Students Share Findings During GGB Research Day

There were 14 participants, with four delivering oral presentations and 10 presenting a research poster.

Cash prizes of $100 each were awarded to the best in category in oral presentation and poster presentation.

Jonathan E. Bard, associate director of bioinformatics at the New York State Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences (CBLS), was awarded the “Best Oral Presentation Award” for his study titled “Novel Application of Single-Cell Dimension Reduction Techniques to Squamous Cell Carcinoma Bulk RNA-Seq and Methylation Array Data.”

Research was conducted at the CBLS.

Bard’s mentors are Michael Buck, PhD, associate professor of biochemistry, and Satrajit Sinha, PhD, professor of biochemistry.

The “Best Poster Presentation Award” was presented to Narayan Dhimal, a doctoral student in the neuroscience program, for his study titled “Autophagy is Defective in Schwann Cells in Krabbe Disease.”

His mentor is M. Laura Feltri, MD, professor of biochemistry and neurology and co-director of the Hunter James Kelly Research Institute (HJKRI).

Research was conducted at the HJKRI.

Along with Feltri, co-authors are: 

• Edward L. Hurley, research technician in the Department of Neurology
• Daesung Shin, PhD, assistant professor of biotechnical and clinical laboratory sciences 
• Nadav Isaac Weinstock, an MD-PhD student in the neuroscience program
• Lawrence Wrabetz, MD, professor of biochemistry and neurology and co-director of the HJKRI

Taosheng Huang, MD, PhD, professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Genetics, was the event’s keynote speaker. His topic was “Mitochondrial Medicine” and dealt with his research into mitochondrial diseases.

The GGB Research Day is an annual event that gives any student or postdoctoral researcher at UB the opportunity to present their research, according to Richard M. Gronostajski, PhD, professor of biochemistry and director of the GGB graduate program.

“It is designed to bring together faculty, students and postdocs from all UB campuses to celebrate the research achievements in these areas,” Gronostajski says. “It stimulates research activities by bringing together people who don’t normally see each other and fosters an esprit de corps within the program.” 

The GGB Research Day was conducted Jan. 19 online via videoconferencing.