ATHENS, Ga. – The Biomedical and Health Sciences Institute at the University of Georgia has selected eight Ph.D. candidates to receive up to $5,000 a year in scholarships from the Atlanta chapter of the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) Foundation. The students will be recognized for their biomedical and health sciences studies at an awards luncheon in Atlanta on Nov. 13.
The ARCS Foundation was founded by a group of women in Los Angeles in 1958 and is dedicated to helping meet the country’s needs for scientists and engineers by providing scholarships to academically outstanding university students. The Atlanta chapter, which funds scholarships for students at UGA, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology and Morehouse College, has awarded more than $896,000 since its founding in 1992. This is the fourth year that UGA students have received awards from the scholarship program.
“The BHSI is very pleased to receive support for exceptional graduate students from the Atlanta chapter of the ARCS Foundation Scholars program,” said Harry Dailey, BHSI director and ARCS Foundation Scholars selection committee chair. “This program represents an excellent example of how concerned citizens can make a difference in the future direction of science in the United States.”
The 2003-2004 ARCS Foundation Scholars and their faculty sponsors are:
* Pamela Bonner, microbiology (Lawrence Shimkets)
* Kimberley Hill, pharmaceutical and biomedical sciences (Catherine White)
* Martin Moore, genetics (Mary Bedell)
* Lowell Rayburn, genetics (Michael Bender)
* Andrew Reams, microbiology (Ellen Neidle)
* Sarah Whitehead, genetics (Michael Terns)
* Robert Waldo, microbiology (Duncan Krause)
* Michael Yabsley, medical microbiology (William Davidson)
Bonner’s current research utilizes Myxococcus xanthus as a model system to understand how zinc-metalloproteases modulate the extracellular matrix. In mammals, unchecked degradation of the extracellular matrix by similar proteases has been linked to arthritis and cancer. She is planning to pursue a career in academia. Bonner, who hails from Portsmouth, R.I., received her B.S. from the University of Connecticut.
Hill is a doctoral student in UGA’s College of Pharmacy studying pharmacokinetics. Her research focuses on improving various drug delivery methods for peptide-based pharmaceuticals, which have high specificity and activity at low concentrations. She is a native of Moreland, Ga., and graduated from UGA with a B.S. in microbiology. After graduation, Hill plans to pursue a career in the pharmaceutical industry as a pharmaceutical formulation scientist.
Moore is investigating the pathogenesis of mouse adenovirus type 1. The human adenoviruses are responsible for 10 percent of respiratory disease found in children worldwide and mouse adenovirus type 1 offers a promising model system of adenoviral disease. Moore, who is from St. Simon’s Island, received a B.S. in biology at UGA. His future career plans include teaching and researching virology and/or cancer at a major university.
Rayburn is investigating the role of a prohormone processing protease in Drosophila melanogaster. This protease is also present in humans and has been linked to diabetes and obesity and may even have a role in cancer etiology. She plans on using her doctoral training in a career focused on linking the scientific community and general public. Rayburn, from Charlotte, N.C., received a B.S. degree from Davidson College.
Reams’ current research focuses on elucidating the mechanism behind gene amplification in Acinetobacter. The importance of gene amplification is underscored by its correlation with drug resistance and increase virulence in bacteria. After graduation, he would like to expand his research to pursue the role of gene amplification in oncogenesis and cancer progression. Reams, a native of Mission Viejo, Calif., earned his B.S. degree from California State University at Chico.
Waldo’s research work at UGA has focused on understanding the biology and pathogenesis of the bacterium Mycoplasma pneumoniae, a pathogen of the human respiratory tract and the leading cause of pneumonia in older children and young adults. He is planning a career in academia. Waldo, a Virginia native, earned a B.S. from Virginia Tech.
Whitehead’s research is focused on the involvement of the SMN (survival of motor neurons) protein in small nucleolar ribonucleoprotein (snoRNP) complex assembly. A deletion or mutation of the SMN1 gene causes spinal muscular atrophy, a degenerative muscular disease that is the leading genetic cause of death in children. Whitehead, a native of Dayton, Ohio, received her B.A. in microbiology from Miami University. She plans to pursue a career in the biotechnology field and, later, academia.
Yabsley works for the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study at the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine and studies Ehrlichia chaffeensis, an emerging zoonotic tick-borne bacterium. His research utilizes white-tailed deer, the major reservoir host of E. chaffeensis, as sentinels to delineate the distribution and molecular variation of this pathogen. Yabsley, a Winnsboro, S.C. native, earned a B.S. and M.S. from Clemson University.
The Biomedical and Health Sciences Institute, which serves as UGA’s liaison for the ARCS Foundation scholarship program, brings together UGA scientists who conduct health-related research. In addition to encouraging research collaboration, the institute is developing new interdisciplinary curricula in biomedical and health-related fields for graduate and undergraduate students at UGA.
