U*STAR: Scholars Attend Biomedical
Minority Student Conference

Students from the U*STAR (Undergraduate Student Training in Academic Research) and Bridges to the Baccalaureate Degree programs attended the 2005 Annual Biomedical Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) in Atlanta in November.

Senior Lissette Renteria (Biology), presented her poster titled, “Platelet Activating Factor (PAF) Stimulates Fetal Pulmonary Vein Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation.” Graduate student Tiffanny Jones (Biology) also delivered a poster presentation, “Disruption of the snoD Gene in Staphylococcus aureus Causes a Reduction in Susceptibility to Thrombin-Induced Platelet Microbicidal Protein-1 (tPMP-1) by Decreasing Cell Membrane (CM) Proton Motive Force (PMF).”

Rachel Nario, a nursing student at El Camino College, is conducting research on breast, colon and prostate cancers. As a Bridges scholar, she is part of a cohort recruited by CSUDH that provides research experience and facilitates the transfer of minority science students to universities. The aspiring nurse practitioner extols the benefits of attending ABRCMS.

“Attending ABRCMS has introduced me to the numerous opportunities at several graduate schools and scholarships,” she says. “This conference inspires, encourages, and motivates minority students, showing them that education is achievable regardless of background or financial status and can lead them to a brighter future.”

Senior Alicia Bravo (Biology) is currently working as an undergraduate research assistant at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute on a randomized study of exemestane (a drug used to treat breast cancer) versus placebo in postmenopausal women and their increased risk of developing breast cancer. Her ultimate goal of obtaining her doctorate as a nurse researcher was influenced by attending ABRCMS conferences.

“A few years ago, if someone had asked me my career plans, I would have said I did not know what they were,” she recalls. “I knew I wanted to be in the science field and began to take all those classes, but not until I started attending ABRCMS conference did I begin to explore a whole new world of research.”

“During these conferences, I was able to attend workshops, visit the exhibit hall where I met program directors, watched students like myself presenting their research experience, and, most importantly, networked with doctors, Ph.Ds, and undergraduate and graduate students, all of whom contribute to our society, which makes me realize that I too, can make a difference.”

In a letter responding to an article titled “Changing the Face of American Medicine,” in the December issue of Diverse Issues in Higher Education,
Thomas Landefeld, professor of biology and director, U*STAR and Bridges programs, discussed the treatment of minorities in academia. He cites the advantages available to minority students who may have to deal with challenging work environments later in their careers.

“Students who attend minority conferences such as ABRCMS do get their confidence bolstered,” he points out. “Also, although most of the students are minorities, there are a number of representatives from various institutions and agencies, who are not always minorities, that the students interact with.  By gaining confidence and maturity through these meetings, the students are better prepared to deal with the uncomfortable and sometimes hostile environments at the universities.”

Bridges scholar Monica Alvarez is also a nursing student at El Camino College. She values her ABRCMS experience for “the opportunity to meet other people [in research and medical fields] who are minorities, which helps build students’ self-esteem.”

Alvarez is currently working in an oncology lab that focuses on breast and colon cancer.

“The keynote speakers really got my attention,” she notes. “I learned how they moved through school and how some of them even won the Nobel Prize. This made me want to work even harder.”

- Joanie Harmon

Photos above:

Graduate student Tiffanny Jones (Biology) delivers her presentation, “Disruption of the snoD Gene in Staphylococcus aureus Causes a Reduction in Susceptibility to Thrombin-Induced Platelet Microbicidal Protein-1 (tPMP-1) by Decreasing Cell Membrane (CM) Proton Motive Force (PMF).”

Senior Lissette Renteria (Biology), presents her poster titled, “Platelet Activating Factor (PAF) Stimulates Fetal Pulmonary Vein Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation.”