The 20th Annual High School Research Poster Session

Saturday, February 7, 2015

Check out a photo slideshow of the 2015 event here. 

This annual poster competition for high school students, sponsored jointly by the American Chemical Society and St. Joseph's University, took place on Saturday, February 7, 2015 on the Brooklyn campus. There were 100 poster presentations and 109 participants registered in this year’s event. Students from nine area high schools attended and the quality of the research was better than ever. All of the students received certificates. There were 10 honorable mentions who received a gift bag from Vigon International. There were four winners who received a gift bag from Vigon International and gift cards from Amazon. The two first place winners also received a Casio graphing calculator from Staples Advantage. 

WINNERS

FIRST PLACE

  1. SYEDA HILLARY, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    CHARACTERIZATION OF LEUKEMIA INHIBITORY FACTOR (LIF) PRODUCTION, SECRETION, AND TARGET CELLS OF LIF WITHIN THE CANCER STEM CELL (CSC) NICHE 
  2. ALALEH AZHIR AND LOUIS-HENRI MERINO, MANHATTAN CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS
    WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT FOR RNAI SCREEN DATA ANALYSIS PIPELINE 

SECOND PLACE

  1. MICHAEL DIVGUN, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    THE EFFECT OF POLYOXOMETALATE ION REPLACEMENT ON VANADIUM REDOX FLOW BATTERIES 
  2. OLVIS HERNANDEZ, UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL
    TASTE MASKING OF FINE DRUG COMPOSITES VIA DRY COATING 

HONORABLE MENTION

  1. JESSICA ALVITRES, UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL
    INDUCTION OF EPITHELIAL-TO-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION (EMT) IN DORMANT BREAST CANCER MICROMETASTASES BY INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES
  2. CHARLYNN TRISH BEN, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    A SHARK HOMOLOG OF REV3, A DNA TRANSLESION POLYMERASE
  3. NICOLE BRONCALES, UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL 
    LIPOSOME PREPARATION AND MECHANISM IN DRUG DELIVERY
  4. AARIN CHASE, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    STUDY OF INVASION OF HUMAN EPITHELIAL CELLS BY BACTERIA FROM THE NEISSERIA GENUS: FOCUS ON PATHOGENIC NEISSERIA GONORRHOEAE AND COMMENSAL NEISSERIA EL
  5. JINTAO CHEN, MANHATTAN CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS 
    PD-CATALYZED ARYLATION OF SECONDARY ALKYLTRIFLUOROBORATES
  6. DINA DENG, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    DETERMINING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE BIOMARKER SSEA5 IN THE ENRICHMENT OF ENDOMETRIAL CANCER STEM CELL POPULATIONS USING THE HYBRID SPHEROID ASSAY
  7. CHRISTOPHER FRIAS, UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL
    FABRICATION AND IMAGING OF NANOFIBER SCAFFOLDS WITH DIFFERENT MATERIALS
  8. ZAINAB IQBAL, MIDWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
    PTSD SYMPTOMS, AGGRESSION, AND CRIME EXPOSURE IN A SAMPLE OF YOUNG ADULTS
  9. CHARLES TA, UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL
    STUDY OF THE BREAKDOWN OF METHANE USING ATMOSPHERIC PLASMAS
  10. SARA BENDAOUD AND HAYOUNG PARK, HIGH TECH HIGH SCHOOL
    THE ROLE OF CONVECTION CURRENTS IN THE MPEMBA EFFECT 

Keynote Address

Protein-based Drug Delivery Agents
Carlo Yuvienco, Ph.D., Physical Sciences Department, St. Joseph's University

Dr. Carlo Yuvienco holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from New York University and a B.E. in Chemical Engineering from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. He is currently a researcher in the Montclare Lab for Protein Engineering and Molecular Design at New York University, developing engineered proteins. With the advancement of technologies to probe and manipulate biophysical matter, the scientific community continues to engineer biological systems with the complexity and elegance in design that is necessary to address biomedical challenges. Three stories from Dr. Yuvienco’s research experience underscore the manner in which this proclamation is realized. First – a story of his group’s efforts to engineer a delivery carrier for anti-cancer drugs. Second – a tale of a family of enzymes that hold the promise to dispel the effects of chemical warfare agents and poisonous pesticides. Third – a story of how a whimsical idea in 2010 to mutate a protein resulted in the formation of a commercial biotechnology venture. 

Thank you to our judges and sponsors for making the 2015 event a success!