2008 Amgen Scholars

	Melanie Adams Melanie Adams is a student at the University of New Mexico, majoring in Biology. She is a rising senior and hopes to pursue a career where she can make a contribution and give back to the community. In the Amgen program, she is working in the Roberts Lab, studying bacterial resistance to antibiotics. In her free time she enjoys hiking, reading, and, most of all, spending time with friends and family.
	Seth Congdon Seth heralds from Brooklyn, NYC and is a rising Senior at Guilford College majoring in Biology and minoring in Chemistry. This summer, Seth is working in Horacio de la Iglesia's lab studying circadian rhythm generation in response to light in forced desynchronized rats. He enjoys playing soccer and tennis, holding down a radio show on WQFS Greensboro 90.9 and wearing jumpsuits on Sundays.
	Steven Flygare Steven is a rising senior at Brigham Young University and is a double major in math and bioinformatics. His research focus is bioinformatics and is excited to be working in the Shendure lab building a web based application for oligonucleotide design for microarrays. He intends to pursue a phD in a computational science, most likely bioinformatics. When he is not studying Steven loves to BMX, mountain bike, hike and generally be outside.
	Julia Gerard Julia is a rising senior majoring in Biology and French with a minor in Chemistry at Loyola College in Maryland. This summer she is working in Dr. Alexandar Rudensky’s lab studying the regulation of regulatory T cells. This cell type works to control the immune response and understanding its activity will have important clinical implications. Her previous research experience includes a summer spent at Gerstner Sloan-Kettering, also in an Immunology lab. There, she worked in Dr. James Allison’s lab and studied the activity of CTLA-4, a downregulatory receptor present on T cells. She has also worked in a Genetics lab at Loyola College where she studied sexual determination of C. elegans. At Loyola, she is also is involved with Project HEALTH, a program which works to break the link between poverty and poor health by placing undergraduates in low income healthcare settings. Julia hopes to pursue a combined MD/PhD degree after graduation. She enjoys running, karaoke, and neighbors.
	Robert Guenette Robert is a senior at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin double majoring in Chemistry and Biochemistry. His research here is in the Dovichi Lab and involves the development of a high-throughput protein analysis system. This system uses capillary electrophoresis to separate proteins, then a trypsin microreactor to digest them, and a second capillary to separate the resulting peptides which are characterized by mass spectroscopy. Robert hopes to earn a PhD in organic chemistry after graduation. Other than research, he enjoys reading, music, movies, and spending time with friends and family.
	Kaitlin Haines Kaitlin Haines is a rising senior at Trinity College in Hartford, CT. She is a biology major with a broad interest in cell/molecular biology and neuroscience. she has conducted neuroscience/electrophysiology research under the mentorship of Dr. J. Harry Blaise for the past 2.5 years and was recently co-author on an article published in a prominent neuroscience journal Brain Research. As an Irish step dancer for the past 15 years, she has had the opportunity to take a semester off from college and go on tour with the professional dance troupe Michael Flately’s Lord of the Dance. In the future, Kaitlin hopes to become a physician and researcher and combine these careers to develop better anti-rejection techniques for transplant recipients.
	Andrew Heisler Andrew Heisler is a rising senior in the biological sciences at Loyola University Chicago in Chicago, a city in Illinois. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Andrew made the journey to the furniture capital of the United States, Grand Rapids, and eventually to the city of Chicago, also known as the windy city. He is currently engaged in researching the correlation between phenotype and tandem repeat length in the plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Beyond this interest in science, Andrew also finds comfort in music, which he enjoys both composing and performing in a local Chicago rock quartet. One day, Andrew hopes to pursue biomedical research through an MD/PhD program, as a physician scientist.
	Lydia Hernandez Lydia is a Molecular/Cell biology major at Portland State University and will graduate with her second bachelor's degree in the spring of 2009. She earned her first bachelor's at UC Berkeley in Communications and English Literature. Prior to her enrollment at Portland State, Lydia taught and guided kayaking for four years in Portland. This summer, Lydia is working at the Davis lab studying kinetochore/microtubule localization and interaction during mitosis using fluorescence images. Her previous research experience includes investigating archaeal transcription factors with Dr. Michael Bartlett at Portland State. She intends to pursue a PhD in Molecular and Cell Biology.
	Shelly Hsiao Shelly is a rising junior at Mount Holyoke College majoring in Biochemistry and minoring in Economics. This summer, she is working in Terrance Kavanagh's lab in the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences department. Her project focuses on the toxic effects of quantum dots on RAW 264.7 macrophages. Aside from academics, she enjoys living in other countries to learn new languages, listening to music, attempting to play every sport, cooking, making jokes, laughing and going to the beach.
	Jessica Huszar Jessica Huszar is a rising senior at Virginia Commonwealth University, majoring in Biochemistry. This summer she is working with Dr. Amieux to improve the process of isolating and analyzing small groups of specific cells in brain tissue, utilizing immunoprecipitation and ribosomal tagging. Ideally this method will eventually be applicable to a wide body of research, including body weight regulation. She has previously done clinical research involving metabolism and fertility disorders. After graduation, Jessica plans to take some time off for extensive travel and pursue a PhD in Pharmacology. In her free time, Jessica enjoys baking, riding bikes and reading everything she can.
	Leticia Huynh Leticia Huynh is a member of Dr. Daniel Chiu’s lab. She is doing research in microfluidics, specifically with microchips, which are polymer-based machines molded to have channels and other features that can be used to carry out chemical and biological reactions on a small scale. Currently, she is working on optimizing a microchip valve design, which has many potential applications in microfluidics. Leticia is a rising junior at the University of Washington and a member of the UW Robinson Center Early Entrance Program. In addition to being a member of HCASB (Health Care Alternative Spring Break), a student-run organization that enables undergraduates to shadow doctors in rural communities over spring break, she also plays tennis and piano, and practices calligraphy. Leticia is deeply interested in the treatment of disease and intends to pursue a career in medicine.
	Stephanie Huynh Stephanie is a junior at the University of Washington, majoring in Cellular, Molecular, and Developmental Biology and considering a minor in Microbiology. This summer, she is conducting research in the Giachelli Lab in the Department of Bioengineering. As part of a larger study on vascular calcification, her project involves using the fluorescent indicator protein for inorganic phosphate (FLIPPi) construct and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) to analyze inorganic phosphate levels in mouse aortic smooth muscle cells. Through studying the mechanism of inorganic phosphate uptake, potentially new targets may be determined in order to regulate calcification and reduce its consequences. After graduating, Stephanie plans to pursue a PharmD/PhD and conduct pharmaceutical research. In her spare time, she loves spending time with her family and friends, playing the piano and Guitar Hero (not simultaneously), and running.
	Kenny Lin Kenny will be a senior at Boston University studying Biomedical Engineering. His past research experiences include the study of changes in neuromuscular control due to microgravity and the differentiation of stem cells into cardiomyocytes. Kenny's project this summer uses molecular dynamics computer simulations to characterize the normal human prion protein as well as documented mutations and polymorphisms. The project hopes to elucidate potential structural mechanisms of pathology in prion-related diseases. In his spare time, he enjoy photography, reading on the quad, watching movies, and playing sports.
	Ryan Loney Ryan is a rising senior at Reed College studying physics. While at the UW he will be conducting biophysical research with professor Gundlach in the nanopore lab, working on driving ssDNA through biological pores. Ideally the characteristics of the current blockages caused by the DNA's passage through the pore will provide insight into the composition of the DNA molecule, ultimately leading to a new method of quickly sequencing genetic material. When he's not in the lab, Ryan likes to go social dancing in Seattle's flourishing swing and salsa community. After graduation he intends to go to graduate school for biophysics and continue to study experimental methods.
	Michelle Medema Michelle is a current Junior at Calvin College studying Biology. While working at the University of Washington in Dr. Brian Kennedy’s lab, she will be researching the importance of nuclear proteins to the aging process. Further research interests include ecotoxicology, particularly around the great lakes, immunology, and virology. She hopes to pursue a PhD after graduation from Calvin College. Beyond biology, she also loves God, her boyfriend, her family, reading, music, hanging out with friends, and food.
	Tim Mentele Tim Mentele is a rising Senior at UW in the Bioengineering department. He has no prior research experience to speak of but has extensive lab experience due to the fact that every Bioengineering class has a lab. He has covered gross anatomy, fluid dynamics, thermodynamics, and stress and strain to name a few subjects. His main interests outside of the classroom include singing and going to Disneyland with his family. They go once a year and it is still one of his favorite vacations ever. As an engineer, the park is a marvel and as someone interested in innovation the story behind it is amazing. As far as the singing, he was in a group called the Northwest Choirs for nearly 11 years. Over the course of that time, Tim got to perform in Europe, sing on two video game soundtracks, and sing for a movie soundtrack. He still sings in the occasional movie trailer recording session as a fill-in for Recording Arts Northwest. It’s a fun job and if he were not so interested in engineering, he would be majoring in music. He hopes to get to know everyone very well over the course of this program and come away from it with some serious research under his belt, some good friends, and an overall great summer memory.
	Adam Mina Adam is a senior in the Biology Department here at the University of Washington. He was born in the Philippines and grew up in Lincoln City, Oregon. Since last summer, he has worked at the Bassuk laboratory at Children’s Hospital Research Institute. The lab studies epithelial diseases in the human urothelium. The project is identifying the DNA-motif that may bind SPARC, a matricellular and nuclear localized protein shown to inhibit cellular proliferation and disrupt cellular adhesion. He will try to do this using ChIP (chromatin immunoprecipitation) assay. Outside of the lab and academics, he enjoys running, board sports, soccer, playing violin, and hanging out with friends.
	Ankita Mishra Ankita Mishra will be beginning her junior year this fall at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, where she is majoring in Chemical Engineering with a Biomolecular focus. She is spending her summer in the Merz Lab of the University of Washington’s Biochemistry Department studying the region of activity of proteins known as Rab GTPase Activating Proteins – which are necessary for intracellular molecular trafficking – in yeast cells. Her prior research experience involves working in Materials Science and Engineering here at the UW for two summers, using atomic force microscopy to study protein binding morphology and specificity. When she has spare time at Caltech – which, sadly, is not often enough – she plays on Caltech’s Intercollegiate Women’s Volleyball Team, plans activities as part of the student body Social Team, and coordinates events for the other members as the new President of Caltech’s chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).
	Erica Porter Erica is a rising junior at George Mason University pursuing a Bachelors degree in Biochemistry and a Minor in Biology. Her intent is to continue her education and receive a Ph.D/M.D. degree. She is particularly interested in infectious diseases, and the immune system on a cellular/chemical level. This summer she is working with Dr. Maly’s lab on the development of chemical tools for studying mammalian signal transduction and protein kinases. Her focus is primarily on the BIR 3 Domain of X-linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein (XIAP) and the design of orthogonal inhibitors for mutated BIR 3 domains and compliment peptides developed from the natural ligand of the BIR 3 domain. Apart from being in a Lab, she has a wide variety of interests and hobbies. Some of which include traveling, dancing (middle eastern, salsa, bachata, swing, and blues), archery, kayaking, the Society of Creative Anachronisms, rock climbing, henna tattoos, mythology, legends and folklore, singing, arts and crafts, writing, reading, and she has recently began teaching herself to play the guitar.
	Adam Quintero Adam is a rising junior at the University of New Mexico, planning on double majoring in Biology and Psychology (Pre-Medicine). He has lived in the Land of Enchantment (NM) his entire life, so being in Seattle at UW is quite a unique and exciting experience for him. This summer Adam is working in Dr. Stan Fields’ lab in the department of Genome Sciences. For his research, Adam is trying to determine the possible effects that small molecules could have on lovastatin’s efficacy/toxicity when the two are combined within the same yeast culture. Amgen Scholars Program is actually Adam’s first research experience, so the program is his attempt to see if research is something he would like to pursue in his future. Adam’s ultimate goal is to go to medical school and attain either a MD or MD/PhD. On his spare time, he likes to run, play tennis, and “try” to lift weights in the gym. Adam considers himself a real outdoorsy type of guy, but sometimes he would rather just sit around the house all day and watch reality TV.
	James Reinecke James is a fifth year senior at Central Michigan University. He is a biomedical sciences and neuroscience double major. This summer James is working in the lab of Dr. Hannele Ruohola-Baker in the Department of Biochemistry. A group of students are working on genetic screens aimed at identifying genes that are critical for maintaining germline stem cells within the Drosophila germline niche. After Central, James plans on entering an MD/PhD program. His career aspirations are to become a physician scientist who helps patients with their aliments via clinical treatment and basic science research geared towards understanding the molecular basis of disease. Outside of science, James enjoys weight lifting, golfing, reading and hanging out with friends.
	Ellis Robinson Ellis is a rising senior at The Ohio State University, preparing to graduate with a degree in Chemical Engineering. Until he figures out a way for someone to pay him to bum around the world on his bicycle, Ellis plans on pursuing graduate education in Environmental Engineering, with a specific focus on bioremediation and drinking water quality. One day, with the help of a lot of coffee, there will be no pollution and everyone in the world will have clean water to drink! This summer's Amgen Scholars experience is allowing him his first research experience with a biological system, where he is exploring cytokine mediation in in vitro biofilm studies between macrophages and Staphylococcus epidermidis. His work will hopefully contribute to the larger aims of his mentor (Kyung Park in the Bryers' group) in the creation of anti-infective biomaterials. Aside from geeking out on science, Ellis likes to climbs rocks, drink coffee, and ride bikes.
	Janelle Ruiz Janelle is a rising junior at Loyola Marymount University and is pursuing a double major in biology and psychology. The Amgen Scholars program is her first significant laboratory research experience. This summer, she is focused on exploring and garnering a more complete understanding of the body’s innate immune response to Hepatitis C virus. She is working in the Gale laboratory, investigating RIG-I independent activation of the immune response to HCV. Her previous research experience in the department of psychology at Loyola Marymount explores financial literacy and realism in young adults. At her university, she is a student senator and an active performer in the choral program. She enjoys writing poetry, spending time at the beach, reading classic literature and keeping up with the social life of her ten-year-old little brother. Janelle was born in Tucson, Arizona and hopes to pursue an MD/PhD program after graduation.
	Alyssa Sheih Alyssa is a rising junior studying Bioengineering at the University of Washington. Her previous research includes working in the Biology Department to model the coevolution of host sociality and pathogen virulence in contact networks. This summer she is working with Professor Hong Shen in the Chemical Engineering Department to investigate how mechanical properties of spherical particles influence the efficiency of phagocytosis by immune cells. After graduation, she plans on pursuing a Ph.D. in Bioengineering. Outside of school, she enjoys spending time with her family, watching movies, reading, and drawing.
	Mindy Szeto Mindy is a senior at the UW majoring in Biochemistry and Sociology. Currently, she works with Professor Kristin Swanson in the Department of Pathology. Her project focuses on the development of a mathematical model to quantify glioma (a highly malignant and diffuse type of brain tumor) growth kinetics. Outside of class and lab, good places to find her are rock concerts, jogging trails, and coffeeshops. Mindy also coordinates a student-run program called Healthcare Alternative Spring Break, which aims to promote the awareness of issues in rural healthcare through clinic shadowing opportunities. She plans to pursue an MD/PhD after graduation.
	Wallace Thompson Wally sprang forth from the womb during the year 1986 in Starr, South Carolina and is now a senior chemistry major at Erskine College [Due West, South Carolina]. Wally studied the regulation of apoptosis in the Deshmukh lab at UNC-Chapel Hill in 2007. This summer, he works in the Hong Shen lab producing fluorescent molecular thermometers for intracellular thermal profiling. In the future, he hopes to earn a Ph.D. in the sciences or play the accordion for sustenance. Otherly, Wally's interests include roaming foreign lands, eating, and gongs.
	Anya Yermakova Anya is going into her 5th year in Northwestern, majoring in Biochemistry, Piano performance, and Philosophy of Mathematics. She is interested in logic and ways of applying mathematics in biochemical research. She is planning to continue a career as a researcher and a performer, possibly an MD/PhD. Anya also loves nature in any season, dances salsa and flamenco, and composes music.