly higher than their counterparts. First-year DHC students have the highest understanding of the environmental dimension of sustainability (66.89%), followed by the social dimension (65.18%), and the economic dimension (50.10%); however, these differences were not statistically significant. These results demonstrate room for growth in sustainability education at the DHC. In response, this study provides a “sustainability education for all” course syllabus to demonstrate strengthened curricula. This research highlights the need for improved sustainability education at UM and provides concrete ways to improve sustainability literacy through higher education curricula.

Beavers are ecosystem engineers who influence the geomorphology and hydrology of streams, as well as riparian vegetation. Beaver-related restoration has become a popular approach with techniques such as beaver dam analogs (BDAs) commonly used to aid in the recovery of stream ecosystems. Despite their extensive use in low-tech restoration, there exist few studies longer than 3 years to demonstrate the effectiveness of BDAs. We conducted a 6-year follow-up study on a project with 14 BDAs in Teepee Creek, a second-order stream near Lolo in Western Montana. We collected data on instream habitat, flow, water temperature, and riparian vegetation and analyzed it using a Before, After, Control, and Impact study design. Compared to the control reach, the restored reach had greater channel heterogeneity with more islands, bars, and wood in the stream. The percent bank area covered by woody vegetation and sedges in the restored reach increased over 6 years, while these vegetation types stayed the same or decreased upstream, indicative of greater groundwater close to the stream. The restored reach supported more surface water (pools) and higher flows later into the year compared to the upstream control, but there were no changes in temperature as water flows through the restored reach. Overall, the beaver dam analog project increased residence time, riparian plants, and channel heterogeneity. These results support expected, positive changes in restored streams 6 years after the project installation as stream channels increase in complexity, reconnect to floodplains, and improve riparian habitat.

In 2016, UM faculty and students excavated a mummified cat, a girl's shoe, and a Civil War bayonet concealed within the structure of a late 19th century house. My research led me to discover that the intentional enclosure of certain objects considered to be magically protective into the walls or foundations of family dwellings is a longstanding practice found across the world, including in the northern European context from which the homeowners descended. Tracing the historical and archaeological record of so-called concealment or foundation rituals, I examined the continuities and changes in such practices from ancient northern European religions through Christianization. Montana's own history of supposedly non-standard religious and spiritual expressions are recorded in books, newspaper articles, and other historical documents from the time of the cat, shoe, and bayonet's depositions. These are synthesized with the family's own history and analyzed to posit interpretations of the Missoula case study. I hypothesize that these three objects may have been understood as living persons, whose concealment reinforced relationships with both home and spirit. Rather than isolated superstition, this deposit exemplifies the continuity of ancient religions and magical worldviews creatively adapted across time, frequently within Christian households. This study contributes to a growing body of scholarship exploring the evolution of European magico-religious traditions as they have been altered, reconstructed, and reaffirmed in new social environments.

Wildlife in the United States is publicly owned, but much of the habitat that supports these species exists on privately owned land. This creates tension for conservation, especially in the western United States where species like elk, deer, and sage grouse rely heavily on private land. While wildlife itself can create management challenges for landowners, the primary driver of habitat loss is often economic pressure rather than negative attitudes toward wildlife. Private land may be converted to agriculture, subdivision development, or other financially beneficial uses when maintaining open habitat does not compare financially. As a result, landowners may lack clear incentives to maintain or improve wildlife habitat, even when that habitat provides broader ecological and long-term public benefits. This project examines whether market-based tools such as transferable hunting permits or conservation incentive programs can encourage habitat protection on private lands without undermining the public trust doctrine that defines wildlife as a public resource. I compare landowner permit systems and conservation partnerships across several western states to evaluate how different program designs influence landowner decisions and habitat outcomes. Preliminary findings suggest that incentive-based programs can reduce development pressure when they are clearly tied to measurable conservation outcomes. However, poorly structured programs risk limiting public hunting access or raising concerns about the gradual privatization of publicly owned wildlife. This research explores how conservation goals can be balanced with private property rights by identifying collaborative approaches that support habitat protection while preserving wildlife as a shared public resource.

All great art is inspired by that which came before it and the historical context in which it is written. This was certainly true of the works of Fyodor Dostoevsky, one of the giants of Russian — and indeed, world — literature. Dostoevsky was a voracious reader who was familiar with not only his own country’s works and history, but that of Europe as a whole. One particular topic of interest to Dostoevsky was the infamous Spanish Inquisition, an interest he at least in part inherited from his predecessor, Nikolai Gogol. Gogol published the short story “Diary of a Madman” in 1835, one year after the Inquisition was formally disbanded on 15 July 1834. In addition to referencing the Inquisition, “Diary of a Madman” also consciously draws on Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra’s 1613 novella “The Dialogue of the Dogs” in order to enrich his work with layers of allegorical commentary on the harsh cultural atmosphere of Nicholas I’s Russia. In other words, Gogol uses allusions to the Inquisition to create an implied analogy to the harsh Russian Orthodox police state led by Nicholas I. Cervantes had his own run-ins with the law during the Inquisition’s heyday, and many scholars have written on his most famous work, Don Quixote, and its hidden-in-plain-sight criticism of the Inquisition’s actions during Cervantes’ lifetime.

This paper seeks to track the literary lineage of the Spanish Inquisition as a cultural backdrop in Russian literature using Cervantes’ Don Quixote and “Dialogue of the Dogs” as two literary reference points. After a brief background sketch on the history of the Inquisition and its relation to the work of Cervantes, I will turn to an analysis of the theme as it manifests itself in Russian literature, beginning with Gogol’s “Diary of a Madman” and extending to Dostoevsky’s “The Grand Inquisitor” chapter of The Brothers Karamazov, where the theme of the Inquisition culminates, becoming a vital backdrop for understanding some of the deeper layers of Dostoevsky’s last and greatest masterpiece. The paper will aim to situate each work in its historical and political context to explore the interplay of ideas across cultures and to understand on a deeper level how these ideas continue to shape our present-day reality, especially as modern Russian nationalists often draw Dostoevsky’s works to further their own political ends.

Teacher characteristics play a critical role in shaping students’ academic, social, and behavioral outcomes. Understanding which teacher characteristics or qualities support positive student development is essential for improving instructional practice and student success. Prior research suggests that teachers’ competence in key instructional processes and their confidence in implementing specific programs may influence student performance. The present study examined whether elementary teacher confidence in supporting students’ academic and social development predicted student academic and social risk behaviors. Archival data were analyzed as part of a larger study evaluating a collaborative social-emotional learning curriculum implemented in a primarily Indigenous elementary school. Linear regression analyses indicated no statistically significant relationship between teacher confidence in supporting social development and students’ social risk behaviors, nor between teacher confidence in supporting academic development and students’ academic risk behaviors. However, given the small sample size in my study (n = 45), and slight negative trends observed in both models, it is possible that meaningful effects would be statistically significant in a larger sample size. These findings contribute to ongoing efforts to inform teacher training and professional development initiatives by identifying teacher skills that may support optimal student outcomes.

Deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) are an abundant North American rodent and the primary reservoir for Sin Nombre virus (SNV), a hantavirus with a 30-40% case fatality rate in humans. While ectoparasites, such as fleas, are not considered vectors of SNV, their bites may indirectly affect the transmission of SNV by impacting host condition or immune function. These impacts could potentially lead to an increase in host susceptibility and/or an increase in viral shedding, yet there is still little knowledge on what influences flea parasitism on deer mice in western Montana. This study looks to examine how mouse sex, mouse body mass, soil moisture, and soil temperature affect the presence and number of fleas in two populations of deer mice at MPG Ranch in Florence, Montana. For this study, I used preserved carcasses that were collected as a part of a longitudinal trapping effort at UM that took place from 2023-2025 with soil moisture/temperature being logged every 30 minutes at each site. Each mouse was individually examined for fleas. Preliminary results show that 154 of 546 (28%) mice were parasitized. We identified 264 total fleas to species and found 9 different species, 2 of which are species not commonly found in this area.

We are analyzing the data using Generalized Linear Mixed Models to assess how biotic and abiotic factors are influencing the presence and abundance of fleas. These analyses will provide insight on the patterns of flea infestation on wild deer mice in Montana.

My project examines Edith Wharton’s novella Ethan Frome through the lens of purgatory. I argue that the story is less a tragedy of failed love than a story about being trapped inside one’s own mistakes, unable to move forward. Rather than reading Ethan’s sled crash as a failed suicide followed by a bleak but ordinary life, I explore the interpretation that the “present-day” Starkfield is a form of purgatory—an endless winter in which Ethan continues the emotional patterns that destroyed him.

My guiding question is: What changes if we read Ethan Frome as already dead, living inside a self-made purgatory? I pursued this question through close reading of Wharton’s imagery, structure, and narration, paying particular attention to descriptions of landscape, time, aging, and the novella’s section break before the crash. I analyzed how Wharton uses weather, stagnancy, and repetition to blur the line between life and death--how townspeople’s storytelling frames Ethan as a living monument rather than a person.

My central argument is that Wharton constructs a punishment that is psychologically purgatorial: Ethan is forced to inhabit the same suffering he created, with no escape or redemption. This reading shifts the novel from a story about misfortune to one about moral stagnation and the refusal to change.

This project connects classic literature to broader questions about how people become trapped by their own choices, memories, and failures. For modern readers, Ethan Frome becomes less a distant character and more a cautionary figure for how unexamined lives can harden into personal prisons.

Abstract

The Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority (BSPRA) is a regional coalition of 12 Montana counties with a mission of improving and expanding passenger rail service throughout Montana and the greater northwest region. The BSPRA seeks to restore a passenger rail route that would connect Chicago to Seattle, passing through Montana, known as the Big Sky North Coast Corridor (BSNCC). The goal of QUEST is to provide a relevant, realistic, and research-based recommendation that assists the mission of the BSPRA. We identified a need to actively engage the BSPRA with the University of Montana which is a regional hub and a community of likely rail users. We conducted qualitative interviews with individuals representing key perspectives including ASUM Director of Transportation Vickie Rectenwald and Dave Strohmaier, chair of the BSPRA and Missoula County commissioner. Additionally, we examined a virtual forum on passenger rail hosted by Montana State University as a case study for educational partnerships between the BSPRA and university communities. Using this information, we are developing a three-phase plan to connect the BSPRA’s vision of expanding safe, reliable, sustainable, and economic passenger rail with the University of Montana’s goal of addressing rising transportation demands, limited parking availability, and increasing expectations for sustainability. Our recommended first phase is a facilitated town hall meeting to build relationships and spread awareness among the university community. The second phase of our proposal is expanding the reach of the existing Associated Students of the University of Montana (ASUM) UDASH bus system to provide twice-daily service to the train depot. Finally, in the third phase, we offer steps for maintaining partnerships between organizations to ensure the continued success of the BSNCC and UM.

This study examines how being a for-profit or nonprofit organization influences marketing strategy and strategic decision-making. While marketing is used by both types of organizations to communicate value and connect with audiences, differences in organizational goals can lead to different approaches. This research combines a review of existing literature with qualitative interviews from two local organizations in Montana: a nonprofit organization, Flathead Industries, and a for-profit business, Cambie Taphouse + Coffee.

The findings show clear differences in how marketing is approached across the two organizations. The nonprofit organization focuses more on mission-driven messaging, long-term awareness, and community impact, while the for-profit business emphasizes customer engagement, immediate outcomes, and practical decision-making. At the same time, the results suggest that geographic context also plays a role, as both organizations operate in smaller, community-based markets where local relationships and reputation are important.

Overall, this study provides a more applied perspective on marketing strategy by showing how both organizational structure and real-world context influence decision-making. These findings contribute to a better understanding of how marketing operates across different types of organizations and highlight the importance of considering both internal goals and external environments.

The Native American peoples of the United States have faced a history shaped by systemic oppression with the government since European settlers landed in the North American continent. This project focuses on Native American community efforts in revitalizing their languages, cultures, and ways of being. One of the traumatic long-lasting events that have affected Native American communities and individuals is federally and/or church run boarding schools. In the United States, there were approximately 300 schools that were open from 1860-1978. My hope with this project is to explore the history of assimilation and oppression the federal government attempted with these institutions, as well as look at modern day community efforts in revitalizing what we have lost due to them. Language immersion schools are very important to tribal communities and language speakers because it helps keep a language alive. There are multiple teaching methods that can be implemented into these schools to ensure the children in these schools are learning the language. This project was done using Indigenous Research Methodologies (IRM) and it examines the histories of boarding schools, language loss, and language revitalization through published articles. It is important to acknowledge our histories, but also to celebrate our futures. Our communities are coming together to move forward, for the benefit of our people, which starts with teaching our children our cultural ways of knowing.

Rhythms of Learning

Eli Flaim

Traditional Western education has typically assumed that learning occurs best at a desk in a classroom. However, much of my personal development has taken place outdoors and in motion through participating in and facilitating experiential learning. My capstone project aims to bridge these two worlds by exploring how outdoor education can be effectively integrated into higher education without necessitating wilderness expeditions or significant structural changes. I will discuss my journey in developing this project and share the findings of my research, highlighting the importance of outdoor education and practical ways to implement it in the classroom. In the course HONR 394.84, Walking as Method, I introduced practices inspired by outdoor education into the university classroom. I will share my experience facilitating class sessions, reflective journaling, and discussions, and discuss how small shifts in teaching methods might positively impact students' well-being and learning outcomes. Instead of viewing nature merely as a backdrop, it has been approached as a collaborator in the educational process.

This work is informed by research on experiential learning and human biology, but it is equally rooted in care. I am interested in the outcomes of an educational approach that honors cognitive development alongside emotional regulation, social connection, and the natural rhythms of the human body. Since learning requires attention, and attention depends on well-being, classroom design becomes an ethical consideration. As the project evolved, so did its format. What began as a course-based intervention has grown into a resource website for educators, which I will also present. This site compiles lesson plans, reflective prompts, theoretical frameworks, and practical strategies for implementing outdoor-inspired methods in various educational contexts. My goal is not to replace the traditional classroom but to expand the definition of a learning space and provide accessible tools for those who share my intrigue.

Fundamentally, this project is both a contribution to scholarly dialogue and a starting point for the kind of teaching I hope to carry forward, grounded in care and a belief that learning should support the whole human being.

For this project, I am completing a research paper examining the environmental impacts of supporting local agriculture in Montana. I'm conducting this research for the local non-profit organization Abundant Montana to help them inform consumer decision-making and encourage local food consumption. My goal is to deliver information to support Abundant Montana's mission while also conducting thorough research that identifies the environmental benefits, consequences, and unknowns of Montana's agricultural sector.

As an environmental science student with an interest in sustainable agriculture, this project is an incredibly meaningful process and hopefully it will serve as a stepping stone to my future graduate research. Despite environmental science gaining more and more traction in the agricultural field, several gaps still exist in our understanding of the anthropogenic impacts on the environment. I hope this project starts to fill one tiny gap and contributes support to Montana's environment and agriculture.

Western clinical and commercial adoption of meditation and mindfulness practices has achieved remarkable reach, offering documented benefits for stress reduction, emotional regulation, and well-being. However, this rapid adoption has outpaced systematic attention to certain questions that traditional contemplative frameworks addressed through established protocols. This paper proposes a three-tier model distinguishing contemplative practice, mindfulness training, and intensive meditation, each with distinct characteristics warranting differentiated guidance. Drawing on comparative analysis of contemplative traditions, the regulatory parallel of clinical hypnosis, contemporary adverse event research, and a first-person case study, the paper identifies areas where current practice might be strengthened. Recent population-representative data indicate that approximately 60% of meditators report at least one adverse effect, with roughly 30% experiencing distressing effects and approximately 9% reporting functional impairment. The paper concludes with implications for clinical practice, research methodology, and training program development.