A pair of Project SEED students at Millikin University are designing nanoparticles to help the fight against cancer.
Millikin University's Chemistry Department in the College of Arts and Sciences is providing research opportunities this summer for economically disadvantaged local high school students. Through the American Chemical Society's (ACS) Project SEED summer research program, two high school chemistry students are participating in research activities alongside Millikin chemistry students and faculty in the Leighty-Tabor Science Center.
Students Connor Dickey from Decatur, Ill., and David Bruns from Rosamond, Ill., were selected for the program.
In its second year at Millikin, the Project SEED program was awarded $5,000 in fellowship funds. The Decatur-Springfield Local Section of the American Chemical Society provided $750 this year with the remaining $4,250 coming from the National ACS Project SEED Office. The students will receive a $2,500 stipend for their work.
"We hope that the students will become interested in the research," said Dr. Anne Rammelsberg, Millikin associate professor of chemistry. "We also hope they learn what it takes to get a college degree and develop skills that are necessary for science."
The students are trying to create hollow nanoparticles that, when embedded in the membrane of a faux cell, would shrink enough when heated to allow the dye inside to escape.
"The students are learning how to make nanoparticles and liposomes, and we're looking for a new way to detect whether or not our opening system is working," Dr. Rammelsberg said.
Millikin undergraduates that are working with the students include Cherese Hamp, a senior chemistry major from Chicago, Ill.; Justin Thrall, a senior chemistry major from Plainfield, Ill.; Mason Jett, a junior biology major from Hoopeston, Ill.; and Cece Cortez, a junior biology major from Alsip, Ill.
"Both students are very enthusiastic, it's great to teach them and show them something new," Mason Jett says. "It's a really good hands-on experience for them, myself and the other mentors because we're using science techniques on a daily basis."
Millikin University has been researching an alternative drug delivery system capable of destroying cancer without harming healthy tissue. Dr. Rammelsberg says the next step is to replace the dye inside the fake cell with the actual drug, an extremely toxic one called cantharadin, to see how well it's released once injected into a tumor.
"It's a different experience than what you get from a high school class because you have different resources and materials," Conner Dickey says. "I'm learning how to use different tools and I'm getting a real lab experience."
Dr. Rammelsberg noted, "The other goal is to help prepare them for presenting their work at science fair competitions. There are a fair amount of science research competitions for high schools where they can win scholarships and other rewards that might inspire them to stick with science and pursue college degrees."
On Aug. 5, an ACS Local Section meeting will be held where the students will present their work to families, teachers and interested chemistry professionals in the area.
To be eligible for the Project SEED program, students must meet specific academic and family income requirements, and demonstrate the potential to work in a chemical laboratory. Students entering their junior or senior year in high school and who have completed at least one high school chemistry course were eligible to apply.
Click here to read more about the Project SEED research in an article from the Herald & Review.