Kansas State University

In the spotlight: Developing Scholars Program showcases undergraduate research work

Submitted by Communications and Marketing

Kansas State University undergraduate researchers will showcase their work at the 13th annual Developing Scholars Program Research Poster Symposium in the K-State Student Union Ballroom on Sunday, April 21. The public is invited to meet with the scholars and find out about their research from 1:30-3:30 p.m.

The Developing Scholars Program provides underrepresented students opportunities to research projects with a faculty mentor. Students receive academic, social and financial support while participating in the discovery and creation of new knowledge at Kansas State University.

"Through undergraduate research at K-State, students and their faculty research mentors are contributing to the latest advancements for the state of Kansas and beyond," said Anita Cortez, administrative director of the Developing Scholars Program.

Student presentations include:

Monica Farfan, sophomore in animal sciences and industry, Andover, "Environmental Sampling to Determine Risk of Pathogen Exposure in Association with Hand Hygiene Campaign among Veterinary Students"; Kevin Garman, junior in biological systems engineering, Burr Oak, "Mapping weight distribution of patients with unilateral lower-limb orthotics or prosthetics using force and pressure sensors"; Tiana Brooks, junior in fine arts, Chapman, "Dropping Out? PWI's and the Lack of Multicultural Student Retention."

From Dodge City: Eduardo Acosta, senior in biology, "Critical Power in the Upper Body"; Jenny Barriga, junior in chemistry, "Toward Boundary Detection During Breast Cancer Surgery"; Nallely Barron, senior in microbiology, "Differential Pattern of Connexins in Mammary Cancer Cells of MMTV-PyVT Mouse"; Phuoc Van Bui, senior in microbiology, "The expression of a green fluorescent protein (GFP) in Fischer F344 ESC and generation of transgenic rats"; Adrian Gomez, senior in biology, "Loading Nanoparticles into Tumor Homing Cells"; Daniela Guereca, junior in microbiology, "Characterization of T-DNA insertion mutants in pectate lyase gene of rice"; Fabian Martinez, senior in chemical engineering, Solar Power Charge Station"; Pamela Maynez, senior in chemistry, "A New Approach Toward Predicting the Outcome of Treating Triple-Negative Cancer"; Yojana Mendoza, senior in microbiology, "Mechanisms of Leg and Capillary Blood Flow Responses to Knee Extension Exercise"; Larry Rodriguez, senior in biochemistry, "A Proteomic Analysis of Molting Fluid from the Tobacco Hornworm, Manduca sexta"; and Marleen Sanchez, senior in public health nutrition, "In vitro bioavailability of vitamin A and iron in novel micronutrient fortified-blended foods."

From Garden City: Eddy Gomez, sophomore in general engineering, "Net Zero: Advancing in Building Technology and Efficiency"; Hector Martinez, sophomore in environmental design, "Exploring a New Architectural Application for Rubble Gabion Construction"; Shaunta Pruitt, junior in microbiology, "Evaluation of the Pathogenic Potential of a Soil-borne Stenotrophomonas sp. on Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.)"; Thuan Daniel Quach, senior in biochemistry, "Effect of Cryopreservation Time on Sperm Motility"; and Eduardo Soloranzo-Torres, senior in pre-psychology, "Flow and Task Experience."

From Greater Kansas City: Ismael Hernandez, sophomore in construction science and management, Kansas City, Kan., "Creative Fundraising Strategies for Successful Nonprofit Construction Organizations"; Phillip Hill, sophomore in marketing, Kansas City, Kan., "Blogs, Pins and Reviews: Their Effects on Attitudes Toward Advertisements and Purchase Intentions"; Chayce Wynn, junior in biology, Kansas City, Kan., "Inactivate Me: A randomized controlled trial examining the impact of increased sedentary time on chronic health outcomes"; Austin White, junior in electrical engineering, Kansas City, Kan., co-presented "Monitoring Night-Time Well-Being of Disabled Children at Heartspring"; Hannah Gray, freshman in biological systems engineering, Kansas City, Mo., co-presented "Monitoring Night-Time Well Being of Disabled Children at Heartspring"; Simone Holliday, sophomore in animal sciences and industry, Kansas City, Mo., "Effects of Freezing and Thawing on Sperm-bound IgG and IgA"; Joshua Ames, junior in microbiology, Lenexa, "Expression of Innate Immunity in Frankinella occidentalis during Tomato spotted wilt virus Infection"; Branford Harris, sophomore in mass communications, Lenexa, "Optimal Model of Crowdsourcing in Integrated Marketing Communications"; Kathy Barron, freshman in American ethnic studies, Olathe, "The Mexican 'Cabaretera' versus the Hollywood 'Showgirl' in the Melodrama/Film Noir Genre: A Comparative Analysis of Ninon Sevilla and Rita Hayworth"; Rebecca Renteria, freshman in pre-professional secondary education, Olathe, "From Slates to iPads: The Evolution of Technology in the College of Education"; Stephanie Skinner, senior in animal sciences and industry, Olathe, "Measurement of physiological parameters in alpacas to predict parturition and neonatal outcome"; Jamilah Watkins, junior in life sciences, Olathe, Identification of a Serine Proteinase Inhibitor from the Kunitz Family in the Plasma of an Insect, Manduca Sexta"; Kelsey Castinado, sophomore in environmental design, Overland Park, "The Influence of Palliative Care Center Architecture on Well-being"; K. Matthew Castinado, sophomore in kinesiology, Overland Park, "Effects of High Intensity Interval Training on Respiratory Muscle Fatigue in Healthy Men; Felicia Walker, sophomore in animal sciences and industry, Overland Park, "Clinical Manifestation of Rabies among Horses in Kansas and Nebraska: 2001-2012"; Phillip Gomez, senior in marketing, Shawnee, "The Impact of Brand-Event Fit on Sponsor Gratitude"; and Micke Ramirez, freshman in animal sciences and industry, Shawnee, "Identifying porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus surface proteins recognized by broadly neutralizing antibodies."

Mark Mathis II, freshman in civil engineering, Hays, "Reservoir Water Routing Analysis"; Natira Staats, senior in psychology, Holcombe, "Coping, Hope, Life Satisfaction and Relationship Satisfaction in Parents of Children with Down Syndrome: A Comparison of Prenatal and Postnatal Diagnosis Groups"; Morgan Armbruster, senior in life sciences, Hutchinson, "Identifying Substrates of Patatin-like Lipases"; Zachary Jones, sophomore in biological systems engineering, Junction City, "Fabrication of Microfluidic Devices"; Victor Moreno senior in psychology, Lakin, "Genetic Analysis of Bacterial Sucrose Transport and Utilization in Bacterial Blight Disease of Rice"; Sonjay Baker, freshman in mechanical engineering, Lansing, co-presented "Creating Brushless Motor Units to Sweep Away the Competition."

From Liberal: Dalia Camacho, junior in chemistry, "Charge Separation in Wild-Type Bacterial Reaction Center from Rhodobacter sphaeroides and its M214G Mutant"; Luis Chavez, senior in biology, "Comparison Between Novel Peak Performance Leg Extension Ergometer and Established Cycle Ergometer Protocols"; Jena Eder, junior in kinesiology, "Nitrate supplementation augments cutaneous reactive hyperemia in healthy humans"; Stephanie Jacquez, senior in food science and industry, "A whole genome map of the black flour beetle, Tribolium madens"; Valerie Rito, senior in industrial engineering, "Why IE? Solving Problems, Changing the World"; Antonio Rodriguez, junior in mechanical engineering, "Sources of Well-Being Among Older Americans: The Value of Race in Later Life"; and Obdulia Covarrubias Zambrano, senior in biochemistry, "Inactivation of a gene to produce a commercial organic acid."

From Manhattan: Irma Ailon, senior in public health nutrition, "5 Alpha-Reductase Inhibitors for Prostate Cancer Prevention"; Roberto Diaz, junior in geology, "Conditions needed to be a viable source in a mostly abandoned oil field"; Denise Durham, freshman in business administration, "Dysfunction Junction"; Sofia Sabates, junior in biology, "Phenology and Seed Production in Big Bluestem (Andropogon Gerardii) Ecotypes in Great Plains Reciprocal Gardens: The Role of Site and Ecotype"; Abigail Stedry, freshman in animal sciences and industry, "Processor Perception of Mold in Meat Plant Environments; and Jazmin Zeledon, senior in psychology, "Peptide Derived from Beta Glycoproteint I Inhibits Melanoma Cell Growth in Vivo."

William Duren, junior in electrical engineering, Rosehill, "Using Algae Grown in Feedlot Lagoon Water for Biodiesel"; Jonathan Bernard, sophomore in biology, South Hutchinson, "How is Deoxygenated Hemoglobin Affected During Ramp Incremental Forearm Exercise Between Young and Older Males?"; Daniel Buyanovski, freshman in chemical engineering, Spring Hill, "Functionalization of Amine and Carboxylic Groups to Iron Fe3 O4 Magnetite."

From Topeka: Emma Brace, senior in biological systems engineering, "Evaluation of Recombinant Human Serum Albumin Extraction and Purification from Transgenic Rice Flour"; Vanessa Ellis, sophomore in life sciences, "Availability, Cost, and Nutrient Content of Sugar Sweetened Beverages on College Campuses"; Jeffrey Murray, senior in physics, "Investigating the Effectiveness of Visual Cueing in Introductory Physics Problem-Solving"; and Breyana Ramsey, freshman in arts and sciences-open option, "Childhood Obesity: A Growing Epidemic in the U.S."

Alejandro Marquez, senior in biology, Ulysses, "Loading Nanoparticles into Tumor Homing Cells."

From Wichita: Xavier Gavin, senior in interior architecture and product design, "LED Lighting and Its Use in Contemporary Fixtures"; Katherine Nguyen, sophomore in civil engineering, "A Preliminary Investigation of Risk-Taking Behaviors of Younger Drivers and Highway Crashes"; Brianne Pierce, junior in microbiology, "Role of ECM29 in Protein Homeostasis During Aging and Oxidative Stress"; Alexander Vo, freshman in biological systems engineering, "5 Alpha-Reductase Inhibitors for Prostate Cancer Prevention"; and Brooke A. Williams, junior in psychology, "How Status and Race Influence Intentions to Seek Help."

Elizabeth Riedy, senior in biochemistry, Woodbine, "The Protease Activity Correlated Significantly with Breast Cancer in Stage II, III, and IV."

From out of state: Alexandra Dominguez, junior in fisheries, wildlife and conservation biology, Sycamore, Ill., "The effects of sucralfate on oral doxycycline absorption in dogs"; Marcus Dominguez, freshman in sociology, Sycamore, Ill., "Policy Changes Affecting Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States"; Daniel Dissmore, freshman in applied music, Severn, Md., "Miles Davis: Kind of Blue"; Miguel Valdes, junior in mechanical engineering, Liberty, Mo., co-presented "Creating Brushless Motor Units to Sweep Away the Competition"; Alex Martinez, sophomore in architecture, Omaha, Neb., "Green Design, Is it Really Worth It?"; German Cuevas, freshman in biology, Uniontown, Pa.; "Role of a Gene Homologous to Intron-encoded Endonucleases on Baculovirus Replication." and Mayra Perez-Fajardo, sophomore in bakery science and management, Laredo, Texas, "End-product Quality Improvement in Gluten-Free Muffin Formulations."

Faculty serving as research mentors to the Developing Scholars Program in 2012-2013 include:

Kehm Acharya, Thomas Barstow, Elizabeth Boyle, Ray Buyle, Elizabeth Davis, Neal Dittmer, Larry Erickson, Sherry Fleming, Alisa Garni, Briana Goff, Kevin Gwinner, Jessica Heier-Stamm, Keith Hohn, Loretta Johnson, Tandalayo Kidd, Butch KuKanich, Dawne Martin, Samuel Mwangi, A. Lorena Passarelli, Dorith Rotenberg, Don Saucier, David Steward, Esther Swilley, Masaaki Tamura, John Tomich, Deryl Troyer, Steven Warren, Mark Weiss, Frank White, Lisa Wilken, Koushik Adhikari, Stefan Bossmann, Susan Brown, Christopher Culbertson, Maria Teresa DePaoli, Hulya Dogan, Maria Ferrer, Todd Gabbard, Michael Gibson, Wayne Goins, Craig Harms, Michael Herman, Ryszard Jankowiak, Michael Kanost, Patrick Knight, Brian Lindshield, Roger McHaney, Thu Annelise Nguyen, Sanjay Rebello, Raymond Rowland, Susanne Siepl-Coates, Robert Stokes, Daisuke Takahashi, Kay Taylor, Matthew Totten, Deon van der Merwe, Farrell Webb, Ruth Welti, Warren White and Brett Wong.