Awards and Recognitions
OUR 2021-2022 Grant Award Winners
Angel Flowers | Biology |
Mentors: Dr. Matt Hoch (Lamar Univ.)
Dr. William R. Miller (Baker Univ.)
Research in Ecology
Project: “Population distribution analysis of tardigrades found on Quercus virginiana.”
Arizbeth Lopez Garcia | Biology |
Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi
Research in Neurobiology
Project: “CBD and Alzheimer’s disease; Neuroprotection and Desensitization.”
Caroline LeBlanc | Biology |
Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi
Research in Neurobiology
Project: “Glutamate receptor crosstalk in Alzheimer’s disease.”
David Matherne |Biology |
Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor
Research in Molecular Biology
Project: “Characterization of drug resistance genes in cattle
pathogen, Tritrichomonas foetus.”
2022 SURF Award Winner
David Matherne | Biology |Mentors: Dr. Evgeny Romashets and Dr. Cristian Bahrim
Research in Space Physics
Project: “Heliospheric Storms”
The Center for History and Culture of Southeast Texas and the Greater Gulf Coast - Dr. Mary Scheer Prize Winners
Angel Flowers (major in Biology)
“Population Distribution Analysis of Tardigrades Found on Quercus
Virginiana. (Southern Live Oak).”
Mentors: Dr. Matt Hoch (Lamar) and Dr. William Miller (Baker Univ.)
Department of Biology
Alyssa Broussard (major in Biology)
Co-author: Angel Flowers
Single Tardigrade DNA Barcoding Using COI and18S rRNA Genes
on Six Morphotypes from the Upper Coast of Texas, USA
Mentor: Dr. Matt Hoch
Department of Biology (Lamar)
First Place Best Presentation OUR Sponsored Research
Angel Flowers (major in Biology)“Population Distribution Analysis of Tardigrades Found on Quercus
Virginiana. (Southern Live Oak).”
Mentors: Dr. Matt Hoch (Lamar) and Dr. William Miller (Baker Univ.)
Department of Biology
Second Place – Best Poster Presentation
Joshua Smith (Major in Biology and Chemnistry)“ Synchrotron-Based Attenuated Total Reflection Infrared Spectroscopy of Artificial Gasoline Blend.”
Mentor: Sylvestre Twagirayezu
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Angel Flowers
"Population distribution analysis of tardigrades found on Quercus virginiana"
Mentor: Dr. Matt Hoch and Dr. William R. Miller (Baker University)
Research in Ecology
Angel Flowers and Zaid Mohammed are the University’s 2022 Beck Fellowship recipients. Angel is a senior biology major whose research focuses on tardigrade taxonomy and ecology. Zaid is a junior majoring in biology with a pre-medicine concentration.
The David J. Beck Fellowships reward outstanding academic achievement and allow top students to further challenge themselves with unique opportunities for undergraduate research and creative study. Beck Fellows receive full academic scholarships covering all tuition, books, fees and on-campus room and board. In addition, fellows receive up to $10,000 in funding for a summer project, which may entail research, an internship or international study.
Angel’s research will focus on the identification, abundance, and distribution of tardigrades (a type of invertebrate organism known as “water bears”) in limno-terrestrial (water-land interface) habitats. Angel’s work will be done in Belize under the direction of Dr. Matthew Hoch, Associate Professor, Department of Biology, and holds great potential for the discovery of new species, and for better understanding the ecology of water bears in Central American habitats. Angel’s work will be done in association with The University of Belize as well as with researchers from McNeese State University and Baker University (Kansas).
Zaid will study cancer cell biology, specifically the regulation of autophagy, the process by which cells conserve resources by degrading damaged proteins and worn-out organelles under less-than-ideal environmental conditions. Zaid will use renal clear cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer, as a platform. He will also be using CRISPR technology to examine the effects of directed genetic change on the disease process. Zaid will be working in the Dr. Ryan Russell's Molecular Biology lab at the University of Ottawa (Russell, Ryan | Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine | University of Ottawa (uottawa.ca)), and is mentored by Dr. Ian Lian, Associate Professor, Department of Biology.
Student Recognitions:
Angel Flowers, B.S. in Biology, received the 2022 Best Presentation for O.U.R. research award. Her mentors were Dr. Matt Hoch (Lamar) and Dr. William Miller (Baker University).
Joshua Smith, B.S. in Biology and B.S. in Chemistry, received a 2022 O.U.R. award for Best Poster (second place). His mentor was Dr. Sylvestre Twagirayezu.
Zaid Mohammed, B.S. in Biology, received from O.U.R. financial support for joining a summer program at the Institute of Exercise and Environmental Sciences in Dallas, Texas. This allowed him to spend the entire summer working on three significant projects.
Biology major, Jasmin Reyes, attended and presented on COVID-19, Cancer, and Connections (experiential learning project) at the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference in Florida from October 27-November 1, 2021.
2021-2022 Office of Undergraduate Research Grant Winners
Angel Flowers
"Population distribution analysis of tardigrades found on Quercus virginiana"
Mentor: Dr. Matt Hoch and Dr. William R. Miller (Baker University)
Research in Ecology
Arizbeth Lopez Garcia
"CBD and Alzheimer's disease; Neuroprotection and Desensitization"
Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi
Research in Neurobiology
Caroline LeBlanc
"Glutamate receptor crosstalk in Alzheimer's disease"
Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi
Research in Neurobiology
David Matherne
"Characterization of drug resistance genes in cattle pathogen, Tritrichomonas foetus"
Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor
Research in Molecular Biology
2021 OUR STEM Research Conference (October 30, 2021)
Student Awardees - Biology Majors/Thesis Students
Carissa Slaughter - 2nd place, Best SURF Presentation (Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor)
Vishal Mundodi - Best Undergraduate Research Presentation (MicroSURP fellow, UT Health Houston, Department of Microbiology and Immunology)
Antony Osu - Runner-up, Best Masters Level Poster Presentation (Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi)
2020
8th Annual Texas STEM Conference 2020
Congratulations to Menna Elsaka and her mentor Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor, and Hannah Thompson and her mentor Dr. Maryam Vasefi, for student awards received at the 8th Annual Texas STEM Conference.
Menna Elsaka
“Akkermansia Muciniphila Correlation with Obesity and Metabolic Disorders.”
Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor
Department of Biology
RUNNER-UP: THE BEST PRESENTATION IN THE NON-SURF CATEGORY
Hannah Thompson
“A Structured Intervention for Cognitive Decline.”
Mentor: Dr. Maryam Vasefi
Department of Biology
McNair Scholars Program
Biology major Reina Sixtos-Lara has been accepted into the McNair Scholars Program as part of the 2020-2021 cohort. The Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program is a federally funded program that offers college juniors and seniors opportunities to conduct research and publish or present their findings, and lends assistance in applying to graduate school. Benefits include a stipend of up to $2,800 to work with a McNair Research faculty member during the summer.
Biology Senior Accepted to Immunobiology Ph.D. program at Yale University
Biology Department extends its heartiest congratulations to our Biology Senior, Omar Gonzalez on his acceptance to Immunobiology Ph.D. program at Yale University. Omar has also been awarded the most prestigious Gruber Fellowship, the top honor a Ph.D. student can receive at Yale University.
Omar is also the recipient of OUR grant and a McNairs Fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor. In addition, Omar has presented his undergraduate research at the SACNAS national meeting for which he had received a travel fellowship. Omar was one of the campus finalist for Goldwater scholarship. We wish him the best for his future endeavors.
Presidential Summer Fellowship
Biology is particularly proud of one our undergraduate students, Emily McCall, who received a Presidential Summer Fellowship and did research in Kenya this summer. Emily, as a member of Dr. Eric S. Loker’s (University of New Mexico) research team, sampled parasites that cause schistosomiasis (also known as bilharzia), a disease that affects more than 200 million people worldwide. Emily’s work was made possible through the efforts of biology faculty member Dr. Randall Yoder, who through his professional and personal relationship with Dr. Loker, made Emily’s research possible.
Continuing Cardinal Scholarship
Congratulations to Justice Peveto and Kelsey Tran for receiving the Continuing Cardinal Scholarship from the Office of Graduate Admissions and Recruitment. These students have chosen to return after their undergraduate career to receive their Master of Science in Biology.
Dr. Hoch and LU Drones
Dr. Matthew Hoch, working with colleagues from the Department of Earth and Space Sciences, recently gave an interview contributing to the article "LU drones survey hurricane damage at beach" published in the Beaumont Enterprise. Dr. Hoch is an aquatic ecologist with expertise in marsh restoration.