Biology, chemistry majors to give thesis presentations

More than 40 seniors from the Department of Biology and Biomedical Sciences and the Department of Chemistry will give their thesis presentations over a three-day period beginning Monday, April 25. Presentations will begin at 6 p.m. each day and will be held in the O’Hare Academic Center, Room 260.

The schedule is:

Monday, April 25

• 6 p.m. – Rhiannon Morrissey: “The effects of gallic acid treatment on gastric cancer proliferation”
• 6:15 p.m. – Daniel O’Brien: “Differential gene expression in Ulva compressa under varying photoperiods”
• 6:30 p.m. – Megan Sylvia: “A low cost protocol and primer set to DNA fingerprint in blackberry cultivars”
• 6:45 p.m. – Meaghan Trzasko: “Investigating the effects of gallic acid on the expression of genes involved in apoptosis and cell cycle arrest pathways in the gastric adenocarcinoma cancer cell line AGS”
• 7 p.m. – Jennifer Kane: “The impacts of nitrification on small coastal watersheds: A case study on Aquidneck Island”
• 7:15 p.m. – Katherine Jones: “Macroinvertebrate habitat selection around Newport Neck and Narragansett Bay in relation to sea level rise”
• 7:30 p.m. – Taryn Marak: “The usage of single or multichannel conduits to treat iatrogenic cubital region nerve injuries in pediatrics”
• 8 p.m. – Kimberly Spring: “The effects of anthropogenic and natural noise on the song intensity, frequency and duration of the song sparrow (Melospiza melodia)”
• 8:15 p.m. – Dominic DiMascia: “Sleep fluctuation in Mallard ducks to avoid predators”
• 8:30 p.m. – Mathew Gingras: “Characterization and quantification of rhodamine labeled rat brain tissue microtransplanted in Xenopus laevis oocytes”
• 8:45 p.m. – John Keefe: “Anti-science or heartless scientists: A review of diagnosis and treatment methods for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi and Lyme Disease”
• 9 p.m. – Lauren Hartnett: “Using genetically modified bacteria as vectors for cancer therapies”
• 9:15 p.m. – Julianne Sullivan: “The comparison of burn treatments to determine MSC therapy is the most effective treatment”
• 9:30 p.m. – Victoria Luerssen: “Adaptations to current rehabilitation efforts on cetaceans, pinnapeds and chelonioideas targeted to maximal survival release rates and success of non-releasable rehabilitation cases”
• 9:45 p.m. – Genevieve Benoit: “Methodologies contributing to maintaining and recovering an unimpaired gait of elder adults ages 60+ leading to increased functional capabilities”

Tuesday, April 26

• 6 p.m. – Alexander Hulme: “Synthesis of a panel of pyrimidinones and evaluation of their biological activity as anti-quorum sensing agents in bacteria”
• 6:15 p.m. – Alannah Duffy: “Inhibition in quorum sensing in Pseudomonas aeruginosa by derivatives of pyrimidinones”
• 6:30 p.m. – Madeleine Bouthiette: “The Zika virus: a scientific analysis of a global health concern”
• 6:45 p.m. – Carla Vela Inglesia: “The power of pharmacogenetic tools to predict the outcome of Hepatitis C treatment”
• 7 p.m. – Shannon Usseglio: “Causations of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in athletes and military veterans”
• 7:15 p.m. – Lindsey Mazzola: “Modifications in oral contraceptives to minimize change in blood coagulation factors in women”
• 7:30 p.m. – Alexis Sivovlos: “The detrimental effects of invasive species on islands compared to mainland”
• 8 p.m. – Thomas Stracensky: “Ultrasensitive electrochemiluminescent detection of cancer biomarker markers using Luminol”
• 8:15 p.m. – Mark Grande: “Synthesis and quorum sensing activity of Phevalin and derivatives”
• 8:30 p.m. – Jennifer Grundy: “Phenolic composition and antimicrobial and anti-quorum sensing activity in ethanol extract of McIntosh apple peels”
• 8:45 p.m. – Heather Conboy: “The microtransplantation of rat neurolemma into Xenopus laevis oocytes”
• 9 p.m. – Brandon Dominguez: “Study of DDT/DDE as possible contributors of increasing rates of breast cancer in the United States”
• 9:15 p.m. – Stephanie Liptak: “Investigating the effects of hippotherapy on postural control in children with cerebral palsy”
• 9:30 p.m. – Kyle Kureckza: “The effect of hypoxic training on athletic performance”
• 9:45 p.m. – Emily Brouilette: “The analysis of iron and beta-carotene nutrient concentrations found in hydroponically grown and store-bought Brassica oleracea, kale”

Wednesday, April 27

• 6 p.m. – Syeda Sultana: “Identifying the presence of secretory lipases in Leishmania major and Leishmania tarentolae”
• 6:15 p.m. – JennaLyn Geysen: “Craniofacial clefts: The most common congenital anomaly of the head and face”
• 6:30 p.m. – Shelby Johnson: “Inhibitory effects on the formation of advanced glycation end products by hydroponically grown Moringa oleifera”
• 6:45 p.m. – Kristin McDermott: “Wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) breeding habitat use and evaluation of population health in southern Missouri”
• 7 p.m. – Timothy Roosa: “Bottom-up control mechanisms present in Narragansett Bay”
• 7:15 p.m. – Audra Murphy: “Characterization of voltage sensitive sodium channels in developing rat brain tissue”
• 7:30 p.m. – Leah LoConte: “Care assessment programs for patients involving injury and post-stroke vascular dementia”
• 8:00 p.m. – Melanie Tognazzi: “Proposed mechanistic causes of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: The role of the autonomic central nervous system inflammatory response, and cardiac electrical signaling”
• 8:15 p.m. – Rebekah Bolibruch: “Omega-3 fatty acids in the prevention and deceleration in early stage Alzheimer’s disease”
• 8:30 p.m. – Anne Carlson: “Fetal repair of myelomeningocele, the most common form of spina bifida: An analysis of modern bioengineered surgical techniques”
• 8:45 p.m. – Kaylen Heath: “Non-pharmacotherapies in the management of Parkinson’s disease”
• 9 p.m. – Kathleen Gamez: “The development of multiplexed immunosensor arrays using polyethylene glycol labeled magnetic beads for point-of-care cancer diagnosis”
• 9:15 p.m. – Tessa Grassette: “Analysis of amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) to determine expressed pathogenic genes in Leishmania species”