Best for:
Teens and young adults, 13-18
About the Program:
Read more about Teen Science Cafe here. (Opens in a new window)
This event is FREE and open to the public. No registration or ticket is required.
Topic:
Looking the red wolf in the eye(s): what we know about a potentially heritable blindness in Canis rufus.
The red wolf species is critically endangered, and is extinct in the wild. Our speakers' laboratory has been studying a common cause of blindness in the captive population, which affects mostly males. Certain groups within the pedigree appear to be more commonly affected; as a whole, the population is relatively inbred. They have defined the degeneration using eye examinations of related individuals, and both histologic and genetic characterization of post-mortem retinal tissue. Figuring out a potential cause of this blindness is critical to assist in the success of this species, particularly as there are plans to release some family groups into the wild.
About our speakers:
Freya Mowat is a veterinary ophthalmologist and Ph.D. scientist. She grew up in the UK, completed her doctoral studies in London,her residency training in Michigan and is currently an assistant professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine at NC State. She studies blinding retinal diseases relevant to dogs and humans.
Philip Giorgino completed his bachelors of science in Genetics at NC State in 2018. He is currently applying to medical school, and is particularly interested in genetics and hematology.
Emma Droste is an undergraduate in Genetics at NC State.
Location:
Due to ongoing renovations at Morehead Planetarium, this month's Teen Science Cafe will be held in the following location:
Chapel Hill Public Library
100 Library Drive
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Directions