CONWAY, Ark. (July 11, 2018) – Eleven Hendrix College
researchers participated in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National
IDeA Symposium of Biomedical Research Excellence (NISBRE) meeting, held June
24-26 in Washington, D.C.
In addition to attending biomedical research presentations,
career development seminars, and discussion forums, eight Hendrix students and
two Hendrix faculty presented original research at the conference. Students
Jonathan Jenkins ’19, Allison Long ’21, Inaya Molina ’20, Haylee Oliver ’19, and
Harrison Russell ’20, and Hendrix faculty Dr. Bill Gunderson and Dr. Julie
Gunderson ’06 received travel grants from the IDeA program to attend this
meeting.
The following student researchers from Hendrix presented at the
NISBRE meeting:
- Madison Blue ’20 (mentor: Dr. Laura MacDonald, Department of
Biology, Hendrix College; poster title: MEK Inhibition Decreases Motility in
Papillary Thyroid Cancer Cells Harboring BRAFV600E Mutations)
- Jordan Carl ’20 (mentor: Dr. Laura MacDonald, Department of
Biology, Hendrix College; poster title: Evaluating the Effectiveness of MAPK
and AKT Inhibitors in Reducing Cellular Proliferation in Papillary and
Follicular Thyroid Cancer Cell Lines)
- Jonathan Jenkins ’19 (mentor: Dr. Laura MacDonald, Department of
Biology, Hendrix College; talk title: Collagen Increases Apoptosis Resistance
of Papillary Thyroid Cancer Cells Harboring BRAFV600E Mutations)
- Allison Long ’21 (mentor: Dr. Bill Gunderson, Department of
Chemistry, Hendrix College; poster title: Optimization of the Expression,
Growth, and Purification of Toxoflavin Lyase)
- Inaya Molina ’20 (mentor: Dr. Julie Gunderson, Department of
Physics, Hendrix College; poster title: Development of a Novel,
Fluorescence-Based Assay for Determining the Melting Temperature of Partially
Palindromic DNA Hairpins)
- Kyle O’Connor ’20 (mentors: Dr. Julie Gunderson, Department of
Physics, Hendrix College and Dr. Bill Gunderson, Department of Chemistry,
Hendrix College; poster title: Quantitative Binding Analysis of Mn2+ to DNA
Hairpin Loops)
- Haylee Oliver ’19 (mentor: Dr. Laura MacDonald, Department of Biology,
Hendrix College; poster title: Collagen Thickness Alters Tumorigenic Behavior
of Papillary Thyroid Cancer Cells Harboring BRAFV600E Mutations)
- Harrison Russell ’20 (mentors: Dr. Julie Gunderson, Department
of Physics, Hendrix College and Dr. Bill Gunderson, Department of Chemistry,
Hendrix College; poster title: Quantitative Binding of Divalent Metal Ions to
DNA Hairpin Loops)
Two faculty from Hendrix presented posters at the NISBRE meeting:
- Bill Gunderson, Department of Chemistry (poster title:
Spectroscopic Characterization of Divalent Metal Ion Binding to DNA Hairpin
Loops)
- Julie Gunderson ’06, Department of Physics (poster title:
Single-Molecule Studies Reveal Discrete Conformational Dynamics in Three-Way
DNA Junctions)
About Hendrix College
A private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix
College consistently earns recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal
arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40
Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic
quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture
in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has
been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more,
visit www.hendrix.edu.