2024 BIOS PostBac and Graduate Student Research Poster Competition winners
The second annual PostBac and Graduate Student Research Poster Competition was held in the SELE Oasis on Wednesday, April 24, 2024. There were 35 entries from 21 labs. It was a great display of the research being done in our department. A huge thank you to Dr. Kate Warpeha for organizing this event.
Below are the winners:
PostBac student division of 2024 PostBac and Graduate Student Research Poster Competition
1st place. Presenting author: Mantra (Faith) George Faculty Advisor: Dr. Chieh Chang
Title of Poster: “Determining Whether the Novel BEN Domain Containing F53A2.3 is a New Heterochronic Gene that Affects the Timing of Neuronal Differentiation”
2nd place. Presenting author: Mayumi Pascual Faculty Advisor: Dr. Rachel Poretsky
Title of Poster: “Validation of PCR-based genotyping approach for SARS-CoV-2 variant detection in Illinois wastewater”
3rd Place. Presenting author: Amber Domanus Faculty Advisor: Dr. Emily Minor
Title of Poster: “Assessing the Causes of Variation in Biodiversity Within Urban Community Gardens”
4th place/Hon Mention. Presenting author, Kai Clane Belonio Faculty Advisor: Dr. Joseph Zak
Title of Poster: “Inducing a depressive/anxious state in mice through unpredictable chronic mild stressors (UCMS)”
Graduate student Division of 2024 PostBac and Graduate Student Research Poster Competition
1st place. Presenting author: Jessica Montoya Faculty Advisor: Dr. Angeles (Angie) Salles
Title of poster: “Social Preference of Female Carollia perspicillata Bats”
2nd place. Presenting author (tie): Sam Fischer Faculty Advisor: Dr. Kevin Drew
Title of poster: “Stability-DIFFRAC: Assessing the Stability of 1000’s of Protein Complexes”
2nd place. Presenting author (tie): Ben Killam Faculty Advisor: Dr. Yury Polikanov
Title of poster: “Structural basis for progressive neurological disorders caused by mutations in the human selenium transferase, SEPSECS”
2nd place. Presenting author (tie): Phong Lai Faculty Advisor: Dr. Janet Richmond
Title of poster: “Analysis of the endolysosomal pathway in coelomocytes of C. elegans vps-39 mutant”
3rd Place. Presenting author: Madhura Paranjpe Faculty Advisor: Dr. Yury Polikanov
Title of poster: “Insights into the molecular mechanism of translation inhibition by the ribosome-targeting antibiotic thermorubin”
Mantra George also won the Award for Excellence in Teaching.