Given the right conditions, a tadpole's brainstem will continue to send "breathe now" signals after it's removed from the body.

That fact is evident every time Cord Brundage looks at the green waves on his computer screen. Short waves indicate gill breaths; spikes are the signal for the lungs to fill.

When you expose the brainstem to substances like alcohol or nicotine, breaths become shallower and slower, Brundage says. His cursor flies across the screen as he clicks twice to count each breath.

It's an admittedly tedious task, but Brundage hopes that one day the research will help prevent sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS.

"That's the perspective you keep it in," he said. "Every lung breath that I count ... is getting me a little bit closer to what's actually paying off and saving lives."

Brundage is one of many University of Alaska Fairbanks students getting hands-on experience in human and animal health research as part of UAF's expanding biomedical programs. He is one of six students working with UAF researcher Barbara Taylor amidst an eclectic mix of beakers, tubing, electrodes and microscopes.

Like other projects at UAF, the research in Taylor's lab has a strong connection to the far North. The prevalence of SIDS in Alaska is twice the national average. The rate among Alaska Natives is quadruple that average. And despite numerous studies, the root cause of SIDS is unknown.

Alaska researchers are uniquely positioned to ask and answer some important scientific questions, said George Happ, program director of the Alaska IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence, a National Institutes of Health program.

"Because we are in Alaska we have so many opportunities for great research projects that address questions nobody else has bothered to ask," said Happ. "The woods are full of animals that carry microbes, carry bacteria and viruses that are important to human health that nobody's ever looked at."

That diversity is reflected in the work of UAF scientists. In some labs, biology students are investigating how northern animals adapt to extreme cold. In others, scientists examine microbes and DNA that may offer insight into emerging diseases, such as avian influenza.

UAF faculty members are skilled in cutting-edge biomedical techniques that have revolutionized the field in recent years, said Brian Barnes, director of the UAF Institute of Arctic Biology. And UAF's small size offers an environment that encourages faculty members to share those techniques with their students.

"UAF's student-faculty ratio is as good as some of the country's top public universities," said Barnes. "A lot of our faculty are really accessible and they want to include undergrads in their research. We need to just get them together. "

UAF has five veterinarians studying infectious diseases and adaptations of northern animals. Working alongside these professionals in the lab can provide the foundation for careers as veterinarians or physicians.

Brundage is one of those students. He wants to be a veterinarian, but for now he's spending his days learning the many facets of lab science.

"You've got to be excited to find answers and be patient that what you're doing is going to pay off," he said. "We're on the forefront. ... It just takes some work and dedication in order to get there."

UAF researchers follow established guidelines for the ethical treatment of animals.