2015 LMI Aerospace Awards for Excellence in Research
Most Meritorious Papers
Program Directors: Dr. Kenneth Mares, Dr. Charles Granger
Senior Program Advisor: Dr. Howard Granok
Student Advisors: Mr. Phil Berger, Dr. Barry Burnette, Dr. Bruce Hamper,
Dr. Heidi Hope, Dr. Michael Howard, Mr. Michael Hope, Dr. Elaine Krul,
Mr. Joseph Meisel, Dr. Robin Weinberg, Ms. Rhonda Woerndle
Sabrina Bingham Westminster Christian Academy. “Heating contaminated Scottish
bonnet peppers to kill Salmonella.” Dr. Blythe Janowiak, Saint Louis University.
Matthew Braddock Saint Louis Priory School. “The effectiveness of an educational
intervention on Missouri’s K-12 schools’ preparedness for biological events.” Dr. Terri
Rebmann, Saint Louis University.
Gabriel Brenner Marquette Catholic High School. “Nonstationary oscillations during
the anodic electrodissolution of nickel.” Dr. Istvan Kiss, Saint Louis University.
Ramya Chengalvala Eureka High School. “The effects of 3,4dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL) on the aggregation of alpha-synuclein.” Dr.
Michael Anch, Saint Louis University.
Jennifer Donovan Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. “Sensory
stimulations in the NICU.” Dr. Roberta Pineda, Washington University.
Gregory Farn Ladue Horton Watkins High School. “Dynamical differentiation of
chemical oscillations.” Dr. Istvan Kiss, Saint Louis University.
Madeleine Goedegebuure Clayton High School. “Effect of an ITK inhibitor and
Interleukin 2 (IL2) upon T cell Proliferation and Th17 Differentiation.” Dr. Barry Burnette,
Confluence Life Sciences.
Louisa Goldman Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. “The molecular
basis of the contagious itch.” Dr. Zhou-Feng Chen, Washington University.
Rebekah Greenspan Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. “Live-cell
imaging of phosphatidic acid and diacylglycerol distributions in plant cells visualized by
lipid biosensors.” Dr. Xuemin Wang, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and
University of Missouri-St. Louis
Benjamin Edward Hahn Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School.
“Analyzing photoelectron distribution patterns to determine the electronic structure of
the cyanide ion.” Dr. Richard Mabbs, Washington University.
Shu Han Marquette High School. “Analysis of diatomic molecules using intracavity
laser spectroscopy.” Dr. James O'Brien and Dr. Leah O'Brien, University of Missouri-St.
Louis, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.
Liam Harrison Chaminade College Preparatory School. “Chromatographic separation
of the enantiomers of α-hydroxyallylphosphonates on chiral stationary phases using
sequential UV, polarimetric and refractive index detection.” Dr. Bruce Hamper,
University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Nicole Howard Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. "Expression of
obesity genes in a myeloma mouse model." Dr. Michael Thomasson, Washington
University.
Shubhika Jain Mt. Vernon Township High School. “Polyamide synthesis for
completion of pharmacology characterization of preclinical drug candidates to prevent
cervical cancer.” Dr. James Bashkin, University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Pradeep Kandula Edwardsville High School. "Employing P-glycoprotein recognition
status as a criterion for predicting blood brain barrier permeability of heterocyclic
molecules.” Dr. Vijay Sharma, Washington University.
Haris Khan Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. “Effect of various ion
solutions on the tetramer stability of the KirBac 1.1 ion channel.” Dr. Decha
Enkvetchakul, Saint Louis University.
Anastasia Lalioti Anatolia College (Greece). “The influence of mitochondria on
mutation rates in Neurospora crassa.” Dr. Jack Kennell, Saint Louis University.
Katherine Minorini Whitfield School. “The extracellular effects of ascorbate on
peroxidative stress in L6 and C2C12 myoblasts.” Dr. Jonathan Fisher, Saint Louis
University.
Sai Pinni Parkway South High School. “Effect of Miglustat on bone mineral density of
in vivo hypophosphatasia mice model.” Dr. Adriana Montaño, Saint Louis University.
Xuechun Qian Clayton High School. “Effect of carboxylic acids on δ-MnO2 and
hexagonal birnessite.” Dr. Jeffrey Catalano, Washington University.
Pravin Sivabalan Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School. “Technoeconomic analysis of coal direct chemical looping combustion using ASPEN plus. ” Dr.
Ramesh Agarwal, Washington University.
Pratyush Sontha Francis Howell North High School. "Evidence for incomplete afferent
reinnervation after bilateral radiofrequency-induced renal nerve ablation in rats."
Dr. Mark Knuepfer, Saint Louis University.
Gayathri Srinivasan Pattonville High School. “Identification of older adults who will
survive till advanced age by Holter- based heart rate variability and clinical status
measures.” Dr. Phyllis Stein, Washington University.
Haley Stelzer-Monahan Ursuline Academy. "Content of Marijuana Edibles Videos on
YouTube." Dr. Patricia Cavazos-Rehg, Washington University.
Kyle Westendorf Lafayette High School. "Design and development of a threedimensionally printed CubeSat.” Dr. Michael Swartwout, Saint Louis University.
Melany Yeung Parkway West High School. “Assessing the status of thioflavin T as a
substrate of P-glycoprotein (ABCB1) using live cell fluorescence imaging.” Dr. Vijay
Sharma, Washington University.
Bianca Yu Ladue Horton Watkins High School. "Enhancing expression of cardiac
sodium ion channel Nav1.5." Dr. Matthew Silva, Washington University.