The Office of Undergraduate Research and the McNair Scholars Program have joined forces to organize a lunchtime STEM research seminar series, which enters its tenth academic year in 2022-23.
To maximize student access, the STEM Seminar Series will take place virtually during the Fall 2022 semester. Two virtual panel discussions are planned. We invite interested students to join us in learning about the breadth of research being conducted by outstanding faculty across many STEM disciplines.
Fall 2022
STEM Research Presented by Undergraduate Researchers
Wednesday, November 30, 2022
12:20 – 1:10pm (virtual presentation)
Kasidy Quiles ’23 (Allied Health Sciences, CAHNR)
SCARF-1 Dysregulation Leads to the Development of Lupus
Research Advisor: Zaida Ramirez-Ortiz, Assistant Professor, Medicine, UMass Chan Medical School
Fraser McGurk ’25 (Molecular & Cell Biology, CLAS)
Role of CD13 in Macrophage Giant Cell Fusion
Research Advisor: Mallika Ghosh, Assistant Professor, Cell Biology, UConn Health
WebEx link: https://uconn-cmr.webex.com/uconn-cmr/j.php?MTID=m09e3aaa0a9e30fcfdcdc3e638c9e188e
Meeting number: 2624 697 8384
Password: jcE4m86hpcE
Join by video system
Dial 26246978384@uconn-cmr.webex.com
You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number.
Join by phone
+1-415-655-0002 US Toll
Access code: 2624 697 8384
The series is open to all undergraduate and graduate students and is designed especially for students conducting (or interested in conducting) undergraduate STEM research.
If you require an accommodation to participate in a STEM Seminar event, please contact Jodi Eskin at 860-486-7939 or jodi.eskin@uconn.edu at least 5 business days prior to the seminar.
For more information, contact:
| Jodi Eskin Program Administrator, Office of Undergraduate Research (860) 486-7939 – jodi.eskin@uconn.edu |
Renée Trueman, Ph.D. Program Coordinator, McNair Programs (860) 486-5146 – renee.gilberti@uconn.edu |
Past STEM Seminars
Fall 2022
Exploring Interdisciplinary Research at the Eversource Energy Center
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
12:20 – 1:10pm (virtual presentation)
Fei Miao, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering
Anita Morzillo, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Natural Resources and the Environment
Malaquìas Peña Mendez, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Spring 2022
STEM Research Presented by Undergraduate Researchers
Wednesday, April 13, 2022
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual presentations)
Bethlehem “Betty” Abebe ’22 (Structural Biology and Biophysics, CLAS)
More Than Numbers: Understanding the Importance of Application-Based Research in Both Education and Medicinal Chemistry
Undergraduate Researcher with Professor Marcy Balunas, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Medicinal Chemistry
Undergraduate Researcher with Professor Todd Campbell, Curriculum and Instruction
Lauren Rudin ’22 (Exercise Science, CAHNR)
Content Analysis of Public Instagram Posts about Pelvic Floor Disorders and Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Pregnancy
Undergraduate Researcher with Professor Molly Waring, Allied Health Sciences
Exploring Physics Research
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Daniel Anglés-Alcázar, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Physics & Associate Research Scientist, Flatiron Institute
Cara Battersby, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Physics
Menka Jain, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Physics & Institute of Materials Science
Fall 2021
Exploring Geoscience Research
Wednesday, December 1, 2021
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Ran Feng, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Geosciences
Clay Tabor, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Geoscience
Interdisciplinary Engineering Research
Wednesday, September 29, 2021
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Derek Aguiar, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering
Necmi Biyikli, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Ramesh Malla, Ph.D.
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Spring 2021
Maximizing Research Experiences
Wednesday, February 10, 2021
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Alfredo Angeles-Boza, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Chemistry
Kristen Govoni, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Animal Science
Faculty Director, WiMSE Learning Community
Rob Huggins, Ph.D.
Assistant Research Professor, Kinesiology
President of Research & Athlete Performance and Safety, Korey Stringer Institute
Pathways Into STEM Research
Wednesday, March 17, 2021
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Robert Bagchi, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Aoife Heaslip, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Molecular and Cell Biology
Till Frank, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Psychological Sciences
Fall 2020
Virtual Projects Across STEM
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
12:20pm – 1:10pm (virtual panel discussion)
Ann Bucklin, Ph.D.
Professor, Marine Sciences
Benjamin Fuller, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering
Jasna Jankovic, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Fei Miao, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering
The Value of Virtual Research Experiences: A Conversation with UConn Undergrads
Tuesday, December 1, 2020
12:30pm – 1:30pm (virtual panel discussion)
Differential Gene Expression of the American Beech in Response to Toxic Soils
Allyson Derry ’21 (Diagnostic Genetic Sciences, CAHNR)
Undergraduate Researcher, Wegrzyn Lab, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
When Problems Become Solutions: Adapting Acvr1 Mutant Fibro/adipogenic Progenitors (FAPs) to Repair Bone Fractures
Mehreen Pasha ’22 (Molecular and Cell Biology, CLAS)
Undergraduate Researcher, Goldhamer Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Mechanism Behind Apicoplast Inheritance in Human Pathogen Toxoplasma gondii
Valeria Sarmiento, Dec. ’20 (Molecular and Cell Biology & IMJR: Global Health and Nutrition, CLAS)
Undergraduate Researcher, Heaslip Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Embodied Assessments and Interventions for Children with Developmental Disabilities
Sudha Srinivasan, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Kinesiology
Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Science behind Human Nutrition: Its Role in Metabolic Disease Prevention
Ji-Young Lee, Ph.D.
Department Head and Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
Wednesday, April 8, 2020 (Cancelled due to COVID-19)
Development of a DNA Crosslinked Nanocapsule for Sensing Applications
Halle Barber ’20 (Chemistry & Molecular and Cell Biology)
Undergraduate researcher, Rouge Lab, Chemistry
Behavioral and Electrophysiological Detection of Tinnitus in CBA/CaJ Mice
Grace Nichols ’20 (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Undergraduate researcher, Oliver Lab, UConn Health
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Statistics – The Roots under the STEM: How Understanding Data Informs and Grows our Future
Ofer Harel, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Statistics
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Interaction Driven Molecule Discovery from Host-Microbe Symbioses
Marcy J. Balunas, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Probing Biological Materials through Computation
Anna Tarakanova, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Departments of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering
Wednesday, September 19, 2018
Vaccine Development: From Avian Influenza to Zika (and “Disease X”)
Paulo H. Verardi, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Pathobiology and Veterinary Science
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Birds, Bacteria and Bioinformatics: Why Evolutionary Biology is the Best
Sarah Hird, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
Biomaterials to Treat Growth Plate Injury
Natasha Patel ’19 (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Undergraduate researcher, Kuhn Lab, Biomedical Engineering
Characterization of Hemocyte Membrane Proteins of the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid
Sarah Beckett Cleveland ’19 (Biological Sciences)
Undergraduate researcher, Nyholm Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Wednesday, September 19, 2018
From Antibiotics to CO2 Reduction: The Pivotal Role of Chemistry in Our Lives
Alfredo Angeles-Boza, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Functional Materials: Physical Properties and Applications
Menka Jain, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Physics and Institute of Materials Science
Wednesday, November 7, 2018
Food Nanotechnology and Applications
Yangchao Luo, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
Wednesday, March 21, 2018 – Cancelled due to weather
Food Nanotechnology and Applications
Yangchao Luo, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
Dietary Bioactives and Prevention of Chronic Metabolic Disorders
Christopher Blesso, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
Monday, March 26, 2018
Brownfield Redevelopment of Sustainable Urban Environment
Maria Chrysochoou, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Bacteria as an Alternative Food Source for Termite Gut Protists
Courtney Wallace ’18 (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Undergraduate researcher, Gage Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Illuminating New Approaches to the Synthesis of Fluorine Containing Compounds
Vincent Pistritto ’18 (Chemistry & Music)
Undergraduate researcher, Leadbeater Lab, Chemistry
Fall 2017
Monday, September 18, 2017
Tracing the cosmic shutdown of star formation in massive galaxies
Katherine E. Whitaker, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Physics
Monday, October 16, 2017
Exploring cell type diversity in embryonic development through single-cell analysis
Matthew Eastman, Ph.D. Candidate
Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology
Monday, November 13, 2017
Engineering solutions to community air pollution concerns
Kristina M. Wagstrom, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Spring 2017
Monday, February 6, 2017
Mechanical characterization of materials at small length scales
Seok-Woo Lee, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Monday, March 6, 2017
Towards virtual cartilage and other life philosophies
David M. Pierce, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Departments of Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, and Mathematics
Monday, April 17, 2017
B-1 cell generation in transgenic mouse model of sickle cell disease
Christina Cotte ’17 (Molecular and Cell Biology & Pathobiology)
Undergraduate researcher, Szczepanek Lab, Pathobiology and Veterinary Science
A better future in mind: Collybistin as a protein regulator of inhibitory postsynapse strength
John Bear, Jr. ’17 (Physiology and Neurobiology & Molecular and Cell Biology; Applied Mathematics minor)
Undergraduate researcher, de Blas Lab, Physiology and Neurobiology
Fall 2016
Monday, October 17, 2016
The microbiome in health and disease: Using a fly model to understand host-microbe interactions
Nichole Broderick, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology
Monday, November 14, 2016 (cancelled)
Towards virtual cartilage and other life philosophies
David M. Pierce, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Departments of Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, and Mathematics
Spring 2016
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Using mouse models to study genetic liver diseases
Li Wang, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Health benefits of cranberries in human apolipoprotein AI transgenic mice on an atherogenic diet
Christian Caceres ’17 (Nutritional Sciences)
Undergraduate researcher, Lee Lab, Nutritional Sciences
The Straw Sandals Project: Origins and exploration
Allison Hillmon ’16 (Physiology and Neurobiology)
Undergraduate researcher, Hightower Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Metal-semiconductor nanomaterials and their application as photocatalysts
Gabriella Reggiano ’17 (Chemistry)
Undergraduate researcher, Zhao Lab, Chemistry
Tipping the scale: AK301’s effect on the mitosis to apoptosis transition
Michael Bond ’16 (Molecular and Cell Biology & Chemical Biology)
Undergraduate researcher, Giardina Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Fall 2015
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Brain development and optimal outcomes from Autism Spectrum Disorder
Inge-Marie Eigsti, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Psychological Sciences
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
The evolutionary story of silent DNA in the centromeres of Peromyscus mice
Brendan Smalec ’16 (Molecular and Cell Biology & Art History)
Undergraduate researcher, O’Neill Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology
Ensemble-based virtual screening of the human glycine receptor alpha-3 subtype: A predictive tool for discovering compounds that may elicit THC-like analgesic responses in vivo
Andrew Maxwell ’17 (Structural Biology and Biophysics)
Undergraduate researcher, Pei Tang Lab, Structural Biology and Molecular Biophysics & Anesthesiology
TECBio REU, University of Pittsburgh: Simulation and Visualization of Biological Systems at Multiple Scales
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Monitoring markers of stress and performance in athletes
Robert Huggins, Ph.D., ATC, LAT
Postdoctoral Fellow
Vice President of Research and Elite Athlete Health and Performance, Korey Stringer Institute
Summer 2015
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Electronic transport phenomena in topological insulator nanomaterials
Luis Jauregui, Ph.D.
Departmental Fellow, Department of Physics, Harvard University
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Lithiated mesoporous metal oxides as solid electrolytes in Lithium ion batteries
Jacqueline Cloud, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Materials Science (Suib research group)
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Designing shape memory materials for damping, actuation, and energy applications [abstract]
Ying Chen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Improving proteomic technologies using motifs
Sean Congdon
Ph.D. student, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology (Schwartz Lab)
Spring 2015
Thursday, January 29, 2015
The global cestode database: What’s in, what’s not, and what’s new
Virgilio Lopez III ’16 (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Nicholas Arisco ’16 (Biological Sciences)
Undergraduate researchers, Caira Lab, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Assessing antidepressants with animal models of effort-related motivation in depression
Margaret Rowland ’15 (Psychology & Physiology and Neurobiology)
Undergraduate researcher, Salamone Lab, Psychology
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Here’s looking at you, kid: What eye movements tell us about the language of children with autism
Letitia Naigles, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Psychology
Thursday, March 26, 2014
Agrivida, Inc.: Biotechnology for feed, fuel, and industrial enzymes
Kit Bonin, Ph.D.
Senior Biochemist and Plant Analysis Lead, Agrivida, Inc. (A UConn Technology Incubator Program company)
Fall 2014
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
On fieldwork, frogs, and genomes
John Malone, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Choosing a career in engineering and academia
Leila Ladani, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Research “motif”ations in the Schwartz lab
Daniel Schwartz, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology
Summer 2014
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Transition metal catalyzed transformations of strained heterocycles
Christian Malapit
Ph.D. student, Department of Chemistry (Howell research group)
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Cellular neurophysiology of hypothalamic neural circuits that govern sleeping and feeding
Alexander Jackson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
The neurobiological bases of language: Insights from molecular genetics and neurophysiology
Sergey Kornilov
Ph.D. student and IGERT associate, Department of Psychology
Language plasticity graduate training program (IGERT): Insights from a basic neuroscientist
R. Holly Fitch, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Psychology
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Spanning the boundary between science and policy: The role of boundary organizations
Christine Kirchhoff, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Connecting basic and translational science – It’s a matter of good taste!
Valerie Duffy, Ph.D.
Professor, Departments of Allied Health Sciences and Nutritional Sciences
Spring 2014
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Cell dynamics in genetic and infectious diseases
Ken Campellone, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Part 1: How the mother’s diet during gestation affects offspring growth
Part 2: Mechanisms of Staphylococcus Aureus infection of the bovine mammary gland
Kristen Govoni, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Animal Science
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Nanoscience: Little knowledge makes a BIG impact (in bio/pharm/medicine, computing, engineering, and our environment)
Bryan Huey, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Functions of stem cells in the adult brain
Joanne Conover, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology
Fall 2013
Friday, October 4, 2013
EGFR signaling stimulates anabolic changes in articular cartilage
J.B. Shepard
Ph.D. student, Skeletal, Craniofacial, and Oral Biology, UConn Health Center (Dealy research group)
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
(Part A) Olefin cross-metathesis of α-alkylidene lactones for the rapid assembly of β-lactones as inhibitors of the Fatty Acid Synthase (FAS): lessons from nocardiolactone
(Part B) Synthesis of sulfatides and examination of their roles in the NKT cells activation in immunomodulation
Kaddy Camara
Ph.D. student, Chemistry, UConn-Storrs (Howell research group)
Monday, December 2, 2013
Development of vitamin D3 analogues as selective hedgehog signaling inhibitors
Albert DeBerardinis, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow, Pharmaceutical Sciences, UConn-Storrs (Hadden research group)
Summer 2013
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Nanomaterials and technologies for lab-scale environmental applications
Homer Genuino
Ph.D. student, Department of Chemistry (Suib research group)
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
The lowdown on high temperature superconductivity
Barrett Wells, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Physics
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
It’s easy being green: Clean, fast, easy approaches to preparative chemistry
Nicholas Leadbeater, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Modeling human genetic cartilage disorders using induced pluripotent stem cells
Sara Patterson, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow, Reconstructive Sciences, UConn Health Center/Center for Regenerative Medicine and Skeletal Development