Updated: May 5, 2018
We had a diverse dynamic group of 12 REU students join various research groups in the department last summer. Here are their stories.
We greatfully acknowledge NSF 1659648 grant for making the REU program 2017 possible
Updated: May 5, 2018
Ryan is finishing his undergraduate degree from Seaton Hill University and will be attending graduate school this coming fall at Penn State. He worked on nuclear forensic sciene with Professor Bill Connick and his graduate student Staci Herman.
His resarch was centered on determination of quench in Cherenkov counting of soil samples. He compared the effects of strontium-90, a long lasting radio nucleotide, on urban rubble to that of samples from calcium based soil. He used ICP-MS data to detect, which elements remain in the post column sample other than the strontium-90 in hopes to reduce quenching.
Ryan presented his work at the ACS meeting in New Orleans spring 2018.
Below is a video of Ryan describing his experience in the REU program
Updated: May 5, 2018
Shanice is currently a student at Virgina State University working towards a degree in chemistry. She worked with Professor George Stan and his graduate student Abdolreza Javidialesaadi to develop computational models of biological nanomachines that mediate protein degradation.
Shanice investigated mechanisms of bacterial caseinolytic protease (Clp) which help maintain cell viability through removal of defective of abnormal proteins. These ring-shaped nanomachines undergo cyclical ATP-driven conformational changes to unfold and translocate substrate proteins (SPs) through their narrow central pore. We performed Langevin dynamics simulations of an implicit solvent model of ClpY and SPs consisting of tandem constructs with 1, 2, or 4 titin I27 domains. We contrasted the SP behavior in a setup that mimics laser optical tweezer experiments, in which the N-terminal is restrained along the direction of the ClpY pore axis, and in an in-vivo like setup, in which the N-terminal is unrestrained. Our results indicate that ClpY utilize direction-dependent pulling mechanisms to remodel their substrates.She worked with Professor George Stan developing computational modeling of biological nanomachines
Here is a video of Shanice explaining her experience at the REU program