Genome Science Institute Announces Research Symposium Award Winners
The Genome Science Institute held its inaugural Research Symposium, an interdisciplinary research symposium that explores genetic and genomic science, in the Boston Medical Campus’ Hiebert Lounge on October 8, 2009. There were 63 abstracts submitted from students, post-doctoral fellows, and faculty from Institutions throughout the Boston area. Prizes were awarded in undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral fellow categories. Six abstracts were chosen for oral distinction and the first authors were invited to give an oral presentation at the symposium. Seven researchers were awarded outstanding poster prizes. Winners of both oral distinction and poster prizes received an award of one hundred dollars.
Award Winners for Oral Distinction:
Graduate Level
Adam Gower, “openSESAME: A new tool for discovering biologically relevant connections in public gene expression data.” Faculty advisors: Marc Lenburg, PhD., and Avrum Spira, MD., PhD., BUSM.
Paul Romesser, “Cancer biomarker discovery by genome-wide transcriptome vs. proteome profiling: problems, advantages, limitations and insights.” Faculty advisor: Gerald Denis, PhD., BUSM.
Undergraduate Level
Vishal Patel, BU, Biology, “Understanding the Molecular Nature of the Loss of Function Mutation, THREAD 1.” Faculty Advisor: Kim McCall, PhD., BU.
Arun Rai, BUSM, Biochemistry, “GM-CSF is a novel target of p53-related p63.” Faculty Advisor: Jim Xiao, PhD., BUSM.
Post-Doctoral Level
Hamid M Abdolmaleky, BUSM, Genetics Program, “Epigenetic dysregulation of serotonin receptors type-2 (5HTR2A) in post-mortem brains of patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.” Faculty advisor: Sam Thiagalingam, PhD., BUSM.
Jean-Bosco Tagne, BUSM, Pulmonary Center, “Genome-wide Identification of Titf1 Target Genes in the Developing Lung.” Faculty advisor: Maria Ramirez, PhD., BUSM.
Outstanding Poster Prizes:
Graduate
Alexandra Silveira, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, “Haplotypes Within The Vitamin D Metabolism Gene CYP24A1 Are Associated With the Development Neovascular AMD.” Faculty Advisor: Margaret DeAngelis, MD., PhD., Harvard Medical School.
Ari Friedland, BUSM, Biomedical Engineering, “A Synthetic Gene Network that Counts.” Faculty Advisor: James Collins, PhD., BUSM.
Jenny Loew, BUSM, Medical Nutrition Program, Cancer Research Center, “CpG Demethylation of ARHI Gene and Synergistic Inhibition of Ovary and Breast Cancer Cells by HDAC Inhibitors and Natural Isoflavonoid Product Genistein.” Faculty Advisor: Sibaji Sarkar, PhD., BUSM.
Joseph Gerrein, BU, Bioinformatics Program, “Deep-sequencing identifies smoking and lung-cancer associated changes to the large airway transcriptome.” Faculty Advisor: Avrum Spira, MD., PhD., BUSM.
Josh Campbell, BUSM, Pulmonomics, “Changes in gene expression with progression of emphysematous destruction in COPD.” Faculty Advisor: Avrum Spira, MD., PhD., BUSM.
Postdoc
Alexia Eliades, BUSM, Biochemistry, “New roles for cyclin E in megakaryocyte polyploidization.” Faculty Advisor: Katya Ravid, PhD., BUSM.
Alex Ensminger, Tufts University, Molecular Biology and Microbiology, “From broad host range to isogenic prison: genotypic plasticity in experimentally evolved strains of Legionella.” Faculty Advisor: Ralph Isberg, PhD., Tufts University.
Kelly Harrington, VA Boston, “Reexamining the Associations of DRD4 and 5-HTT with ADHD Using an Alternative Comorbid ADHD Phenotype.” Faculty advisor: Irwin Waldman, PhD. Emory University.
