Fayetteville State University, of southern North Carolina, proposes to broaden and enrich its academic environment by fostering new and ongoing research projects in the biological and behavioral sciences. This multidisciplinary proposal includes faculty researchers (Principal Investigators) associated with the following disciplines and/or areas of research interest: molecular genetics, psychology, organic chemistry, microbiology, and genetics. It is anticipated that the varied scholarly pursuits of the indicated Principal Investigators will directly involve several promising undergraduate and master's students majoring in Biology, Chemistry, and Psychology. The research activities of the various subprojects are summarized by their descriptive titles: 1. Effects of selected metal salts on the fidelity of DNA synthesis in vitro 2. Phenomenological and physiological correlates of ritualized and repeated behaviors 3. The mechanism of ring opening of azetidines 4. Microbial quality of foods with expiring shelf-life 5. The modifying system of Segregation-distortion (S-d) in Drosophila melanogaster The proposed research activities should impact significantly on the health and health related aspects of mankind by: (l) increasing the body of knowledge on the mutagenic effects of metals; (2) providing insight into the physiological effects of behavioral disorders; (3) providing improved methods for synthesis and mechanistic analysis of medically important beta-adrenolytic compounds; (4) evaluating the effectiveness of food spoilage guidelines; and (5) providing model systems for studying gene regu tion.
