Research Symposium

BIO

Hello! My name is Mickelie, but most people call me Mickey. I am a second-year pre-medical student at Florida State University, majoring in Biological Science with minors in Psychology, Chemistry and Interdisciplinary Science. My main research interest is neuroscience, specifically neurophysiology, behavioral neuroscience, neurodegenerative diseases, and advancements in medical procedures regarding the human nervous system and how to properly support people who are dealing with various impairments due to neurological decline. These topics inspired my current interest in studying the relationship between sleep and diet, allowing me to explore how behavior can affect an organism's metabolic processes just as much as said processes influence its behavior. My ultimate goal is to develop the skills I've gained throughout my life, education, and research to become a proper physician: not only one that has enough knowledge to diagnosis and solve a problem, but also one that actively makes a difference in a person's life and inspires them to have hope and live their life happily and successfully.

The Relationship between Diet and Sleep-related behavior

Abstract

Metabolic processes are crucial for an organism's survival, being closely tied to development and energy production. Their effectiveness is dependent on factors like sleep, diet, and physical health. While it is acknowledged that within this biological relationship model, sleep and metabolic processes share a strong relationship, there is a lack of analytical research into the relationships between the various specific factors themselves that contribute to the strength of this relationship. This project seeks to focus on two of them, sleep and diet, to gain an understanding of how they are connected, and ultimately to draw inferences on how malnutrition affects an organism’s ability to cope with sleep deprivation. Their relationship will be analyzed through a series of experiments performed on Drosophila to understand how they influence each other and the metabolic processes that drive them. The subjects will be fed specialized diets that represent three common types of diets in human beings: high fat, high sugar, and high protein, in order to observe how they affect the sleeping habits of the Drosophila. Observations will be done through sleep experiments that will analyze their sleeping habits, rebound rates, and behavior. Poor dietary habits can have adverse effects on the quality of life of an organism, impacting its energy, life span, holistic health, and sleeping habits (Everson, 1993; Yamazaki, 2012). In analyzing the relationship between the vital survival habits of sleep and diet, we can better understand the human condition and work towards ways of improving public health from an individual level.

Keywords: sleep, neuroscience, diet, behavior, drosophila