Mercy Student Researcher Wins First Prize at Professional Conference

Mercy University biology major Sara Tamayo ‘24 and her research partner, Gabriella Shikapwashya of Westchester Community College (WCC), won first place in the physiology and neuroscience category at the annual Metropolitan Association of College and University Biologists (MACUB) conference in November. Their poster entitled “Potential Role of LRRC8 in Supplying Cysteine to Neurons via GSH Release” showcased the research they conducted during the STEM Ready Summer Research Institute (SRI) — a collaboration between Mercy University and WCC — with support from Mercy associate professor of biology Renée Haskew-Layton, Ph.D., co-director of STEM Ready SRI and biology program director.

“It was so exciting to win!” said Tamayo. “I was surprised and really happy. And it was fun to be at the conference. The presentations were really interesting.”

STEM Ready SRI is part of Mercy’s larger STEM Ready initiative, which is funded by a $4.9 million grant awarded to Mercy in 2021 by the U.S. Department of Education. Through SRI, students receive stipends to work directly with faculty for four weeks on research projects in biology, psychology, mathematics, computer science, cybersecurity and computer information systems.

Tamayo and Shikapwashya’s research project focused on how to protect the brain from oxidative stress, which kills brain cells in diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. They looked at how a certain cell type in the brain, an astrocyte, can release antioxidants that helps neurons survive and whether the neurons can benefit by producing their own antioxidants.

“Sara and Gabriella are both very inquisitive,” said Haskew-Layton. “These are challenging concepts, and it's not easy to learn the background material in a short amount of time and then conduct the experiments. They had a genuine interest in the topic and really wanted to dive into what was happening.”

A total of 13 Mercy University students presented research projects at the MACUB conference on topics that included the impact of mutagenesis on enzyme activity, the characterization of cardiac cell culture and molecular responses to plant pathogens. These students conducted their research projects through various Mercy research initiatives in addition to STEM Ready SRI, including Team STEM Summer Research Academy, Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) summer research program and the McNair Scholars Program.

Presenting at the MACUB conference is an opportunity for students to share their research with an external audience. “It makes them step back and synthesize what they've been doing,” said Haskew-Layton. “And it's an added challenge to present research to faculty and students outside of Mercy.”

STEM Ready SRI was Tamayo’s first experience in conducting scientific research. “I loved doing the research, especially getting to see the results of our work, and I really did learn a lot,” she said. She is considering pursuing a career in research or becoming a physician assistant.