The North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU) Undergraduate Research Program recognizes students across North Carolina for their outstanding work in STEM-related undergraduate research. This year, Elon University students Ali Deatsch and Kelly Giffear were among the five students recognized statewide.
The students will receive a stipend to support their continued research efforts and will present at the annual State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium to be held in November at East Carolina University.
Ali Deatsch is a junior physics major working with mentor Ben Evans on an investigation of magnetic hyperthermia treatment for cancerous tumors. She has developed a line of micro-scaled magnetic spheres which can be heated with an external magnetic field in much the same way that an induction cooktop heats a pot. The microspheres could be injected into a tumor site and remotely heated, destroying the cancerous cells. Ali is currently working on boosting the heating efficiency of the microspheres by manipulating their physical properties.
Senior chemistry major Kelly Giffear has been working with mentor Lisa Ponton to characterize the biological activity of estrogenic compounds in effluent from wastewater treatment plants. The presence of estrogens in wastewater has been shown to cause reproductive issues in aquatic organisms; however, merely measuring the concentration of estrogens may lead to an inaccurate characterization of the biological availability of these compounds. Kelly and Lisa have begun using a biological assay in which recombinant yeast is modified to detect DNA changes caused by the presence of estrogens, resulting in a more accurate measure of the activity level of biologically available estrogens. Kelly will use this new assay to evaluate wastewater in the Piedmont Triad area.