Project Symphony Team of Thirteen Made Six Presentations at the ACS National Meeting in Philadelphia, PA on August 20‐25, 2016
Sunghee Lee, Ph.D. • September 14, 2016
The Project Symphony team presented six posters summarizing their research results, (1) Determining the thickness of droplet interface bilayers from capacitance measurements using a modified electrophysiological amplification technique, (2) Influence of intercalant on the lipid bilayer membrane: Water permeability studies, (3) Effects of cis and trans double bonds on lipid membrane properties, (4) Biomimetic membrane and ion effects: Water permeability and thermal property, (5) Micro-Raman for direct visualization of water transport in an individual aqueous droplet, and (6) Mitigating condensation by cholesterol with unsaturated lipids: Effect on permeability.
Job well-done, Project Symphony!
I’m so excited to congratulate and celebrate the amazing achievements of our undergraduate research group, the Project Symphony, at this year’s Iona Scholars Day! You all worked incredibly hard, and it really showed. The presentations covered a wide range of interesting and impactful projects that not only highlight your academic skills but also your passion for learning and discovery. Each project was a great example of your creativity and dedication. What stood out the most was how engaged and enthusiastic everyone was about their research. Your energy was contagious, and it was clear you’ve really connected with your topics and learned a lot along the way. A huge shoutout to each of you for your fantastic presentations. Your hard work and passion for research really set you apart, and I’m so proud of everything you’ve accomplished. I’m confident you’ll keep doing great things and making a real impact in your fields. Once again, congrats to everyone on a successful Iona Scholars Day!
In this Backstory, Dr. Lee and her students and recent graduates reflect on the development and experiences that shaped their journey through Project Symphony and the resulting skills they’ve learned. The symphony they’ve created together is a testament to the transformative power of collaborative undergraduate research – a melody of discovery that continues to evolve and inspire. You can read the full article here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004225001464
We are thrilled to announce the publication of our collaborative research in Langmuir, the journal of the American Chemical Society. Our paper, titled “Electrophysiological Characterization of Monoolein-Fatty Acid Bilayers,” represents a significant milestone in our ongoing investigation of electrical property of model cell membranes. As an open-access article, our research is now freely available to the scientific community and the public. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c03814 This publication is the culmination of a fruitful collaboration with the research team at University of Tokyo, Japan. The lead author, Caroline Scott (Class of 2025), performed the experiments along with Riley Porteus (Class of 2024, now in a PhD program at Virginia Tech), building on her invaluable experience gained during a summer research trip in Japan last year, made possible by National Science Foundation. Caroline's dedication and perseverance have finally come to fruition. We look forward to continuing our work and sharing more news in the future!
