Phoebe Brown wins INBRE Summer Research Competition

Based on the results of her summer research with Dr. Sundar Madihally, Phoebe Brown won the $2,500 Undergraduate Research Program competition.  Phoebe is a chemistry student from Oklahoma City Community College, one of 25 students from across the state who were selected to participate in summer biomedical research.

The Oklahoma INBRE (IDeA Network for Biomedical Research Excellence) grant provides research funding to fourteen higher education institutions through-out the state.  INBRE assists these institutions’ efforts in conducting biomedical research by supporting promising faculty and recruiting students into biomedical research careers.  The goal of the program is to expose undergraduate students to the world of biomedical research and encourage them to pursue careers in the fields of science and technology. 

In the 2005 Summer Program, twenty-five undergraduate students were selected, based on their applications, from eight undergraduate institutions across the state of Oklahoma, and were placed under the direction of a mentor conducting research in a shared area of interest.   Based on Phoebe Brown’s interest in Dentistry, she was placed under the mentorship of Dr. Madihally. 

Phoebe worked on a project entitled “Antibacterial Activity of Chitosan-based Matrices on Oral Pathogens” for eight weeks at OSU.  On July 29, 2005, at the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, the Summer Undergraduate Research Program participants gathered to present the outcomes from their research projects.  During the poster presentation, it was announced that Phoebe Brown had won the competition and was to be the recipient of a $2,500 award.