Seven UD students have won first- or second-place awards in an annual poster symposium recognizing the work of undergraduate researchers in chemistry and biology. About 150 students from more than 35

East Coast colleges—including 13 from UD—participated in the 10th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium in the Chemical and Biological Sciences, held in October at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Tyler Bazzoli, a sophomore chemistry major, working with Steven Brown, W. F. Harrington Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, received a first place in biological sciences for his poster presentation, “Identifying Biomarkers of the MHC Gene to Investigate Chemosensory Discrimination.”

Andrew Harmon, a senior biology major working with Erica Selva, assistant professor of biological sciences, received a first place in biological sciences for his poster presentation, “Investigating Human and Drosophila Sprinter Function.”

Krista Neal, a senior biology major working with Daniel Simmons, professor of biological sciences, received a second place in biological sciences for her poster presentation, “Mutational Analysis of Selected Residues in the J-Domain and Hinge Region of SV40 Large Tumor Antigen.”

Ritika Samant, a junior biology major working with Ulhas Naik, professor of biological sciences, received a first place in biochemistry and molecular biology for her poster presentation, “The Identification of the PZD-Domain Proteins Interacting with JAM-B.”

Tyanna Hadley, a junior biochemistry major working with Dr. David Clapham at Harvard Medical School, received a first place in biochemistry and molecular biology for her poster presentation, “Investigation of Protein Expression in Mouse Spermatozoa.”

Kristin Nuzzio, a junior chemistry major working with Tatyana Polenova, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry, received a second place in biochemistry and molecular biology for her poster presentation, “Isolation and Purification of Vanadium Haloperoxidase Mutants for Characterization by 51V Solid-State NMR.”

Tara Rhoades, a junior biochemistry major working with John Koh, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, received a second place in biochemistry and molecular biology for her poster presentation, “A Novel Approach to Altering Estrogen Receptor Function.”

Other UD students who made presentations were Julio Fuentes, Lauren Isaacs, Obinna Mmagu, Michelle Smith, Sara White and Coral Wille. Hal White, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Carlton Cooper, assistant professor of biological sciences, accompanied the students to the symposium.

“Events like this let our students know how strong the University of Delaware undergraduate research program is,” White says. “It also shows how important a variety of funding sources are to the success of our program. Without funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Beckman Scholars Program, the Chemistry Alumni Scholars, the McNair Scholars Program and the University of Delaware Undergraduate Research Program, none of these students could have done the work they did.”