But before conjuring images of warm and fluffy bunny rabbits, though, wait just a moment. Colemans research at Rutgers-Camden focuses on leeches, perhaps better known for their blood-sucking ways than for family-centric activities.
Actually, leeches are good parents. Its unusual among invertebrates to see them take care of their young, says the Sicklerville resident, who will receive her masters degree in biology from Rutgers-Camden. Her research on cocoon secretion in leeches was awarded the Best Graduate Presentation Award at the New Jersey Academy of Sciences in 2006. Now she joins top researchers from around the world as she contributes a chapter on cocoons for a forthcoming book that will demonstrate how annelids are an ideal model organism for scientific research.
Working with Daniel Shain, an associate professor of biology at Rutgers-Camden, Coleman has conducted groundbreaking research on the structure of the cocoon produced by an aquatic leech found in North America, in an attempt to determine how the cocoon is assembled.
What impressed Coleman about the aquatic leech is the role of the single parent. After the hermaphroditic leech secretes specialized proteins that assemble underwater into a membranous sheath which Coleman likens to a halter top - the cocoon becomes sealed at either end with glue-like plugs. The leech does this several times in rapid succession, ultimately secreting a clutch of three to five cocoons. The single parent then sheds its top to sit on top of the cocoon until the juveniles hatch. Unlike other insects, the parent leech then cares for its newborns - about 200 juveniles - until they are ready for their first meal, which they take from the nose of a duck.
In addition to the interesting behavior of the aquatic leech, its unique cocoon displays some amazing properties, including high resiliency to harsh chemicals and sweltering temperatures.
Because of its strength, the membrane has potential for use in biomedical applications, including biotechnology and sports medicine, says Coleman, who used scanning electron microscopy to characterize the different components of the cocoon.
After graduation Coleman is considering earning her doctorate or becoming a teacher. She earned her undergraduate degree in biology from Rutgers-Camden in 2005 and graduated from Highland Regional High School in 2001.