Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research for Undergraduates

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This program is designed to introduce undergraduate students majoring in physics, computer science, mathematics, and engineering to research in biological chemistry. Students will be placed in research laboratories of faculty with active NIH grants who are affiliated with the University of Arizona Interdisciplinary Program in Biological Chemistry. Each student will receive individual mentoring from the faculty member in whose lab s/he works. The program will consist of a twelve week summer research experience supplemented with a weekly professional development seminar. To foster an intellectual community of scholars among the students, the ten students supported by this grant will be included in the supplemental activities sponsored by the Undergraduate Biology Research Program (UBRP) such as seminars, field trips and social events. Because participating faculty sponsors will be required to pay for half of the students' wages, students will be encouraged to continue their research through the academic year. Students will present their experimental results in poster form at the annual UBRP conference. To encourage students to enter the science and engineering pipeline, the project includes outreach by participating undergraduates to precollege students. The undergraduates will learn how to use CAD software and a 3D Rapid Prototyping Printer to produce models of small molecules, enzymes, and nucleic acids. These models will be used during classroom visits by undergraduates to explain how the physical sciences impact the biological sciences. We will target schools with high minority enrollments. The long term goal of the project is to develop a cadre of scientists with skills in quantative and physical sciences and engineering who can work on problems in biological chemistry.