Dr. Deanna Arble, assistant professor of biological sciences in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences, has received a CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation with an expected value of $1.37 million to study how light affects breathing and the maintenance of blood oxygen levels.
“Light has such amazing effects on physiology,” Arble said. “If we get light at the wrong time of day, it can greatly disrupt our sleep and daily rhythms. If we don’t have enough light, we can become depressed (Seasonal Affective Disorder). Bright light can even make (some of) us sneeze! But this is only the tip of the iceberg. Light can also change the way we breathe. We are only just beginning to understand all the different ways light can affect us.
“This award will allow us, for the first time, to determine how light affects breathing and the respiratory reflex,” Arble said. “ Ultimately, this research may enable the discovery of other processes modulated by environmental light and provide insights into the mechanisms by which light, circadian biology and respiratory physiology are related.”
The objective of this CAREER grant is to identify the retinal pathways utilized by light to affect breathing and blood gas homeostasis. Arble’s overarching hypothesis is that light has distinct effects on breathing via separate populations of retinal cells which transmit light information to the brain. One pathway stimulates respiratory populations in the hindbrain to affect breathing rate and minute ventilation. Another pathway provides cues for the body’s circadian clock, which, in turn, optimizes a physiological respiratory reflex to the light-dark cycle.
“We are excited for Dr. Arble and the prospects of such a prestigious award,” said Dr. Heidi Bostic, dean of the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences. “Scientifically, this grant could positively inform several research fields, from clinical respiratory physiology and circadian biology to neuroscience and ecology. Dr. Arble’s commitment to Marquette’s Catholic, Jesuit mission of the advancement of knowledge and cura personalis — care for the whole person — is reflected in the way she has approached this award and the additional educational opportunities which this CAREER award will create for students.”
Integrated into the research program, this grant will increase STEM innovation by creating a formal training experience in divergent thinking. Arble and Lynne Shumow, curator for academic engagement at the Haggerty Museum of Art, have created a creative problem-solving course for undergraduate researchers. The goal of the course is to encourage creativity in STEM research by bringing artists and scientists together to model creativity across disciplines and teach tools to enhance the creative process. This is already the subject of an art exhibition at the Haggerty Museum of Art, “Parallel Play: The Art of Science & the Science of Art,” which guides visitors through the commonalities between art and science. Parallel Play is an integral component of a biology course taught by Arble and Shumow and can be viewed by the public until May 24, 2025.
“We are lucky to co-present innovative programs across academic disciplines such as art and biology with accomplished faculty like Dr. Arble,” said John McKinnon, director of the Haggerty Museum of Art. “Students and the public alike have praised these connections for fostering new creative ways of thinking.”
“By giving students the confidence and skills needed to engage in creative problem-solving now, we hope to promote future scientific discovery in our ever-changing world,” Arble said.
The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. Activities pursued by early-career faculty should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.
