Presenting at a national meeting is no easy feat, both before and during. Recently, seniors Jon Zatorski and Chesley Rowlett — senior biochemistry majors at Olivet Nazarene University — had the opportunity to share with professionals about their undergraduate research projects.
The 2018 American Chemical Society national meeting, held in New Orleans, hosted more than 15,000 people. Accompanied by Dr. Bruce Heyen, chair of Olivet’s Department of Chemistry and Geosciences, Jon and Chesley enjoyed their experience and the introduction into their future careers.
Jon’s oral presentation was on “Effect of an Arginine-to-Isoleucine Active Site Mutation on Escherichia coli Malate Dehydrogenase Enzymatic Activity.” It covered the research he performed with Dr. Heyen at Olivet during summer 2017. A Pence-Boyce research grant from Olivet funded their project.
Chesley presented a poster on “Synthesis and Incorporation of 1,2-Alkanolamine-Functionalized Lysine as a Non-Canonical Amino Acid into GFP.” This was based on research she performed during summer 2017, while she was a recipient of a REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) grant at Texas A&M University.
Both Jon and Chesley will enter Ph.D. graduate programs this fall: Jon at the University of Virginia and Chesley at Texas A&M University.
“The opportunity to present research at a national meeting as an undergraduate is both an honor and a reflection of the quality of work done by these two students,” Dr. Heyen says. “Both Chesley and Jon represented Olivet well. The experience of attending a national meeting and presenting their own research has helped solidify their choices to pursue graduate work and become scientists.”
To learn more about Olivet’s areas of study in chemistry and geosciences, contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@olivet.edu or 800-648-1463.
Published: 4/13/2018
