{"id":55178,"date":"2023-11-08T08:41:53","date_gmt":"2023-11-08T13:41:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=55178"},"modified":"2023-11-17T13:39:30","modified_gmt":"2023-11-17T18:39:30","slug":"trip-to-north-carolina-conference-lands-award-for-sophomore-researcher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2023\/11\/trip-to-north-carolina-conference-lands-award-for-sophomore-researcher\/","title":{"rendered":"Trip to North Carolina conference lands award for sophomore researcher"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Zayda

Zayda Dominick began her UTC research career working with Assistant Professor Benjamin Stein as a freshman student in fall 2022. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

Zayda Dominick has some advice for first-year college students about getting involved in undergraduate research: Don\u2019t wait. Try it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess I never really thought of myself as the voice of research, nor did I ever think I\u2019d end up in this situation at all. My whole thing was to try everything,\u201d said Dominick, a sophomore biochemistry major at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. \u201cI had an inclination that I thought it would be cool, so I simply was like, \u2018Let\u2019s try it, and if it\u2019s not cool, move on to something else.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI tried it and realized how much I absolutely loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n

In late October, Dominick and 13 other UTC undergraduates, accompanied by faculty from the Department of Chemistry and Physics, had the opportunity to present the results of their research at the Southeastern Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society\u2014known as SERMACS\u2014in Durham, North Carolina.<\/p>\n

Dominick, who presented research she began during her freshman year titled \u201cUnderstanding how NtrZ affects NtrY in Caulobacter crescentus<\/em>,\u201d received an undergraduate poster award.<\/p>\n

\"Zayda

Zayda Dominick<\/p><\/div>\n

Her faculty mentor is UTC Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Benjamin Stein.<\/p>\n

\u201cZayda\u2019s great. She came in as a freshman excited for research knowing she wanted to venture into the scientific unknown. She has since really been dedicated and already has an experimental mindset,\u201d Stein said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe put a lot of work into making a really beautiful poster to present her data. It definitely paid off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dominick explained that bacteria was the focus of the research, as she studied how they respond to different environmental changes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are specific proteins involved in that,\u201d she said, \u201cso certain proteins will regulate responses. I just study the mechanisms of how those proteins work together to cause a response.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dominick, who said her plans include pursuing a Doctorate of Medicine and Philosophy (MD-PhD) dual doctoral degree for physician\u2013scientists, was asked what excited her about this type of research.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe central dogma of chemistry is structure equals function,\u201d she said, \u201cso I love studying how the structures of these proteins actually drive certain functions and mechanisms. It drives survival and how all these things can change and create a living organism, so I like that a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

During her early UTC career, Dominick\u2014a 2022 graduate of Hardin Valley Academy in Knoxville, Tennessee\u2014has been involved in mentoring as a Peer-Led Team Learning Leader and advising high school students as part of this summer\u2019s American Chemical Society Summer Experiences for the Economically Disadvantaged<\/strong><\/a> project.<\/p>\n

As she has already discovered, it\u2019s never too early to start research.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did not think that I wanted to do research as much as I ended up wanting to. I thought it would be cool to try, so I talked to a bunch of professors about it, got involved with Dr. Stein, and he was so nice to let me in his lab,\u201d she said. \u201cHe was so patient with me to be able to teach me everything that I needed to know freshman year when I had no experience whatsoever\u2014and I realized how much I absolutely loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It doesn\u2019t hurt when the research gets recognized.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s extremely exciting when you get good results on your projects,\u201d Stein said, \u201cbut when they come from a trainee, that excitement gets amplified because they\u2019re getting results and they\u2019re seeing the sort of high of when science works and you figure stuff out.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just great to see and they get encouraged. They want to keep going, and it\u2019s the kind of thing that keeps them in science.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other UTC student poster presenters at SERMACS included:<\/p>\n