‘U’ researchers use 
mice in experiment 
on element’s effect 

on weight 

By KEVIN BIGLIN 

For the Daily

The long-term effects of lead 

exposure at young ages could 
increase the risk of obesity later 
in life, a University of Michigan 
School of Public Health study 
found. 
The 
study 
— 
which 

researchers noted shows a possible 
life-long impact in the state for 
Flint residents in particular, due 
to the cities water crisis — was a 
controlled experiment performed 
on young mice from 2012 to 2014 
that considered the impacts of lead 
on the mice’s weight.

The study was performed by 

Dana Dolinoy, associate professor 
of environmental health sciences, 
along with Chuanwu Xi, associate 
professor of environmental health 
science.

The mice used in the study 

were the offspring of female mice 
who were exposed to lead before 
breeding, Dolinoy said in an 
interview. The female mice were 
exposed to lead for a three-week 
period of gestation and another 
three-week period of lactation 
after birth. Then for nine months, 
the 
newborn 
mice 
matured 

without further lead exposure, 
while 
their 
weight 
and 
gut 

microbiome compositions were 
measured. 

Unlike other similar studies 

about the effects of lead, Xi said 
this study focuses on the long-

term effects of short-term lead 
exposure.

“It is not immediate,” he said. 

“We are particularly interested in 
the long-life effects.”

Xi added that the team was 

able to show that lead exposure 
changes 
the 
composition 
of 

bacteria in the gut microbiome. 
Specifically, the ratio of anaerobes, 
bacteria that can grow without 
oxygen, to aerobes, bacteria that 
grow with oxygen, indicated links 
to obesity in both male and female 
mice because of the ratio was at 
levels corerlated with obesity. In 
the experiment, these microbe 
populations each have specific 
groups where some populations 
of anaerobic bacteria increased, 
and others of aerobic bacteria 
decreased 
since 
the 
oxygen 

concentration became limited due 
to lead exposure.

Though both female and male 

microbiota changed, only male 
mice were found to have body-
weight gain.

“The composition of the gut 

microbiome is quite complex,” 
Xi said. “So what we found is, we 
don’t really see a dramatic change 
in terms of complexity of the gut 
microbiome. But what we see is 
that the abundance of specific 
microbe 
populations 
change. 

That’s clearly demonstrating you 
have a changing gut microbiome.”

The study used a range of lead 

levels on mice, including a level 
higher than the current levels to 
simulate historic levels from the 
1960s and 1970s, Dolinoy said. 
Xi added that this is because the 
concentration of lead from the past 
can still be found today in paint 
and old lead pipes, such as those 

Owners say they 
hope to maintain 
old traditions in 

new business 

By JENNIFER MEER and 

BECCA SOLBERG

Daily Staff Reporters 

A team of University of 

Michigan alumni and athletes 
are bringing back the iconic 
restaurant Pretzel Bell back to 
Ann Arbor.

Open from 1934 to 1984, the 

original Pretzel Bell served 
as a city hotspot for students, 
faculty 
and 
community 

members 
to 
celebrate 

birthdays, spend game days 
and enjoy time with friends, 
Greg Lobdell, owner of the 
new restaurant, said. It’s new 
location on Main Street will 
open on April 14.

“The spirit of this place was 

really celebrating everything 
that is good about Ann Arbor 
and everything that is great 
about 
the 
University 
of 

Michigan,” Lobdell said at a 
walk-through of the restaraunt 
on Monday, which is currently 
under construction. “We 
thought, ‘Let’s create a new 
place that has those traditions 
that will live on.’ ”

Jon Carlson and Lobdell, 

two of the restaurant’s nine 
owners, joined a team of 
former University of Michigan 
athletes 
and 
University 

alumni, who they said had 
great memories at the Pretzel 
Bell and are invested in 
bringing it back to Ann Arbor, 
for a restaurant walk-through.

“Traditionally 
we 
have 

three or four partners at each 
restaurant,” Carlson said. “For 
this one we formed a team. We 
thought that was important. If 
we’re going to represent what 
the University meant to us, we 
can’t do it from two guys who 

were here from ‘89 to ‘93. So 
we have a team of 22 investors, 
some of them fairly prominent 
either athletes, or business 
people in the United States.”

Steve 
Seyferth, 
one 
of 

the 
restaurant’s 
investors, 

graduated from the University 
in 1977. He said because his 
brother played football for 
the University, he quickly 
discovered 
that 
Pretzel 

Bell was a popular place on 
campus.

“When I came out here 

from Connecticut to watch 
my brother play, the place to 
go was the Pretzel Bell,” he 
said. “We quickly learned 
that you can get a great 
environment, great ambiance, 
great tradition. It made you 
feel like you were part of the 
whole Michigan athletic scene 
as well as just the downtown 
flavor of Ann Arbor at the 
time.”

While Seyfreth said the 

CSG party 

candidates hold 
event ahead of 

elections

By NISA KHAN 

Daily Staff Reporter

newMICH — a Central Student 

Government 
party 
running 

against Your Michigan and the 
Defend Affirmative Action Party 
in the upcoming election — held 
a speak out in the Diag to spread 
awareness 
about 
the 
party 

Monday. 

newMICH co-chair Shamaila 

Ashraf, an LSA junior, said the 
speak out aimed provide an 
opportunity for University of 
Michigan students to talk to the 
representatives about what they 
wished to see in CSG next year.

“A couple of our main initiatives 

is putting the student voice back 
into 
the 
administration 
and 

University in total,” Ashraf said. 
“Another thing we want to do is 
connect the students back to CSG 
and offer them scholarships.”

Representatives spoke about 

various topics during the speak 
out, including increasing funding 
for mental health facilities and 
hydration stations during game 
days. Speakers also emphasized 
they are the only party advocating 
for a student representative on 
the Board of Regents.

newMICH campaign manager 

Anushka 
Sarkar, 
an 
LSA 

sophomore, said the speak out 
was meant to give students a fun 
setting to personally connect 
with CSG representatives.

Voting for 

representatives, 
executives begins 

Wednesday

By CAMY METWALLY

Daily Staff Reporter

The 2016 Central Student 

Government 
elections 
are 

March 
23 
and 
24. 
Here’s 

everything you need to know 
about the three parties running 
for executive offices. 

Party: Defend Affirmative 

Action Party

Who: LSA junior Keysha Wall 
and LSA sophomore Chalse 
Okorom
Platform: LSA junior Keysha 
Wall 
and 
LSA 
sophomore 

Chalse Okorom are running 
on DAAP’s executive ticket for 
president and vice president, 
respectively. The party hasn’t 
released a platform for the 2016 

elections; however, much of the 
DAAP platform fromprevious 
years applies to the group’s 
current mission. In a recent 
debate hosted by The Michigan 
Daily, the candidates stressed 
the 
need 
for 
increasing 

minority enrollment at the 
University, pointing to the 
Texas 10-percent rule, which 
guarantees students in Texas 
high schools who graduated in 
the top 10 percent of their class 
admission to state universities. 
They have also proposed several 
other initiatives to increase 
diversity, equity and inclusion, 
such as removing standardized 
testing from the admissions 
process 
and 
expanding 

financial aid programs. The 
party also pushes for creating 
a safer, more inclusive campus 
atmosphere for all minority 
groups, 
including 
racial 

minorities and undocumented 
students, 
and 
has 
spoken 

about the need for greater 
accessibility to mental health 
resources.

Body also approves 
proposal to rezone 
land along Pontiac 

Trail

By ISOBEL FUTTER

Daily Staff Reporter 

During 
their 
meeting 

Monday 
evening, 
the 
Ann 

Arbor City Council approved 

measures 
regarding 
new 

housing 
developments 
and 

improvements to Ann Arbor 
streets and sidewalks.

The Council approved a 

resolution to rezone 31.77 acres 
of land on Pontiac Trail from 
multiple-family dwellings to 
single-family 
and 
multiple-

family 
dwellings 
for 
the 

North Sky Development. This 
new housing development is 
one of three proposed large 
residential housing units in 

the area.

Though it passed, many 

Council members, such as 
Councilmember Jane Lumm 
(I–Ward 2), expressed concern 
over the potential impact on 
the area from a large influx of 
new residents

“If 
this 
were 
the 
only 

residential 
housing 

development 
proposed 

in northeast Ann Arbor I 
would not have any of the 
reservations and concerns I 

have,” Lumm said. “We are 
talking about almost 1,000 
new residential units in this 
area — let me pause when I 
say that — 1,000 units, that’s 
a huge amount of new traffic 
volume.”

Transportation 
was 
also 

a central theme during the 
evening’s 
Council 
meeting. 

City 
Council 
approved 
a 

resolution directing the City 
Administrator to prepare a 

michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Tuesday, March 22, 2016

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

CLAIRE ABDO/Daily

Ann Arbor Mayor Chris Taylor presents Tom and Rosanne Bloomer with a proclamation for the Greenbelt 10th Anniversary at a City Council meeting Monday.

See LEAD, Page 3

See COUNCIL, Page 2
See ELECTIONS, Page 3

See SPEAK OUT, Page 3

DEL/Daily

Owners Jon Carlson and Greg Lobdell, who are heading the revival of the Pretzel Bell, explain their vision for the 
new restaurant at its location at the corner of Main and Liberty Monday. 

See PRETZEL, Page 3

INDEX
Vol. CXXV, No. 93
©2016 The Michigan Daily
michigandaily.com

N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

CL A S S I F I E DS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM
Schlissel visits University of Michigan-Flint campus
MICHIGANDAILY.COM/SECTION/NEWS

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WEATHER 
TOMORROW

HI: 51

LO: 41

Election 

guide: CSG 
platforms 
explained

City Council discusses new 
street and sidewalk millage

Study suggests 
exposure to lead
leads to obesity

#UMICHVOTES

Historic restaurant Pretzel 
Bell set to reopen in April

newMICH 
rally on Diag 
emphasizes 
student voice

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

RESEARCH 

