This summer, nine undergraduate students from OSU and other schools were sponsored by the OSU College of Pharmacy to participate in faculty members in faculty labs. The students, shown in the accompanying photo with their faculty mentors, concluded three months of hands-on research with a research presentation to College of Pharmacy faculty and graduate students.
Theresa Filtz, PhD, Associate Professor of Pharmacology, is the immediate former Director of Graduate Studies at the College of Pharmacy and the organizer of this summer’s undergraduate experience. Although undergraduate students have previously joined the College’s research teams over the summer, this is the first year the students have gathered together to formally present their research to the College and to one another. According to Filtz, the student presentations of very high quality and mark a new tradition that will definitely continue.
The topics for the presentations were varied and plentiful. One student presented on how the diet of a pregnant woman can affect the ability of her offspring to process drugs later in life. Another pair of students prepared an overview on their research about how a leukemia suppressor factor is regulated. Other topics included a presentation on research measuring how immune- suppressive drugs might cause changes in the gut and ultimately lead to hyperlipidemia, and findings related to an antifungal agent in soil bacteria.
In order to participate in faculty research, each student contacted a faculty member to sponsor them in the lab. The students and faculty pictured are (from left to right): Tahir Mahmood, Ganesh Cherala, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pharmacokinetics, Anna Sherman, Arup Indra, PhD, Associate Professor of Pharmacology, Connie Shen, Theresa Filtz, PhD, Associate Professor of Pharmacology, Adam Zweber, Kerry McPhail, PhD, Matthew Ito, PharmD, Professor, Nick Lowery, Grace Judd, Taifo Mahmud, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, Elisa Alphandary, Fred Stevens, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry. Student participants Elise Cowley and Riley Evans are not pictured.