Research grabs the interest of students and keeps them inspired, says Cyndi Trevisiol, who worked in OSU's Skeletal Biology Lab. (Photo: Karl Maasdam)

As a freshman, she learned all that, along with how to feed and care for the rats, in her first summer in OSU’s Skeletal Biology Laboratory.

Under the guidance of OSU professors Russell Turner and Urszula Iwaniec, Trevisiol produced results that led to a paper in Bone, one of the major peer-reviewed journals in the field. “It was hard, and I made mistakes,” she says. “But Russ and Urszula were always so open and willing to listen to my concerns and interests. And tell me where I had made an error in my thinking.”

A Better Idea

In 2006, the graduate of West Albany High School had come to OSU with interests in animals and tissue engineering. So when she saw an application for a research-for-undergraduates program funded by the National Institutes of Health, she decided to apply. “I didn’t know what a big deal that was for me, as a freshman, and when I asked Dr. Greenwood in biochemistry to recommend me, he said, ‘Well . . . . I have a better idea.’” He introduced her to Kevin Ahern, who ran OSU’s Howard Hughes Medical Institute summer research program.

With financial support from the HHMI program, Trevisiol became the first undergraduate in the newly established skeletal biology lab in the College of Health and Human Sciences. “She set the standards for everyone else,” says Iwaniec. “I would present Cyndi with a project, and she would take it from start to finish and make it her own. In a lot of cases, she went beyond it, looking at what was asked of her and finding alternative methods for data collection.”

In that first year, Trevisiol demonstrated that the process in which broken bones repair themselves was impaired in rats fed a diet high in alcohol. Physicians have long known that bones don’t heal well in human alcoholics, but Trevisiol’s research was the first to demonstrate the mechanism that inhibits bone fracture repair.

Real Contributions

“Undergraduates,” says Turner, “are capable of far more than simply obtaining a research experience. This is top-notch, first-line research in which undergraduates can make a very meaningful contribution in discovery processes.”

Using mass spectrometry and micro-computed tomography scanning, Trevisiol delved into proteomics, bone mineralization and growth factors. Her contributions led to her being listed as a co-author on three more papers (in Bone, Osteoporosis International and the Journal of Mineral and Bone Research) with Iwaniec, Turner and their colleagues.

Real Education

“I hope a lot more freshmen get involved in undergraduate research,” she says. “It was valuable for me to start doing research so early in my education. You start out a little unfocused, but if you’re interested in what you’re studying, and you’re committed to learning, all of sudden school will come into focus.

“It’s a really good experience that should be given to more freshmen,” she adds. “For a lot of people I know, if they had gotten into research at the right time, it might have grabbed them.”

Moderate alcohol consumption in adults can have health benefits. It can reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, gallstones and maybe diabetes. Russell Turner, Gianni Maddalozzo and Urszula Iwaniec of OSU’s Bone Research Laboratory could add osteoporosis to that list.

Studies with animals have found that the equivalent of five to 10 drinks per week can have beneficial effects on the skeleton.

With support from the National Institutes of Health and the John C. Erkkila, M.D., Endowment, they hope to conduct the first–ever controlled study on alcohol and bone density in post–menopausal women.

Iwaniec and Turner co–authored a recent report on a drug that shows promise as a treatment for breast cancer and metastases to bone. The influence of alcohol consumption on bone density has also been a major focus of their work.

"We’re not doing this with the idea of advocating alcohol consumption for the prevention of osteoporosis," says Turner.

"But essentially half of Americans drink.

And out of that half, 80 percent drink in the moderate range. The question is, Are they getting any skeletal benefit from it?"

So, starting in 2008, the Bone Research Lab will seek up to 50 female volunteers to participate in a six–week pilot study. To be eligible, subjects must routinely drink five to 10 "standard" (defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of 80–proof distilled spirits) drinks per week.

They must be post–menopausal and not be taking hormone replacement therapy or any other medications that would influence bone.

The study will require subjects to stop drinking alcohol for a period of two weeks and then to resume their regular routine.

Blood and urine samples will be collected four times during the study and analyzed for biomarkers of bone resorption (a normal process in healthy bones). Bone density scans of the whole body, hip and spine will also be included.

In rat studies, moderate alcohol intake has been as effective as some prescription drugs in lowering elevated bone turnover (replacement of old bone with new bone). Elevated turnover is responsible for bone loss and reduced bone quality in post–menopausal women. "It’s important because if in fact you do have an advantage, you may not have to take drug therapy at all or won’t need to take it until later in life," says Turner. On the other hand, excessive alcohol consumption is known to reduce bone density.

Bone density reaches a maximum in young adults and reflects a balance between normal bone formation and loss.

Estrogen helps to maintain bone mass, but after menopause, estrogen levels drop and bone resorption increases, resulting in a net loss.

Nationally, 80 percent of people diagnosed with osteoporosis are post–menopausal women. Care for people who have suffered osteoporotic fractures cost an estimated $18 billion in 2002, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation.