“I knew nothing when I started. We do a lot of reading in journals, and I’ve learned a lot from upperclassmen mentors. We have lab meetings every week and discuss papers that are relevant.”
Research fellow: Meagan Hackey
Hometown: South Kingstown, RI
Majors: Biology, Chemistry
School: Roger Williams University
Faculty mentor: Avelina Espinosa
Project: Biochemical and behavioral analysis of AdhE enzymes from Entamoeba spp. in resisting environmental stresses in marine and fresh water protists.
Listening to Meagan Hackey explain her summer research work, her assertion that she “knew nothing” when she started illustrates both her quick grasp and 
the value of undergraduate research.
Only about two weeks into Rhode Island’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, Hackey deftly and patiently explains the project she is working on in the RWU lab of biology Associate Professor Avelina Espinosa.
A rising sophomore, Hackey is one of 38 students funded by the competitive RI NSF EPSCoR summer research program. The students come from RI NSF EPSCoR’s partner campuses and they spend 10 weeks conducting research in the labs of faculty mentors, developing their scientific and professional skill base and helping push science forward.
The Entamoeba is found in poor quality drinking water of third world countries and causes dysentery for those who ingest it, forming cysts that the liver can’t process, explains Hackey: “One hundred thousand people die every year from it.”
Hackey uses a microscope to check on the Entamoeba, clinging to the walls of test tubes and unseen by the naked eye. She tracks how they respond to alterations — higher or lower acidity, a warmer temperature — in the liquid that mimics their natural environment. The question is how climate change may impact the way in which the Entamoeba communicate and aggregate, or group together, and whether their growth may be inhibited.
Looking ahead, Hackey has her sights set on earning a Ph.D., conducting research and becoming a neonatologist.
Story and photos by Amy Dunkle
Rhode Island EPSCoR is funded by the National Science Foundation under EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Award #OIA-1655221 (Sept. 2017-Aug. 2022). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.