When asked to sit down and write a small article about my three-month BRAVO! research experience in Toulouse, France at L'Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire, I found it nearly impossible. Small describes only the length of my stay and does not at all relate to the wide variety of experiences that I enjoyed while abroad. How could I possibly condense the time from when I stepped off the plane to the time at when I had to board it again, into a few short paragraphs? I suppose it really all comes down to one sentence, It was one of the best opportunities of my life. Not only did I have the chance to expand my knowledge of science, but also I was also able to learn about and experience a wide array of different cultures. I worked in the lab of Dr. Eric Oswald on the cyclomodulin toxins CDT and Cif, which are produced by Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli. However during my stay in Toulouse I was also able to enjoy many new and different cultural experiences as well as learn all I could about science and research abroad.

The lab I worked in was one of the most international and enjoyable places I have ever worked in my life. Everyday I worked with people from all over the world, from places such as Algeria, Japan, Iran, Congo, Mexico, France (of course) and Italy. I never felt like an outsider as an American, everyone was extremely friendly and inquisitive about what life in America is really like. I even worked with a scientist from Iran and there were jokes (before I arrived) that he should be prepared to defend himself because I was from the big, bad United States. However, when I met him we joked about politics, but didn't let it affect our relationship and I am glad to say we became good friends.

I was also lucky to be in Europe during the World Cup. It was very exciting to be in France during that time, especially since they made it to the finals! I was able to share in the excitement and celebration every time France was victorious, however I also shared in the disappointment after Zidane's attack (and red card) and the loss of the final game.

My friends back home were constantly asking how I was enjoying Paris, and I was surprised that every time I corrected them that I was in Toulouse (which is VERY different from Paris and in a completely different location -- Paris is in the north and Toulouse is in the south), they would always quickly forget and later ask me how things were in Paris again. I found it very interesting that to so many people France only consisted of Paris. France is a country filled with a wide variety of places to visit and explore, it could never be experienced in just one city, and I am very glad I had the opportunity to discover all of the different environments that France has to offer. One day you could be in a small French village or a bustling high fashion capitol and the other you could be relaxing at a beach or hiking in the mountains.

I was very happy my research experience placed me in the city of Toulouse. The city is known as La Ville Rose, due to the reddish bricks that make up the majority of the buildings found in the city. After exploring the city I discovered it had beauty, culture and a certain energy that I had never witnessed before. I was happy to sit at a café and watch the people go by, or to relax at one of the many gardens, next to the river which runs through the city, or just wander around the winding streets to enjoy the architecture and feel of the city itself.

And of course I cannot go without mentioning the food. France prides itself on having amazing cuisine and I feel they more than lived up to that standard. I tried so many different types of wine, cheese, and regional dishes, that I feel I really experienced the unique flavor of France. And yes, the pastries are amazing as well!

However, I was in France to work on the cyclomodulins Cif and CDT produced by Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) in the lab of Dr. Eric Oswald. EPEC is a strain of E.coli that is a major cause of diarrhea in children in developing countries. The main goal of any lab working with E.coli is to determine the source of the pathogenicity of the strains of E.coli that can cause significant disease, and to then determine how to treat or prevent this infection. There are many different virulence factors attributed to pathogenic E.coli, therefore there are many opportunities for research into finding a preventive treatment. Dr. Oswald's lab focuses on toxins produced by the different strains of E.coli and their effect on the cell cycle and cell morphology of different types of human cells. The project I undertook focused on the toxins CDT and Cif produced by the E.coli strain E6468. I was to create mutants (delete the genes necessary for the toxin from the genome) and then interact these mutants with epithelial HeLa cells to compare to the wild type strain and then determine the exact effect these individual toxins had on the cell cycle or cell morphology of the epithelial cells. However, right off the bat, things did not run smoothly. As always with science, what you plan to do and what you actually do is not always the same thing. As you go along working on the actual project you have to re-analyze, problem solve, troubleshoot, and figure out any way in which you can solve problems that may crop up (and science is not perfect, so problems usually do crop up). Through my work in the lab I learned so much about collaboration and how to creatively solve a problem. I think one of the biggest things I learned from this experience is simply how to think about science and how to approach problems in science.

Before I participated in this program I had worked in various labs and had spent a very long time in science, and was starting to become frustrated and wonder if research really was the right thing for me. This experience opened my eyes to a whole new way of approaching science and to all of the different opportunities available within the discipline. Through this program I was able to rediscover my passion for science as a whole. I whole-heartedly recommend BRAVO! to anyone interested in experiencing science abroad, it is certainly a unique experience and a once in a lifetime opportunity. I would like to thank Dr. Eric Oswald for accepting me into his lab, Dr. Jorge Girón for teaching me what I need to know about E. coli, and of course Carol Bender for making this whole adventure possible.

Meredith Trudel, UBRPer in Dr. Jorge Girón's lab, Microbiology & Immunology