The Farris Lab
Why do we grow old? Why do we die? The Farris Lab examines the molecular pathways that address these questions.
We primarily use the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans, and study effects of nutrients, stressors, genetic mutations, and hormones. Because C. elegans normally live ~2-3 weeks, they are an ideal animal in which to study aging and late-onset diseases like neurodegeneration. Many of their pathways are highly conserved through more complex animals, including humans. We are interested in understanding these pathways.
Recent Publications
Osmotic stressors confer age-dependent resistance to heat stress in wild-type and daf-2 Caenorhabditis elegans.
Smith L, Owen B, Ibarra P, Blackwell L, Seymour A, Byram M, Brown A, Redditt R, Farris M. Translational Medicine of Aging. 2024; in press.
Vitamin D3 promotes longevity in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Huggins B, Farris M. Geroscience. 2023 Feb;45(1):345-358.
doi: 10.1007/s11357-022-00637-w.
PMID: 36001277
Glucose effects on polyglutamine-induced proteotoxic stress in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Gatrell L, Wilkins W, Rana P, Farris M. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2020 Feb 12;522(3):709-715.
doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2019.11.159.
PMID: 31785809
Steroid signaling mediates longevity responses to the eat-2 genetic model of dietary restriction in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Farris M, Fang L, Aslamy A, Pineda V. Translational Medicine of Aging. 2019 Sep 23; 3:90-97.
doi: 10.1016/j.tma.2019.09.003.
Current Research
Current Researchers
Several undergraduate researchers are currently conducting original research in the Farris Lab. Projects examine effects of glucose on stress resistance at different ages, effects of Vitamin D on neurodegeneration phenotypes, and hormone effects on lifespan.
Interested students are welcome to come visit the lab and discuss joining our research team in an upcoming semester.
We also have a current opening for a Masters in Biology student.
GET IN TOUCH
Farris Lab
Department of Biology
University of Central Arkansas
Conway, AR, USA