NSF Graduate Research Fellows: Saving tigers, studying cancer and keeping park visitors safe at night

The U.S. National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP) funds graduate student education across the country, helping them pursue their dreams, build their STEM career skills and do some very cool science. A genetic database for tiger conservation, a "highway" for cancer cells and a study helping national park visitors feel safe at night are just a few examples of recent fellow research.

Tiger conservation: It's GRRREAT!

There are over 5,000 privately held tigers in the U.S. (yes, like on "Tiger King"). During her fellowship, NSF GRFP alum Ellie Armstrong used genetic data from these captive tigers as well as wild tigers to help create a genetic reference panel that traces tiger health and ancestry. The results will help both conservationists preserve tiger genetic diversity and federal agencies prosecute wildlife crimes.

A highway for cancer cells

Collagen doesn't just keep your skin firm, elastic and looking fabulous; it can also affect how cancers metastasize. GRFP fellow Sophie Mancha and her team recently discovered that parallel-aligned collagen fibers in the extracellular membrane (the jelly-like material around cells) accelerate the spread of cancer cell clusters. Mancha, who just defended her dissertation, hopes this discovery will help create future cancer therapies and build biological systems knowledge.

Feeling safe at national parks

Artificial light is an issue in national parks, where wildlife needs and visitors' feelings of safety can clash. A recent study by a team including GRFP fellow Morgan Crump shows how much (or how little) light humans need to feel safe in the parks at night. They found that the amount of light needed is less than current outdoor lighting standards, which may help find common ground between human safety and the feeding, mating and other biological habits of wildlife.