According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, the endometrium is the layer of tissue inside the uterus. The endometrium grows during each menstrual cycle to prepare for a fertilized egg. If no eggs are fertilized during the menstrual cycle, the endometrium is shed during what is commonly known as a period, according to Cleveland Clinic.
Graphic by Sunny Wei ‘23.
By Catelyn Fitzgerald ’23
Science and Environment Editor
Sexually transmitted infections are infections passed from one person to another during sexual activity, according to Planned Parenthood. STIs are common and often occur without symptoms, but can cause serious health problems if left untreated. For each STI, corresponding symptoms, testing and treatment vary. Some common STIs include:
Chlamydia: Chlamydia is one of the most common STIs and most people who contract it show no symptoms. According to Planned Parenthood, “Chlamydia can infect the penis, vagina, cervix, anus, urethra, eyes and throat.” When symptoms do occur, they may take several weeks to appear following the start of the infection. Symptoms include pain while urinating or during sex, abnormal discharge and spotting between periods, Planned Parenthood explained. If left untreated, chlamydia can spread to the uterus and fallopian tubes and eventually cause pelvic inflammatory disease.
Human Papillomavirus: HPV is a very common STI and can often go away on its own. Planned Parenthood reports that “most people who have sex get HPV at some point in their lives.” While often harmless, certain types of HPV can create serious health problems, such as cervical cancer, if left untreated. HPV can infect the genitals, mouth and throat. “High-risk” types of HPV have no symptoms, making regular testing important, according to Planned Parenthood.
Syphilis: Syphilis is an STI that occurs in four stages if left untreated, an article from the Center for Disease Control stated. Symptoms of the primary stage include sores on the genitals or mouth. During the secondary stage, rashes around the genitals and mouth may appear during or following the healing process of the initial sores, the article said. After the secondary stage, the infection remains in the body with no symptoms. According to the CDC, most people do not experience the final, or tertiary, stage of syphilis, which occurs anywhere from 10 to 30 years following the time of infection and can lead to serious health problems.
Gonorrhea: Gonorrhea is a common STI among people between the ages of 15 and 24, the CDC reported. The infection can affect the genitals, rectum and throat. Gonorrhea usually does not have symptoms, and when people do experience symptoms they tend to be mild and easy to mistake for other infections, the CDC said. Gonorrhea can be treated with medication once diagnosed, but if left untreated can lead to the development of pelvic inflammatory disease among other complications, according to the CDC.
Getting tested regularly is crucial for spotting STIs before they develop into serious conditions, the CDC said. According to the Mount Holyoke College website, testing is available for students at the Health Center.
A study published in the journal PLOS ONE found that nitrogen dioxide pollution from vehicles correlates with lower blood pressure levels in teens. Photo courtesy of B137 via Wikimedia Commons.
By Shira Sadeh ’25
Global Editor
A study published on Feb. 8, 2023, in the journal PLOS One found that pollution affects teens’ blood pressure. While it was already known that pollution can affect people’s ability to breathe and can cause health problems such as cancer, this new study focuses on the effect of pollution on blood pressure, a CNN article about the new study reported.
The study involved 3,200 teenagers, whose blood pressure data was compared to exposure rates based on annual pollution reports for the areas in which the teens lived, CNN said. While previous blood pressure studies have observed adults and many pollution studies have observed children, this study is unique due to its focus on teens.
According to a CNN summary of the study, lower blood pressure levels were associated with exposure to nitrogen dioxide, while higher blood pressure levels were correlated with exposure to particulate matter 2.5 — also known as particle pollution. Although the researchers did not look into the health effects of fluctuating blood pressure, low blood pressure is known to cause “confusion, tiredness, blurred vision and dizziness.” High blood pressure in youth can “lead to a lifetime of health problems including a higher risk of stroke or heart attack,” the article explained, adding that high blood pressure is “a leading risk factor for premature death worldwide.”
The Environmental Protection Agency website explains that nitrogen dioxide pollution is caused by burning fuel, and is often emitted by buses, cars, trucks and off-road equipment. The EPA states that exposure to nitrogen dioxide can irritate the respiratory system, causing breathing problems, and can cause asthma or respiratory infections. Additionally, when nitrogen dioxide interacts with water and other chemicals in the atmosphere, it can create acid rain that harms ecosystems and makes the air hazy.
The EPA has created National Ambient Air Quality Standards that define the maximum concentrations of nitrogen dioxide permitted to be in the outside air. When an area does not meet this standard, the EPA works with regional authorities to lower nitrogen dioxide emissions.
Particulate matter is a type of pollution composed of a mixture of solid particles — such as smoke, dust, soot or dirt — and liquid droplets, the EPA website explained. PM 2.5 is a category of particulate matter made up of fine, inhalable particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller. In comparison, the EPA states that the average person’s hair has a diameter of approximately 70 micrometers, making the largest PM 2.5 particles 30 times smaller than the average human hair.
PM is emitted from numerous different sources, the EPA says. Roads, construction sites, fields and fires are major sources, but many particles also form in the atmosphere as a result of chemical reactions, often after emission by automobiles and power plants. According to the EPA, the small size of the particles means that they are easily inhalable, and can pose a danger to humans if they get into the lungs or bloodstream. Studies have shown that PM 2.5 can cause “premature death in people with heart or lung disease, nonfatal heart attacks, irregular heartbeat, aggravated asthma, decreased lung function and increased respiratory symptoms, such as irritation of the airways, coughing or difficulty breathing,” the EPA said. PM 2.5 has also been linked to increased haziness in the air, increased acidity in rivers and lakes, changing nutrient balances in water and soil and affecting ecosystems. Similarly to nitrogen dioxide pollution, the EPA regulates PM emissions, but these regulations exclude particles with a diameter greater than ten micrometers.
According to the study, female participants reacted to PM 2.5 pollution more dramatically than male participants, while participants of both sexes had similar reactions to nitrogen dioxide pollution. The researchers also found that there were marginally higher exposures to both pollutants in Black Caribbeans, Black Africans and Pakistani/Bangladeshis compared to white participants. The researchers recommend further study into the different reactions caused by the two pollutants and how they affect participants differently based on their socioeconomic backgrounds. “Understanding the social and biological mechanisms linking air pollution exposure to BP [blood pressure] over the life course is [a] major research and clinical gap,” the study concluded.
Graphic by Sunny Wei ‘23.
By Catelyn Fitzgerald ’23
Science and Environment Editor
According to an article from Planned Parenthood, STIs are “infections that are passed from one person to another during sexual activity.” The use of a barrier — such as a condom or dental dam — is “one of the best ways” to avoid contracting an STI, the article said. This is because they prevent genital skin-to-skin contact as well as the exchange of sexual fluids. Most STIs do not cause any symptoms, so getting tested regularly is an important way to prevent their spread, Planned Parenthood explained. The type of testing used varies depending on the STI but can include a urine test, physical exam or swab. Some tests will produce instant results, while others take between days and weeks.
STI testing is available at Mount Holyoke Health Services and is covered by the Student Health Insurance Plan, according to Dr. Cheryl Flynn of the Health Center. Students with their own private health insurance and the “prepaid plan” can also receive testing free of cost. Health Services offers STI screening for students based on “their sexual behaviors and the risk of infections associated with those,” as well as diagnostic testing for students experiencing symptoms of an STI, Flynn explained. Most tests cost between $20 and $50, with the exception of the Hepatitis B antibody test (around $65), Hepatitis C test (around $68) and the Herpes Simplex I and II test (around $330).
Those without the student health insurance plan will have the cost of the tests added to their Student Bill. Charges are noted as “health center charges” on the Student Bill, with no further details about the visit, Flynn said. Students are informed of their results, positive or negative, through My Health Connection. Health Services also offers STI treatment, typically consisting of antibiotics or antiviral medications which are often available on-site. According to Flynn, for treatments that the health center does not carry, such as HIV and Hepatitis C, patients are referred to a specialist.
Professor Patty Brennan was elected an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow for her contributions to biological research. Photo couretsy of Patty Brennan.
By Catelyn Fitzgerald ’23
Science and Environment Editor
A comic posted outside of Mount Holyoke Professor Patty Brennan’s office depicts two ducks going on a dinner date. As the female duck excitedly chatters about the latest avian gossip — old men tossing bread, close encounters with dogs — the male duck is distracted by a more pragmatic thought: “Oh my god. Your vagina better spiral in the same direction as my penis or I am out.”
Brennan is an associate professor of biological sciences whose research focuses on the evolution of genital morphology in animals, according to the Mount Holyoke College website. In Jan. 2023, Brennan was elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a lifetime award granted to “scientists, engineers and innovators from around the world” in recognition of the contributions to society made throughout their careers, according to AAAS. The AAAS Fellow award dates back to 1874, with previous honorees including W.E.B. DuBois, the “founding father of American sociology,” and Ellen Ochoa, a former astronaut and the first Hispanic director of the Johnson Space Center, states their website. According to the College, Brennan was one of over 500 Fellows elected to the 2022 class. “I’m actually really excited about it because I love AAAS,” she said of the award, adding that she has been a member of the organization since grad school.
Brennan’s interest in biology came long before her emergence into the field of genital morphology. She studied the cardiac function of marine animals at the Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano in Bogotá, Colombia, and later went on to spend two years on a research boat traveling around the Galapagos Islands and Costa Rica. She then completed a doctorate at Cornell University, where her research largely focused on birds. She explained that upon starting the program she was less familiar with avian research, but was drawn to the field by an opportunity to study a group of birds in her home country of Colombia. Brennan had no idea at the time, but this group of birds was one of the few species that have penises, which would ultimately shape the direction of her career, she said. “When I watched them mating, I saw the penis and I realized,” she said of her discovery of the birds’ genitalia. “I thought it was so weird,” she continued. This initial glimpse into the world of avian genital morphology made her realize how little was known about the subject, and she resolved to investigate it further.
Morphology, in a biological context, refers to “the study of the size, shape and structure of animals, plants and microorganisms and of the relationships of their constituent parts,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica. Brennan’s research has explored genital morphology throughout the animal kingdom. The diversity of animals found in Brennan’s studies is a product of her opportunistic research style. She explained that she reaches out to other labs in search of animal carcasses, and begins a study once she has enough specimens to work on. She remarked that it is relatively easy to obtain specimens, as most focus on parts of animals other than the genitalia, “in fact I have three freezers full of dead things downstairs,” she said with a laugh.
In the early days of her research, she discovered that female ducks have complex vaginas, which tells a “story of sexual conflict in genitalia,” she said. Sexual conflict is a common theme throughout Brennan’s research. The term describes when male and female members of a species have opposing reproductive interests, she explained. While both feel the biological urge to reproduce and advance the survival of their species, males and females may “disagree on the details,” such as who cares for the offspring. These differences are not expressed over a bread basket in a nice restaurant, as the comic outside Brennan’s office may suggest, but through the evolution of their genitalia. Genital morphology has evolved in a variety of ways in response to sexual conflict, Brennan explained, from mechanisms in females’ vaginas that prevent the entrance of an unwanted male, to penile spines that injure females during procreation, delaying future procreation until they are healed. “For ducks, it is about where the sperm ends up,” she said.
According to a 2009 study conducted by Brennan and other researchers at Yale University, ducks have unique corkscrew-shaped genitalia with an important difference between the sexes — while females have vaginas that spiral in a clockwise direction, males’ penises spiral counterclockwise. This is an example of “sexually antagonistic genital coevolution” which is when “the sexes evolve traits that allow them to control the outcome of fertilization,” the study said. The study found that the opposing morphology of the male and female genitalia can prevent the penis from fully entering the vagina in situations of unwanted copulation. As a result, the male duck’s sperm is deposited farther from the ovaries during forced copulation, helping the female avoid an unwanted pregnancy. “I was surprised that this was something that was not already known,” she said of the female’s unique anatomy, adding that she then wanted to see if her discovery applied to other species, leading to a wealth of new research on the genital morphology of other animals including bats, snakes and dolphins.
Another focus of Brennan’s research is clitoris morphology. According to ResearchGate, her publications on the subject include the first “complete description” of the snake clitoris and a study that suggests the presence of functional clitorises in dolphins. “I think that it is asking about pleasure, and the evolution of pleasure and the importance of pleasure,” she said of her research. She added that she aims to improve the understanding of human pleasure through her work and disrupt the notion that “everyone expects that sex will be pleasurable for males, but females not so much”, commenting that issues related to pleasure are often ignored “as long as [the individual] can still get pregnant.”
Her research in vaginal biomechanics, which investigates the diversity found in vaginal structures, comes from a similar motivation. This diversity plays an important role in the study of the human vagina. She offered the example of research on the effects of birth on the human vagina, which is often done using rat vaginas despite their major morphological dissimilarities. Brennan hopes to use her research on biomechanic diversity to find better subjects to inform human-centered research. “I am looking at other models that we can use to look at what happens to the vagina when it is stressed during birth,” she said.
Brennan’s research has been the subject of much excitement from the public and in the media. “People love stories of weird animal sex,” she said, adding that each new discovery is “something that we should have known but we didn’t for some reason.” Brennan does not shy away from the intrigue. “It’s one of the best parts of my research, being able to do outreach,” she said. She is also an advocate for basic science. Basic science, unlike applied science, does not attempt to address a particular issue, but instead evolves out of curiosity and a desire to expand scientific knowledge, an NPR article about Brennan’s work stated. In a 2014 article titled “Time to step up: defending basic science and animal behaviour,” Brennan and other authors argued for the continued support of basic scientific research after U.S. politicians and interest groups deemed several “unusual” scientific studies a waste of spending.
Today, basic science faces a more positive outlook, according to Brennan. “I think the biggest change happened just now with Covid,” she said, explaining that ongoing research on coronaviruses enabled scientists to rapidly develop a vaccine amid the wave of panic caused by the pandemic. “If we hadn’t had that basic science infrastructure we would’ve been really screwed,” she remarked. Brennan went on to explain that this demonstration of the importance of supporting all types of research led Congress to devote more funding to the National Science Foundation. The AAAS’s support of basic science is another reason why Brennan was excited to be elected as a Fellow, she said. “They really are a fantastic organization and I just couldn’t be happier,” she said.
Brennan remarked that after working for Yale University and the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Mount Holyoke made an ideal home for her research. “It’s really kind of funny,” she said of the harmony between her research and Mount Holyoke’s status as a historically women’s college, “but it’s perfect because my students are really interested.” Brennan runs a robust lab, with thesis and independent study students conducting research on topics such as shark and ratfish genitalia. She added that our current lack of understanding of female genitalia is “damaging in the long term.”
“It’s exciting to be at the forefront of those questions at a place like Mount Holyoke,” she said. As a Hispanic woman, Brennan also emphasizes the importance of diversity in research. “If we don’t have diversity in science we are not going to ask the right questions,” she said.
Lake Powell, pictured above, is among the reservoirs struggling under the pressure of the drought. Photo courtesy of NASA Earth Observatory via Flickr.
By Catelyn Fitzgerald ’23
Science and Environment Editor
Critically low water levels in the Colorado River did not appear overnight. In fact, the drought crisis in the Western U.S. has been unfolding since the turn of the century, a Washington Post article reported. According to the article, the drought “has been building for decades but has come to a head in recent years” as major reservoirs along the river have dwindled to dangerously low levels. The crisis is spurred on by a combination of climate change and the overallocation of water rights, The Los Angeles Times reported. In order to continue providing water to the 40 million people who depend on the Colorado River, Western states have been forced to cut their water usage and negotiate new water rights allocations, the Washington Post article said.
The Los Angeles Times recently published a series titled “Colorado River in Crisis” which follows the drought and investigates how it will impact the communities that rely on the river. According to a recent article from the series, scientists began expressing concerns in the 1990s over the ability of the river and its reservoirs to support Western states while withstanding climate change. By 2000, the Colorado River watershed had already entered a period of drought which has only worsened over the past two decades.
The Colorado river supplies water to the seven states that border it, the Washington Post article explains. These states are further divided into the “Upper Basin” and “Lower Basin” regions. The “Upper Basin” states include Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. These states get their water by diverting the river thousands of times to redirect it towards different users, the article said. Arizona, California and Nevada comprise the “Lower Basin” states, which rely on large man-made reservoirs — such as Lake Powell and Lake Mead — for their water. Water levels in the two lakes currently stand at a parched one-quarter full, and the river is put under additional stress by “hotter and drier conditions” caused by climate change, the article said. These conditions also diminish the ability of snowmelt to replenish the reservoir, by causing increased evaporation rates and greater absorption of melting snow by soil and plants. The article explains that over the past two decades, water use has exceeded the natural flow of the river. The Los Angeles Times reported that chronic overuse of water resources caused the Colorado River Delta, a region in Mexico where the river flows into the ocean, to have “largely dried up decades ago.”
According to The Washington Post, regulations governing the use of the river’s resources date back to the signing of the 1922 Colorado River Compact, which defined water rights for each of the seven states along the river. Later, regulation written in 1944 granted a share of the river’s resources to Mexico. Water rights for the “Lower basin” states were redefined in the 1963 Supreme Court case Arizona v. California. The new allocations granted California 4.4 million gallons of water each year, the largest share of the seven states, while Arizona received 2.8 million gallons and Nevada 300,000 gallons. In 1968, the construction of canals that brought water from the river through Arizona, called the Central Arizona Project, was completed. In exchange for the increased water access provided by the project, Arizona accepted “junior water rights,” meaning that during drought periods California is entitled to “get its share of water before Arizona,” the article explained.
To remedy the drought before it reaches critical levels, federal managers are asking states to reduce their water consumption by 15 to 30 percent, the Los Angeles Times article reported. So far, six of the seven states have agreed on a proposal for new water allocations that would achieve these reduced usage levels. California remains the lone dissenter, instead electing to submit its own proposal, the article explained. The disagreement between California and the rest of the West hinges on the inclusion of evaporation in the calculation of water losses that would need to be made up for with cuts in water usage. Evaporation is especially significant in the areas of the river that California relies on, meaning that it would have to make larger cuts than the rest of the states.
The looming crisis also forces Western states to balance the water needs of their residents against those of the agricultural industry, an article from The Nature Conservancy explains. According to the article, water from the Colorado River is used to irrigate farmlands both inside and beyond the river basin, totaling an area the size of New Hampshire. Agriculture alone accounts for 80 percent of water usage from the river, the article said. To lessen the pressure of agriculture on the river and free up resources for other uses, The Nature Conservancy has helped farmers adopt creative methods for reducing water usage, from creating a “water bank” to growing crops that thrive in drier conditions.
David Pierce, a climate scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, described the current water allocation system as “carefully calibrated to just break even in the absence of climate change,” to The Los Angeles Times. The article emphasized that to sustain their populations and industry, Western states will need to agree on a new system that will hold up against the years of drought to come.
Graphic by Jieru Ye ‘23.
By Lily Benn ’24
Staff Writer
A recent study by animal sociology and biology researchers concluded with the idea that fish may be able to recognize themselves not only in mirrors but in still photographs. This new information may indicate self-awareness in fish, specifically the Bluestreak cleaner wrasse, Science News reported.
This study is a continuation of research done with the same species of fish in 2019 when researchers first discovered that the Bluestreak cleaner wrasse could recognize itself in the mirror. The corresponding 2019 Science Daily article explains that this was tested by a widely recognized ‘mark’ test that has been studied in many species of animals in the past. The article goes on to explain that this test requires that the subject, when presented with a mirror, be able to notice a mark put on its own body as itself, and not another member of its species. In both 2019 and 2022 mirror studies, researchers injected ink into their scales that resemble what the fish normally recognize as a parasite, Science News reported. Science Daily notes that the test is a challenge for animals such as fish, who do not have limbs that can indicate touch, or have the mobility required to show that they know the mark is on their own body. Instead of pointing to themselves, Science News explained, these wrasse fish indicated they knew it was their own reflection by exhibiting a body scraping behavior.
However, both Science News and Science Daily report that this new information does not necessarily indicate self-awareness in these fish, or in many other animal species tested with the mirror ‘mark’ test. Science News cites Frans de Waal, a primatologist from Emory University of Atlanta who approves of the study, yet explains how the mirror test is not a universally accepted and reliable method of testing animal self-awareness. Science News writes that species known to have strong cognitive abilities such as monkeys and ravens have not passed the mirror test. The article goes on to explain that other species rely less on sight, such as dogs who are stronger in recognition of scent.
The 2023 study takes this information further, by testing this same species of Bluestreak cleaner wrasse fish’s ability to self-recognize with the ‘mark’ test, this time with photographs of the fish. The paper, titled “Cleaner fish recognize self in a mirror via self-face recognition like humans,” published online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, is available to be read by the general public. The article reports that this type of study in self-recognition from images was observed in chimpanzees, and this “mental image of the self-face” is a behavior easily observed in humans. The Bluestreak cleaner wrasses were observed exhibiting the same scraping behavior first observed in the original 2019 study after being shown photographs of themselves with the placebo parasite marking. Science News explains that in this same study, the fish readily attacked pictures of other fish in their same species, but stayed calm when presented with pictures of themselves.
The research paper concludes with the discussion that their results may be controversial and that there needs to be more research towards self-recognition in different species and taxa of animals. As of now, there are many discrepancies between different animals’ abilities to complete the mirror test, as it was originally designed for primates. Their final conclusion is that there is a strong cognitive ability in fishes, and self-awareness is suspected by the authors to be more common in the animal kingdom than once thought.
Abortion pills are sold in retail pharmacies. Photo courtesy of Project Manhattan via Wikimedia Commons.
By Shira Sadeh ’25
Science & Environment Editor
On Jan. 3, the Food and Drug Administration announced a change in rules that will greatly increase the number of retail pharmacies that dispense abortion medication, AP News reported. According to the AP article, this change is an effort to make abortion more accessible, allowing those seeking abortion medication to receive a consultation via telehealth before picking up the prescription at a local retail pharmacy, provided that the pharmacy undergoes a certification process.
According to Planned Parenthood, abortion medication consists of two pills: mifepristone and misoprostol. The first, mifepristone, prevents the pregnancy from developing further and may cause side effects of nausea or bleeding, although Planned Parenthood states that bleeding is uncommon at this stage of the abortion. The second pill, misoprostol, is taken either immediately after or up to 48 hours following the first pill. This pill empties the uterus and causes heavy bleeding and cramping. “It’s normal to see large blood clots (up to the size of a lemon) or clumps of tissue when this is happening. It’s kind of like having a really heavy, crampy period, and the process is very similar to an early miscarriage,” Planned Parenthood explained. The page went on to say that these side effects typically begin one to four hours after taking misoprostol. The bleeding typically lasts four to five hours, and cramping can continue for up to two days.
According to an article from the Guttmacher Institute, the FDA approved the use of mifepristone for the purpose of non-surgical abortion in 2000. Although it is currently approved to be used up to ten weeks of gestation, it has been used safely to terminate later-stage pregnancies. The article went on to explain that while several states have restrictions on its usage, courts have ruled that banning abortion medication “outright” is unconstitutional.
The closest Planned Parenthood center that offers abortion services is the Western Massachusetts Health Center in Springfield, MA. As of July 22, Mount Holyoke College Health Services stated that they offer counseling and referrals to students, but are unable to offer abortion medication themselves.
