Biology students receive Histochemical Society Capstone Grants for research projects in College of Veterinary Medicine
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Mya Masterson, left, and Kaitlynn Bradshaw, both undergraduate students at Kansas State University, have received $500 grants from the Histochemical Society to support their research work in the Laboratory of Investigative Pathology in the College of Veterinary Medicine. | Download this photo.
MANHATTAN — Research grants from an awards program offered by a professional scientific society will support the projects of two Kansas State University undergraduate students working in the laboratory of a College of Veterinary Medicine researcher.
Mya Masterson, junior in biology and clinical laboratory science-medical technology, Hutchinson, and Kaitlynn Bradshaw, senior in biology, Manhattan, are recipients of the $500 awards provided through the Histochemical Society's Capstone Grant program, which promotes the use of immunohistochemistry or other histochemical techniques in biological research. Both Masterson and Bradshaw work in the Laboratory of Investigative Pathology under the mentorship of A. Sally Davis, assistant professor of experimental pathology and lab director.
Masterson's project is "The PELCO BioWave Pro+ Powered Correlative Light/Electron Microscopy of Rift Kidney Lesions." The PELCO BioWave Pro+, a registered trademark, is the exclusive microwave sold by Ted Pella Inc.
Masterson won honorable mention for the university's second-year Coffman Excellence in Research Award. She presented her poster "Visualizing Pneumocystis Protein Bgl-2 in Infected Mouse Tissue by Immunfluorescence" at Kansas State University's Developing Scholars Program symposium in April.
"I am ecstatic to have received the Capstone Grant," Masterson said. "This opens up several new learning experiences for me, and I am beyond grateful for that. I have the opportunity to work with some of our new and advanced equipment. I will also be working with immunohistochemical substrates that include metals, which is also new to me. I can't wait to broaden my skills."
Bradshaw, originally from Hill City, is working on the project "Reliable CD4 and CD8 T Cell Marker Immunohistochemistry on Formalin-Fixed and HistoChoice-Fixed, Paraffin-Embedded Mouse Spleen."
"I'm very thankful to the Histochemical Society for supporting my continuing research with the Capstone Grant," Bradshaw said. "This grant will greatly aide me in performing some finishing work on my research project involving the labeling of CD4 and CD8 T-cell markers in fixed tissues as well as providing support to write my first scientific manuscript for publication that details my results. I'm excited for the opportunity to gain more experience and new skills."
Bradshaw won a Kansas State University Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Travel Grant to attend the 2017 Experimental Biology Conference in April, where she presented her research poster. She has just received a second grant from the office for the CD4/CD8 work. Bradshaw plans to earn a master's degree in the field of pathology.
"The Laboratory of Investigative Pathology is especially proud of its undergraduate researcher successes," Davis said. "This continues our lab's tradition of success with the Capstone awards as in 2016. These awards from the Histochemical Society are confirmation that Kansas State University is strong in its ability to provide undergraduate research opportunities, and I am proud to be part of that tradition."
The Histochemical Society promotes the development and use of visual techniques that provide biochemical and molecular information about the structure and function of cells, tissues and organs and for the dissemination of this knowledge through education and outreach.
The biology and clinical laboratory science programs are offered the College of Arts and Sciences.
