Nearly a dozen students in the NIEHS Scholars Connect Program (NSCP) presented their work at a Nov. 15 competition as part of a year-long academic internship at the institute. Each scholar had three minutes to describe their scientific efforts and explain why they were significant. Judges awarded four scholars top honors for their presentations.
The three-minute, elevator pitch-style presentation is designed to challenge students to effectively communicate their science in language that is appropriate to a nonspecialist audience, according to Suchandra Bhattacharjee, Ph.D., NIEHS undergraduate research training program manager.
“The presentation format prepares them for the graduate or medical school admission process and allows a broader community to learn about their ongoing research at NIEHS,” Bhattacharjee said.
The fall competition is one of several events scholars participate in throughout the year. In addition to the three-minute fall presentation, they present their work at a poster session over the summer and at an annual symposium in the spring. The NSCP, which is led by the Office of Science Education and Diversity, is open to juniors or seniors majoring in a STEM field who attend a school within the commuting area of NIEHS.
Presenter awards
Emma Morgan, of North Carolina State University (NC State), and Ricardo Scheufen-Tieghi, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-Chapel Hill) were named Best Presenters.
Morgan is mentored by Asmita Singh, Ph.D., and Carlos Guardia, Ph.D., of the NIEHS Placental Cell Biology Group. Scheufen-Tieghi is mentored by Jose Teofilo Moreira Filho, Ph.D., and Nicole Kleinstreuer, Ph.D., who directs the National Toxicology Program Interagency Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicological Methods.
Olivia Hsu, mentored by Kanda Borgognoni, Ph.D., and Robin Stanley, Ph.D., and Arnav Thakar, mentored by Arun Pandiri, Ph.D., and Jason Li, Ph.D., tied for Honorable Mention Presenters.
PFAS, informatics, and more
The 11 scholars who participated in the event, the university they attend, and their talk topics follow.
- Kiara Smith, a forensic science student at Fayetteville State University, explained work on the effects of BPAF exposure on the formation and exacerbation of uterine fibroids.
- Faith Dee, a biology student at N.C. Agricultural and Technical State University, discussed the effects of starving on E. coli cells of dGTP, a nucleotide precursor used for DNA synthesis.
- Olivia Hsu, a genetics and biochemistry student at NC State, spoke about using a microscopy technique called fluorescent resonance energy transfer to investigate how ribosomes come together.
- Emma Morgan, a biology student at NC State, shared research on how chemicals known as PFAS are incorporated and distributed into cells.
- Coren O’Brien, a pre-med student at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, presented work on efforts to delay and prevent cell death related to epoxyeicosatrienoic acids during heart attacks.
- Dhruv Ranganath, a biomedical engineering student at UNC-Chapel Hill, explained efforts to simplify and streamline processes by creating chemical informatics tools.
- Isabella Russ, a microbiology student at NC State, explained her work on mutagenesis in E. coli to determine effects oxidative stress agents on humans.
- Ricardo Scheufen-Tieghi, a biology student at UNC-Chapel Hill, shared work to predict developmental toxicity by compiling a publicly available database and using machine learning to create classification models.
- Taymar Smith, a biology student at Saint Augustine's University, presented research on the role of a gene called ZMIZ1 on uterine biology and cell proliferation.
- Justin Stegeman, a microbiology student at NC State, spoke about his work on the effect of the transcription factor GATA3 and its potential to affect specific cell types.
- Arnav Thakar, a biology and computer science student at UNC-Chapel Hill, discussed his work investigating the mutational signature, or DNA evidence of exposure, in tumors that developed in rats chronically exposed to vinyl chloride.
Next up for the scholars: they will present during the annual symposium in April.
Bhattacharjee discussed the merits of NSCP and the value of explaining research projects to nonscientific audiences. (Photo courtesy of Steve McCaw / NIEHS)
This year’s NSCP cohort consists of 11 undergraduate scholars who are juniors or seniors at nearby colleges and universities. (Photo courtesy of Steve McCaw / NIEHS)
Judges of the fall NSCP presentation event included both scientists and nonscientists. (Photo courtesy of Steve McCaw / NIEHS)
(Susan Cosier is a contract writer for the NIEHS Office of Communications and Public Liaison.)
