Chemistry research students Sakura Horiuchi ’19 and Emily Sanders ’20 recently won awards for Outstanding Poster Presentations at the 51st Annual Southeastern Undergraduate Research Conference. Horiuchi works in the lab of Prof. Roberto de la Salud Bea, and Sanders works in the lab of Prof. Mauricio Cafiero.
Sander’s winning poster, titled “DFT Analysis of Water Clusters, Dopaminergic Derivatives, and their Desolvation Energies,” focuses on the development of novel drugs for Parkinson’s Disease. Horiuchi’s poster about the development of antimicrobial compounds is titled “Synthesis of Antimicrobial Peptide Analogs from Eumenes Wasp Venom.”
Held at the University of Tennessee at Martin Feb. 8-9, the Southeastern Undergraduate Research Conference brought together chemistry students from Rhodes, University of Mississippi, Union University, Oglethorpe University, University of Virginia, Mississippi College, Clemson University, Mississippi State University, and University of Chicago, to name a few. It featured a keynote address, 22 oral presentations, and 58 poster presentations.
Other Rhodes students who participated, along with Horiuchi and Sanders, include Peyton Antwine ’19 (neuroscience), Zara Parkinson ’19 (chemistry), Rishabh Mazumder ’19 (neuroscience), Megan Simons ’19 (chemistry and mathematics), Alexa Alana ’20 (biochemistry and molecular biology), Mark Betonio ’20 (biochemistry and molecular biology), Morgan McDonald ’20 (chemistry), Elise Moix ’20 (neuroscience), Dillon Mosman ’21 (chemistry), Abby Polzin ’20 (urban studies), Erykah Starr ’20 (chemistry), Leda St. Cyr ’20 (neuroscience), Audrey Woody ’20, (chemistry ), Emma Cook ’21, Kayla Puzdrakiewicz ’21, Spring Smith ’21, and Jeremy Thelven ’22.