Student Research Opportunities
Dr. Alida Janmaat, Associate Professor in Biology, is seeking two directed study students starting in January 2026 to support the following projects:
- BIO 409/499:
- BIO 408:
These courses offer an opportunity to apply scientific principles through a creative, hands-on directed studies research experience outside the usual course format. The prerequisites for both BIO 408 and BIO 409 are a B+ or higher in three of the following courses: BIO 201, BIO 202, BIO 210, or BIO 220, as well as the instructor’s permission.
Please contact Dr. Alida Janmaat if interested in either of the directed studies opportunities.
Recent Student Research Projects
Winter 2025
Aryaee Azar, Shervin. BIO 499: Annotation of protein-coding genes in D. willistoni using orthologous sequences in D. melanogaster (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. James Bedard)
Bhullar, Harleen. BIO 499: Studying α2δ1 protein in U118-MG Glioblastoma Cells (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Mitra Tabatabaee)
Gretton Coulter, Fiona. BIO 499: Studying the Impact of Huckleberry (Vaccinium membranaceum) Extract on Longevity and β-Amyloid toxicity in Caenorhabditis elegans (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Nathan Bialas)
Mazzek, Rosemarie. BIO 499: Investigating the Effects of Saskatoon Berry (Amelanchier alnifolia) on Lifespan and Fatty Acid Metabolism in Caenorhabditis elegans (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Nathan Bialas)
Sidhu, Anoop. BIO 409: Investigating the digestion of blood using the enzyme-entrapped hydrogel (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Golfam Ghafourifar)
Singh, Sirjan. BIO 499: Genomic annotation of protein-coding sequences in Muller E/F elements of Drosophila willistoni using comparative genomics (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. James Bedard)
Thomson, Quinn. BIO 499: Relating Plaque Area Change to Viral RNA Concentration in VHSV-IVa Infected Rainbow Trout Gonad Cells (RTG-2) (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Justin Lee)
Fall 2024
Macauley, Graham. BIO 409: Surveying for Potential Emerald Ash Borer Presence in Abbotsford, BC (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Alida Janmaat)
Kempton, Morgan. BIO 408: Nighttime disturbances faced by the Blue Heron population in the Great Blue Heron reserve of Chilliwack (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Greg Schmaltz)
Tracey, Taylor. BIO 408: Exploring fall and spring migration patterns of Swainson’s thrush (Catharus ustulatus) along the Pacific coast using automated radio telemetry (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Jennifer Barrett)
Summer 2024
Brar, Kamal. BIO 409: Microplastics at Annacis Island (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Sharon Gillies)
Currie, Austin. BIO 408: Isolation and Characterization of Salmonella spp.-specific Bacteriophages from Poultry for their Potential Use in Phage Therapy (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Natallia Varankovich)
Sidhu, Anandjot. BIO 408: The distribution and abundance of invasive plant species in several local parks and green spaces in Abbotsford (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Sharon Gillies)
Winter 2024
Bawa, Gurleen. BIO 409: Investigating Electroporation Transfection Methods in Oncorhynchus mykiss Cell Lines using EGFP (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Justin Lee)
Evans, Taylor. BIO 409: An Analysis of Contig 36 & 59 of Drosophila willistoni Using a Comparative Genomics Approach (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. James Bedard)
Feaver, Amber. BIO 409: Evaluating Susceptibility to Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus in Salmonid Cell Lines (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Justin Lee)
Liu, Dongliang. BIO 499: Construction of Gene Models for E Element Contigs 15 & 25 and F Element Contig 40 in D. willistoni (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. James Bedard)
Singh, Amrit. BIO 409: Cracking the Genetic Code: Annotation of Contigs within the Drosophila willistoni Muller E and F Elements Using Comparative Genomics (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. James Bedard)
Toor, Samneet. BIO 408: Pharmacogenomics Use in Epilepsy (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Angela Bedard)
Fall 2023
Chauhan, Jaskiran. BIO 499: Abundance and Seasonal Variation of Microplastics in Fraser River Sediment (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Sharon Gillies)
Labun, Joseph. BIO 409: Changes in threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) armour plate morphology and bone material density in response to variation in calcium concentration (糖心原创 Faculty Advisor: Dr. Dina Navon)
London International Youth Science Forum
The (LIYSF) is a two-week residential student event held at Imperial
College London & The Royal Geographical Society, with lecture demonstrations from leading scientists, visits to world-class laboratories and universities, combined with cultural interaction, with 500 students aged 16-21 years old from 70 countries.
Students can apply directly to LIYSF and pay the cost themselves; however, if you are a student enrolled in a science program at 糖心原创 who is academically outstanding and also has great leadership and communication skills, why not apply through us, and we'll cover the cost! The Faculty of Science sends at least one science student to LIYSF each summer, all expenses paid to represent 糖心原创. Find out how you can qualify >
Science Student Clubs and Associations:
For more 糖心原创 Clubs and Associations, visit the 糖心原创 Student Union Society '