Dr. Vu’s research explores how biological systems respond to stress, infection, and environmental change. Current and past projects span insect stress tolerance, COVID-19 health disparities, and bacterial pathogenesis, with an emphasis on survival mechanisms, host-pathogen interactions, and the broader biological and community contexts that shape health outcomes.
Students in the lab gain experience with model organism maintenance, experimental setup, survey-based research, and data collection across projects related to environmental stress, infectious disease, and community health.
Insect Projects
The lab studies how environmental stressors, particularly different temperature conditions, affect survival and stress tolerance in insects. Current projects use Drosophila to examine survivorship under varying temperature conditions, investigate the role of antifreeze proteins in promoting stress tolerance at extreme temperatures, and explore whether sex-based groupings, including female-only, male-only, and mixed-sex conditions, affect survival. This work connects genetics, physiology, environmental adaptation, and behavior to better understand how organisms respond to changing environmental conditions.
Benmore, C. J., Vu, H., Duman, J. G., et al. (2025). Supercooling of Alaskan Beetle Larvae as a Winter Survival Strategy. Small Science. Link
Compares cold-adaptation strategies in Indiana and Alaskan beetle larvae of the same species.
Vu, H. M., Pennoyer, J. E., Ruiz, K. R., Portmann, P., & Duman, J. G. (2019). Beetle, Dendroides canadensis, antifreeze proteins increased high temperature survivorship in transgenic fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster. Journal of Insect Physiology. Link
Examines whether antifreeze proteins from cold-tolerant beetles can also improve high-temperature survival in transgenic fruit flies.
Vu, H. M., & Duman, J. G. (2017). Upper lethal temperatures in three cold-tolerant insects are higher in winter than in summer. Journal of Experimental Biology. Link
Shows that several cold-tolerant insects survive higher temperatures in winter than in summer, suggesting seasonal changes in broader temperature tolerance.
Some insect larvae tolerate high temperatures better during winter. Journal of Experimental Biology, 2017. Link
A research highlight summarizing Vu and Duman’s finding that cold-tolerant insect larvae can show unexpectedly higher heat tolerance during winter.
COVID-19 Health Disparities Project
This community-based survey project examines how COVID-19 affects the Michiana region, with particular attention to health disparities among Latinx populations. The study explores life and health history, family and work environments, vaccination status, healthcare access, tobacco/vaping exposure, and COVID-19 outcomes. It also investigates the prevalence and spectrum of long COVID symptoms, including lingering cognitive symptoms such as brain fog. Survey data are collected anonymously from English- and Spanish-speaking participants in local community settings.
Bacteria Projects
The lab also studies host-pathogen interactions, with a focus on how bacteria interact with human biological systems during infection. Projects examine how Group A Streptococcus survives within fibrin clots, accesses human plasminogen, and contributes to clot breakdown, wound-site changes, and bacterial dissemination. This work helps clarify mechanisms of bacterial survival and spread while connecting microbiology, inflammation, coagulation, and infectious disease.
Vu, H. M., Moran, T. E., Liang, Z., Bao, Y.-J., Carles, P. G., Keane, J. C., et al. (2025). Group A Streptococcus remains viable inside fibrin clots and gains access to human plasminogen for subsequent fibrinolysis and dissemination. Microbiology Spectrum. Link
Investigates how Group A Streptococcus can remain viable within fibrin clots before activating plasminogen-mediated clot breakdown and dissemination.
Vu, H. M., Hammers, D. E., Liang, Z., Nguyen, G. L., Benz, M. E., Moran, T. E., et al. (2021). Group A Streptococcus-Induced Activation of Human Plasminogen Is Required for Keratinocyte Wound Retraction and Rapid Clot Dissolution. Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine. Link
Uses wound and fibrin clot models to study how Group A Streptococcus activates human plasminogen during clot dissolution and wound-site dissemination.