April 14, 2022
Pursuing a Biomedical Sciences degree from Shawnee State University, Hanna Tackett, a junior from Lucasville, Ohio, recently received the Frank G. Brooks Award for her research project presentation at the Tri-Beta District Meeting.
“To receive this award is absolutely amazing and has made me more appreciative of the opportunities I have been given through SSU,” she said. “I went into the meeting wanting to get the experience of sharing my research and learn more about what my peers were discovering. I honestly didn’t expect anything but knowledge from this experience, but I came back with an award, and a chance to present on the national stage.”
At the district meeting, undergraduate Tri-Beta members from Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan have the opportunity to present research in front of their peers. Tackett chose to present her own research project at the meeting.
“My research project is over The Warburg Effect in Acute Myeloid Leukemia,” she said. “I am using a chemical called Dichloroacetate (DCA) that inhibits the cancer cells from undergoing this process, which promotes cell death. I treat my AML cells with DCA, harvest their proteins, preform a western blot (blots proteins onto a membrane), then probe for specific proteins using antibodies.”
Tri-Beta is a National Biological Honor Society that is dedicated to improving the understanding and appreciation of biological study and extending boundaries of human knowledge through scientific research. Tackett is the current secretary of the SSU chapter and has loved her experience so far.
“We have monthly meetings with speakers sharing a variety of information either on their research or talking about different graduate programs available at their institutions,” she said. “In addition, this society gives undergraduates opportunities to present their research, apply for grants, and publish their work in a scientific journal called BIOS.”
SSU’s Biomedical Sciences program provides Biology majors with high quality, student-centered undergraduate education. The program ensures students receive a solid foundation in central fields of Biology while also providing specialized upper-level curricula in the biomedical sciences, fosters undergraduate involvement in scientific research, and produces graduates that possess the preparation and skill needed to obtain employment or pursue a graduate or professional degree in a biomedical sciences field.
Learn more about the Biomedical Sciences program at Shawnee State University.