Fourth Annual Science and Engineering Symposium

FOURTH ANNUAL SCIENCE and ENGINEERING SYMPOSIUM May 15, 2019 | Weeks Science Bldg.

Training students to think like scientists is the mission of Baylor Research.

We understand that science is not about content or a body of facts that explain the natural world, but instead is a process that we use to generate and confirm new knowledge. This principle of experiential learning guides Baylor Research and is most evident in our laboratory spaces.

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY RESEARCH LAB In our Molecular Biology Research Lab, students begin with instruction on model systems ranging in complexity from bacteria to mammalian cells.

The laboratory space provides students with an incredible wealth of resources, including a mammalian cell culture area complete with fluorescence microscopy and a multitude of molecular biology equipment and reagents widely used in professional spaces. Please stop by Weeks 205 for a tour of the laboratory and cell culture facility.

ENGINEERING RESEARCH LAB In the Engineering Research Lab, students become well-versed in various engineering-related topics such as electronics, mechanical systems, and modeling/computational studies. With precision electronics equipment (Weeks 104), students can further their understanding of embedded systems and how they can be used to control mechanical systems (mechatronics). In the Fabrication Lab space (Weeks 106), custom 3D designs/ prototypes can be realized with fabrication tools such as 3D printers, a CNC router, or a laser cutter. The lab also allows includes high performance computing systems for virtual reality/modeling capabilities.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION Dr. Elizabeth Forrester, Biomedical eforrester@baylorschool.org Dr. Mary Loveless, Engineering & Computing mloveless@baylorschool.org Dr. Dawn Richards, Environmental drichards@baylorschool.org Don’t forget to tag us! #GBResearch Follow us on Instagram: @baylorresearch

OUTSIDE IN WEEKS’ PARKING LOT F24 ELECTRIC RACE CAR Middle School Students, Mrs. Erin Woodrow, and Mr. Larry Roberts Sponsored by GreenSpaces, the Chattanooga Green Prix offers students the ability to build, test, and race their own electric race car. The eighth grade physical science class used this project 1) to change current views about engineering, presenting it as a fascinating, relevant and dynamic career choice for our students, 2) to demonstrate the importance of engineering, and associated STEM subjects, to solve the problems faced by today’s society, specifically in the area of sustainability, 3) to link education, industry, and community through engineering projects and 4) to promote social inclusion of all of our students, regardless of gender, ethnicity, or social standing, to the practical application of STEM subjects. Students worked in small groups to build a single seat electric powered car, often with many problem-solving challenges during the process. Students became knowledgeable in many diverse areas including electrical engineering and energy efficiency. The results of this project will be tested by participation in a local car race. The competency of the students involved in this project have been significant. They can now speak confidently on many areas of engineering and technology associated with the sustainability and energy use. We would like to continue this project next year, through making modifications to further increase the energy efficiency of the car.

WEEKS FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY A PROTOTYPE ELECTRIC WATER FILTER Zoe Hardnett

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Water is the most important resource in the planet. However, clean water is very hard to come by for many people. Most water contains dangerous bacteria and chemicals, which cause diseases. Different parts of the world use various methods for water filtration. A water filter was built using motor/spin technology in an electric salad spinner inspired by a D.I.Y project, along with coding using an Arduino Uno with an ATMega328 microprocessor. In this preliminary study, then the water should appear clear but not drinkable at this stage.

DESIGN OF AN ATTITUDE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR CUBE SATELLITES (CUBESATS) WITH A PID CONTROLLER Maggie Yi 1.2 CubeSat attitude control is crucial for satellite missions since precise location and accurate orientation are often required to accomplish space mission objectives. Maintaining optimal position and orientation in an extra-atmospheric environment is challenging for small satellites due to

WEEKS FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY mass and volume constraints and limited power availability for the system hardware. The goal of this research is to control the attitude of a CubeSat with a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller —a control loop feedback mechanism — on an ATMega328 microprocessor to actuate brushless DC motors. These motor were mounted with reaction wheels, which uses inertia to rotate the CubeSat. Work presented here demonstrates the use of a PID controller in a one-dimensional test environment, with future efforts to expand to three-dimensional control capabilities.

REACTION WHEEL DESIGN AND FABRICATION FOR CUBE SATELLITE ATTITUDE CONTROL Ryker Von Klar 1.3 Space based research is a necessity for expanding human reach to past the limits of Earth's atmosphere. Within this research, particular variables must be controlled in certain experiments, and spin can have a large effect on some tests. The intent of this project was to develop a reaction-wheel based system capable of quickly controlling the tumbling of cube satellites (CubeSats), specifically a one unit CubeSat with an unspecified payload. Reaction wheels were designed and tested in silico using Fusion360 (AutoDesk). Simulations included stress and displacement given specific load and rotations per minute. The most important variables of the system were the inertia (maximized to store the most energy), the radius (maximized to produce the greatest inertia), and the mass (minimized to fit mass constraints of a flight-ready CubeSat. Reaction wheel prototypes were fabricated using the Form2 3D resin printer (Formlabs) and the Shapeoko 3 (Carbide) CNC milling machine for aluminum cutting. To test design specifications regarding size and volume of the three reaction wheel system, a CubeSat chassis and 3-motor support structure was also designed and 3D printed using the Form2 3D resin printer.

DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF A CUBE SATELLITE TESTING GIMBAL Dylan Wagner 1.4 Cube Satellites are miniature satellites with an edge length of 10cm and a mass of approximately 1 to 1.33 kg that have been used for low earth orbit and interplanetary missions. In order to test the attitude control of a Cube Satellite, simulating a friction-free, space environment, we designed and manufactured an apparatus with three degrees of freedom. A gyroscope is the basis for design because of its properties of free motion and its ability to maintain orientation and angular velocity. Digital prototypes of the gimbal were created using Fusion 360 (AutoDesk) CAD software.

Preliminary fabrication for a passive design, a design in which no active spin is imparted in any direction, was created using the Helix 40W lasercutter (Epilog) and the Ultimaker 2 Extended (Ultimaker) 3D printer.

WEEKS FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY MALARIA INFECTED MOSQUITO SAMPLING SYSTEM (MIMSS) Jianheng Chen

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In order to better identify rural areas inundated by malaria-infected mosquitoes, previous work included the development of a drone-based water sampling device to collect mosquito larvae for testing. Current work builds on this technology in order to capture full-grown mosquitoes, which require fewer samples than larvae to determine malaria presence.

During function, MIMSS releases a mixture of CO2 and mosquito-attractant odor to draw female Anopheles mosquitoes into the trapping container. By introducing weak LED light at the bottom of the container and having a light sensor to monitor the brightness from the top, the MIMSS will be able to measure the amount of trapped mosquitoes and determine the correct time to close the container. The MIMSS has been designed to mount to a UAV(Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) platform, which allows it to reach rural locations including inaccessible areas by foot.

CHARACTERIZATION OF XBEE S2C DEVICES IN A DIGIMESH TOPOLOGY Ben Sparkman and Connor Duffy 1.6 Digi XBee S2Cs are wireless communications modules that can be programmed to operate various wireless topologies. Applications may requires certain hierarchical topologies while others need more robust, redundant topologies. The work here explores the implementation of a mesh topology, using the DigiMesh network protocol, a Digi proprietary protocol in which there is essentially no node hierarchy. This protocol is based on the IEEE 802.15.4 standard for wireless communications. The effects of various obstructions on data transmission must be quantified in order to build a reliable network and understand the challenges that mobile wireless nodes may face in a given indoor or outdoor environments.

To characterize performance, the received signal strength indication (RSSI) values were analyzed to show the range of RSSI values at which data can be reliably transmitted. The amount of data transmitted over time (in kilobits per second) shows the speed of the network in various environments. Range and throughput tests recorded RSSI and amount of data transmitted. Experiments were designed for both in line-of-sight (LOS) environments, involving no obstacles between nodes, and nonline-of-sight (NLOS) environments, which may have obstacles interfering with communication. Data were acquired in triplicate using different wireless modules.

WEEKS 100 CLASSROOM AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VIDEO GAME ARCADE Upper School Students and Dr. Vince Betro In the AP Computer Science Principles course, on top of a two-hour, traditional AP exam, students must complete two performance tasks and submit them digitally to the College Board. The CREATE performance task has students develop a program that solves a problem that they are interested in or one that can be used as an educational game. They iteratively design, implement, and test their program, and they provide written responses about the program’s development and functionality, including how they used abstraction. They collaborate with others in the class on this task. The EXPLORE performance task has students choose a computational innovation and discuss its impacts on society, how it utilizes data, and how it handles security and privacy of data. They have to create a digital poster or video to complement their written responses, and this must be done independently.

WEEKS 101 CLASSROOM DAPHNIA MAGNA AS AN INDICATOR OF WATER QUALITY: 7TH GRADE LIFE SCIENCE STUDENT EXPERIMENTS Middle School Students and Mr. Trey Joyner Daphnia magna are used in bioassays because they are sensitive to changes in water chemistry and because they are a primary food source for other organisms in most freshwater ecosystems. When their numbers are high, the fish populations will also be more plentiful. As a part of our ongoing study of Baylor Lake water quality, seventh grade students designed and implemented experiments using Daphnia magna as an indicator species. Students chose various conditions and designed ecologically relevant toxicity experiments. Students will present their analysis of mortality and reproductive data and share their conclusions about Baylor Lake water quality.

WEEKS 102 CLASSROOM ROLLERCOASTERS IN PHYSICAL SCIENCE Middle School Students and Mr. Talon Stroud Energy is a topic studied in the eighth grade science curriculum. This year, we looked at rollercoasters to illustrate the transfer of energy from potential to kinetic and back again in the course of a single roller coaster ride.

We took the theoretical principles of conservation of energy and sought to test them in a real life scenario. Given a number of real life expectations for a roller coaster: a loop, a hill, a drop, not flying off the track, and finishing safely at the bottom, we sought to design and build a real life version using insulation tubing for track and a marble for the car. After learning about conservation of energy as well as that energy can be lost due to friction, we designed and built versions of the rollercoaster that examined specific aspects such as hills and loops before building a final version that combined them all. The most successful rollercoasters were constructed of sturdy materials relative to the mass of the marble, simple designs, and a proper balance of speed and stability.

SUMO BOTS Middle School Students, Mr. Talon Stroud, and Mrs. Erin Woodrow The eighth grade physical science students use LEGO’s mindstorm EV3 robots to learn and develop programming, engineering, and problem solving skills. This not only prepares students for the rigors of high school and college science, but also creates an environment for teamwork and group based learning. Students work in groups to build and program EV3 robots that can move, use sensors to seek out other bots and the arena edge, and actively engage other bots to push them out of the arena all performed autonomously. The students used online learning modules to develop programming and engineering skills before given the freedom to build and program independently in order to create the best Sumobot.

Students then battled each other in a double elimination tournament to determine who had created the most effective robot. In the end, the most successful robots had low centers of gravity and simple programs.

MIDDLE SCHOOL ROBOTICS: FIRST LEGO LEAGUE (FLL): INTO ORBIT Jackson Babb, Redding Batt, Jack Champion, Alisha Chandra, Aidan Clementson, Corbin Kelley, Aiden Saadeh, and Nolan Witt This year, the FLL competition challenged the team “to think like scientists and engineers” in order to solve problems during the theme of Into Orbit. First, the team had to strategize, design and implement a robot that could complete as many robot challenges within a 2.5 minute time period. Each challenge involved space – what are some problems (and solutions) that may arise during long-term space travel? After consulting professionals in the field, the team also identified a problem within the Into Orbit theme and created/presented a solution involving virtual reality to address the mental health of astronauts. (www.firstlegoleague.org).

WEEKS 103 CLASSROOM RUBE GOLDBERG MACHINES Upper School Physics Students and Mr. Jeff Edwards In honor of Rube Goldberg, a Pultizer Prize winning cartoonist best known for his zany invention cartoons, Honors Physics students were challenged to design, build, and operate an “over-engineering” machine to accomplish a very simple task. In this case, the task was to pour a cup of water into an automatic drip coffee maker, put a scoop of coffee into the filter, turn on the coffee maker, and turn on a light. Working with design constraints to include simple machines and mechanical steps, winning student groups will demonstrate their designs.

STUDENT’S LEARN PRODUCT DESIGN IN DIGITAL DESIGN 2 Upper School Art Students and Mr. Heath Montgomery Students are surrounded by design, but many have no idea about the process a product goes through to become a thing. This year the students reformatted a set of ten dollar Amazon speakers. Each student choose a new vessel to house their speakers and designed parts to adapt the working parts into the new format and also designed the packaging and graphics for their new product. Students use set of design software to create bespoke parts to adapt their speaker parts, design the box for the item to be shipped in and the graphics for the outside of the box. The full stack investigation gave students a wide view of the design process.

They learned how to use many different software and were able to think about each step in this ubiquitous process.

WEEKS 104 CLASSROOM UPPER SCHOOL ROBOTICS: FIRST TECH CHALLENGE: ROVER RUCKUS Kayode Akinlaja, Catherine Bryant, Sophie Covert, Chole Crooks, Jade Liu, Dake Peng, Dan Pham, Karina Quinn, Samuel Townsend, Rhiannon Von Klar, Job White, Leo Xu, and Kenny Zheng This year, Baylor Robotics Ohm Raiders competed in FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC): Rover Ruckus. Members of the team had to prototype, build and program a robot to do a series of tasks to earn points within a 12 ft by 12 ft arena. Separated into autonomous, operator-controlled, and end game periods, the challenge themed around the robot exploration of simulated planet. To strategize and optimize the design of the robot, the team prototyped a myriad of grabbers and lifting mechanisms. During autonomous mode, the robot is tasked to land at the Playing Field, deposit the team marker in the Depot, and park at the crater. It can also collect desired particles from the crater with drivers' control during operator-controlled period and reattached to the central lander during end game. The presentation will includes the demonstration of the robot "BojBoj" mem-

WEEKS 104 CLASSROOM bers' 3D designs, the incorporation of Vuforia, IMU, motor encoders and machine learning, and team members' impacts on the community.

A VIRTUAL REALITY APPROACH TO PEDIATRIC CONFLICT DE-ESCALATION AND ANGER MANAGEMENT Jade Liu In recent years, anger management has received considerable attention in the school setting. Youth suffering from elevated anger often relates to health problems, typically cardiovascular diseases; physical aggression, negative verbal responses, and drug use have also been reported as a negative consequence of unmanaged anger. While many forms of treatment currently exist, they often require a counselor’s assistance in providing suitable de-escalation methods. For public schools, most states have difficulties allocating funding to establish a large enough school counseling program; therefore, anger management services are not commonly accessible in schools. Virtual Reality (VR) creates an immersive experience through computer-generated environments. First popularized as a game enhancement, VR has contributed to academia by recreating a desired atmosphere, notably within psychological research. This study investigates the potential of a virtual reality de-escalation mechanism to increase its accessibility and affordability in a school setting. The program aims to achieve an immediate de-escalation for the youth through a calm room with minimal adult assistance and prepare them to re-enter the real world by creating a solution to a common anger trigger which can hopefully eventually reduce their dependence on the technology.

VIRTUAL REALITY BASED ENVIRONMENT FOR IMMERSIVE, HANDS-ON LEARNING Atherton Mook Within the virtual reality (VR) world, the process of creating a usable model is relatively intuitive and easy. The goal of this work was to create a learning tool for teachers to use in their classrooms that allows the students to take apart and put back together different models of the teacher’s choice. This virtual model construction/deconstruction could be an affordable, more feasible alternative when hands-on learning is not possible. The product could save schools money and allow the students to explore a much more diverse range of material.

DEMONSTRATION OF FABRICATION TECHNOLOGY Reese Dixon In order realize prototypes created in computer aided design (CAD) software, there are a number of fabrication tools that can be used. The appropriate tool depends on the material needed and application. Please stop by the Engineering Research Lab for demonstration and discussion of tools commonly used such at 3D printers, CNC milling machine, and laser cutting technology.

WEEKS SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY REGULATION OF SUL1 GENE EXPRESSION IN SULFAMETHOXAZOLE-RESISTANT E.COLI WITH PHAGEMID DELIVERED SIRNA SILENCING CONSTRUCT Zoe Xie and Mary Ma

2.1

Antibiotic resistance is a global health emergency. Sulfonamides, including sulfamethoxazole(SMX), are the first class antimicrobial agents for treatments of many bacterial infections. SMX interferes with the activity of dihydropteroate synthetase (DHPS), an enzyme encoded by the sul1 gene, to inhibit folic acid synthesis. We aim to interfere with sul1 gene expression by engineering a bacteriophage which can express and deliver siRNA to target sul1 sequence. Our method derives from the mechanism of RNA interference (RNAi) —the most common RNA-mediate knockdown technology which mediates sequence recognition and cleavage of target mRNA — but it is modified to accommodate gene knockdowns in bacteria. We aim to alter an existing sRNA cassette with target-binding sequence antisense to sul1 mRNA target and vectorize it in the phagemid.

The phagemid is packaged into M13 bacteriophage and allowed to infect a population of pre-modeled E.coli cells expressing a sul1-GFP (Green Fluorescent Protein) fusion protein, allowing us to track the gene expression and quantify the effectiveness of silencing sul1 gene expression.

CONSTRUCTION AND VALIDATION OF A SUL1-GFP FUSION PROTEIN IN E.COLI USING LIGATION-INDEPENDENT CLONING Liz Li 2.2 Antibiotic resistance threatens the effective treatment of bacterial infections. The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified antibiotic resistance as a severe threat to global health. In the age of multi-drug resistant bacteria, phage therapy, utilizing viruses to treat bacterial infections, is an attractive alternative to antibiotics. Baylor iGEM aims to engineer bacteriophages to deliver targeted antisense sRNAs to silence the sul1 antibiotic resistance gene of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in E.coli. Here we describe the process of creating a sul1-Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) fusion protein using Ligation Independent Cloning (LIC). This unique method relies on the 3'---> 5' exonuclease activity of T4 DNA Polymerase to create longer sequence-specific overhangs in the GFP expression vector. Amplification of sul1 from Klebsiella pneumoniae followed by LIC results in overexpression of sul1 coupled with an N-terminal enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) tag, thereby producing a sul1-GFP fusion protein. The construct is confirmed using restriction enzyme digests and DNA sequencing and expressed in Escherichia coli. This synthetic bacteria serves as a model for testing the effectiveness of bacteriophages engineered to deliver antisense sRNA constructs that knockdown the expression of sul1 mRNA, thereby increasing bacterial sensitivity to SMX.

WEEKS SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY QUANTIFYING FLUORESCENCE IN E. COLI USING MICROSCOPY Olivia Bettis

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The ability to measure gene expression within a single cell is necessary within the field of synthetic biology. Fluorescence imaging has been frequently used to visualize qualitatively gene expression. Quantifying fluorescence using microscopy remains difficult and expensive. Based on previous work presented in Cortesi, et al., the goal of this work is adapt a post-processing protocols to the Leica DM IL LED microscope. Images at various exposure times were collect and fit to a polynomial equation to characterize the camera response function (CRF), which describes nonlinear distortions the camera and optics contribute to the image. These background nonlinearities as well as spurious image noise were removed from two sets of images: a serial dilution of fluorescent glass beads used as a positive control as well as E. coli treated with various concentrations of an GFP induction agent, arabinose. Images were processed using Matlab (Mathworks), and statistics of the fluorescence were reported.

HAZARDOUS EFFECTS AND RETENTION OF MICROPLASTICS IN DAPHNIA MAGNA Enoch Sun 2.4 The ubiquity of microplastics in aquatic systems and the potential detrimental effects to organisms are major environmental issues. These plastic particles (≤5mm in diameter) are known to transfer through trophic levels and pose unknown hazards to organisms. Recently, nine different types of microplastics were observed in human stool, raising concerns about human health effects. Since the pathway to humans includes ingestion of aquatic organisms, recent studies focus on model aquatic organisms that occupy low trophic levels. The cladoceran Daphnia magna (D.magna) is a suitable model organism due to their low trophic position, transparency, sensitivity, and rapid rates of reproduction. In this study, we performed two 14-day experiments exposing D.magna to three different treatments of 15 ¾m fluorescent polystyrene beads and their algal food source. We observed polystyrene retention time, effects on mortality, and changes in reproductive rates. Microscopic investigation indicated a relatively low retention of polystyrene in all treatments. No significant difference in mortality rate was observed in D.magna exposed to algae alone versus a low concentration of polystyrene. However, significantly higher mortality rates were observed in D.magna exposed to the high concentration of polystyrene. This work suggests that while bioaccumulation potential may be low, there may be significant effects on the survival and reproduction of D. magna in aquatic ecosystems.

WEEKS SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY THE PREVALENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF CHYTRID FUNGI AND ANTIFUNGAL BACTERIA IN SOUTHEASTERN SALAMANDERS Madison Cope

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Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) and Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) are major fungal pathogens of amphibians which cause chytrid disease in salamander populations worldwide. The presence of Bsal is endemic to Asia, widespread in Europe, and is slowly spreading to the United States. More widespread, Bd is endemic to North America but is observed in every amphibian population across the globe. Both fungi cause skin lesions that are often lethal for salamanders. Although Bsal is not yet widely distributed in the U.S., it has had an even more severe effect on infected populations than Bd. Recent studies have found that some salamanders harbor anti-fungal bacteria in their skin mucosome that may inhibit Bsal proliferation. Here, we have developed protocols to screen for the presence of chytrid fungi and associated antifungal bacteria. Collection kits including optimized sampling protocols and necessary materials have been provided to community partners for use during the summer sampling season. DNA extracted from these samples will be screened for Bsal, Bd, and antifungal bacteria using PCR and quantitative PCR. Few studies have screened wild salamander populations for Bsal or Bd in this region. Combining the detection of fungal pathogens and associated antifungal bacteria will provide valuable information to conservationists working to assess the status of these imperiled organisms.

BELINOSTAT TREATMENT OF MDA-MB-231 CELLS DECREASES EXPRESSION OF BMI-1 Lauren Hill 2.6 Breast cancer is now the most common type of cancer in women and is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death. New agents are needed to improve the effectiveness of current treatments and to decrease the emergence of resistance to chemotherapy drugs. Epigenetic modifications change DNA accessibility and chromatin structure, thereby controlling gene expression. Histone deacetylases (HDACs), a class of epigenetic modulators, are known to play a crucial role in cancer initiation and progression by altering the expression of genes regulating cell division. Here, we study the effects of Belinostat, an HDAC pan-inhibitor, on both HER2-positive (HER2+) and triple-negative breast cancer cell lines.

The mechanism by which Belinostat decreases cell viability is currently unknown. Utilizing ZR7530 (HER2+) and MDA-MB-231 (triple negative) cell lines, we have performed cell viability and gene expression assays using various concentrations of Belinostat. Treatment of MDA-MB-231 with Belinostat results in a 2-fold decrease in the expression of BMI-1, an oncogene known to be associated with advanced stages of cancer, compared to untreated cells. This data suggests that Belinostat may mediate cell proliferation via the BMI1/p16/Cyclin D1 pathway.

WEEKS SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY CROSS-TALK BETWEEN HER2 AND TGF-β SIGNALING PATHWAYS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRASTUZUMAB RESISTANCE Sarah Rutledge 2.7 Overexpression of HER2 is present in about 20-30% of breast cancer tumors. HER2 sends growth signals from the cell membrane to the nucleus and contributes to the accelerated proliferation of breast cancer cells.

Trastuzumab/Herceptin is an antibody that binds to the HER2 receptor and prevents downstream signaling and is standard care for patients with HER2 positive breast cancers. However, about 60 percent of patients develop resistance to the drug. The molecular basis for this resistance is still mostly unknown. The TGF-β signaling pathway has been hypothesized to play a role in the resistance to trastuzumab, particularly downstream where crosstalk between the HER2 and TGF-β signal transduction pathways is present. Utilizing cell lines that overexpress HER2 (MMTV-neu) in conjunction with a downregulated type II TGF-β receptor (MMTV-neu/ DNIIR), we aim to elucidate the mechanism of interactions between HER2 and TGF-β signaling pathways in the development of trastuzumab resistance. Currently, we are determining the sensitivity of cell lines to TGF-β and an anti-human/rat HER2 antibody (7.16.4) and analyzing the expression of proteins in response to these treatments. In addition to identifying new targets for therapeutic intervention, understanding the mechanism of resistance is critical for the educational development of strategies to prevent or overcome resistance.

TREATMENT OF MDA-MB-231 AND ZR-75-30 BREAST CANCER CELL LINES WITH VORINOSTAT DECREASES CELL VIABILITY Izzy Boyd 2.8 Breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women.

HER2 is an epidermal growth factor protein that when overexpressed, can force breast cells to grow and divide unregulated, causing cancer. Histone modifications play a role in regulating gene expression by making regions of DNA active or inactive. Histone deacetylases (HDACs) play a crucial role in this process through the removal of acetyl groups on histone proteins. HDACs are often dysregulated in numerous disorders, including cancer, thereby influencing transcription of tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes. Studies have identified histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACis) as potential therapeutic agents. However, the exact mechanism of their action is currently unknown. Because some HDAC inhibitors are FDA approved for the treatment of epilepsy and some cancers, they are of great interest as new agents are needed to improve current therapies and decrease the resistance of chemotherapy in triple-negative breast cancers. Here, we examine the effects of an HDAC pan-inhibitor, Vorinostat (SAHA ), on HER2+ and HER2- breast cancer cell lines. Utilizing these cells lines, we analyze cell viability and expression of genes related to cell proliferation in response to treatment with various concentrations

WEEKS SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY of SAHA. In MDA-MB-231 cells, SAHA decreased viability and reduced expression of a known oncogene, BMI-1, by almost two-fold. Our results support the use of SAHA as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of HER2+ and HER2- breast cancer cells.

EFFICACY OF THREE NOVEL COMPOUNDS ON CELL VIABILITY Sydney Anne Sutherland 2.9 Triple-negative breast cancer is a form of breast cancer which accounts for 10-20% of breast cancer diagnoses in which the receptors for progesterone, estrogen, and epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2), are not present. Due to their absence, drugs that target these receptors, such as Tamoxifen, Megace and Herceptin, are ineffective. Chemotherapy may be an effective treatment, especially in early stages, but its side effects are often painful and demoralizing. These studies focus on analyzing the efficacy of three novel compounds, CES-X-29D, CES-I-61, and ACB-111163, on the proliferation and viability of various triple-negative metastatic breast cancer cell lines. Two lines, MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468, are human in origin, while the other line, MMTV-PyVMT, is murine. Results from various experiments indicate ACB-111-163 and CES-I-61 decrease cell viability. In the future, we aim to determine the effect of these compounds on the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which is an early indicator of invasion and metastasis.

EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE STOCK MARKET Jacky Song

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Stock market has been an significant part of many peoples daily life nowadays. However, it is hard to predict the stock market; however, fortunately, there is something related to the stock market, which is people’s opinions. People express their opinions every day in kinds of social media such as Twitter and Weibo. A large amount of opinions are about the stock market. These opinions seems really related to the change of stock market because these people may take actions in the stock market latter.

In my research, I try to use the Weibo data to predict the variation of the Shenzhen Component Index. Data containing people opinions about Apple was collected and then analyzed using sentimental analysis methods.

After that, the sentiment score is compared with Shenzhen Component Index. Then, I used machine learning method to find a correlation between those two factors and established a model to predict the future variance of the Shenzhen Component Index. The result certifies the correlation. And a strategy using the result of the model was evaluated. The strategy shows a really good outcome. This research partly demonstrates the trend that the stock market will be dominated by artificial intelligence in the future.

WEEKS 202 CLASSROOM FEASIBILITY STUDY OF CONCUSSION REHABILITATION USING VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) Katy Waddell Concussion, the most common mild-traumatic brain injury, is a difficult injury to conduct specific rehabilitation due to its varied list of symptoms that encompass the body’s neurological communications, vestibular system, and oculo-motor system. The varying symptoms present in an injury is expressed differently for each affected individual, making the development of an adaptable concussion rehabilitation program including exercises, crucial for improving current concussion treatment. A prototype of exercises for improving gaze stabilization and balance were designed for the virtual reality setting has been proposed; the environment created in virtual reality (Unity) allows for control over environment parameters.

To complement the VR exercise, “real world” exercises were also developed. Both pre- and post- surveys were acquired from controls that experienced both VR and “real world” exercises. While more data needs to be collected, surveys were designed to differentiate concussion symptoms and cybersickness symptoms, symptoms felt by users immersed in a virtual environment. While these symptoms can overlap, the goal of this research is establish whether the proposed exercises induce cybersickness to a degree that could confound concussion rehabilitation.

CONCUSSION EXERCISES IN VIRTUAL REALITY Will Tippett and Matthew O’Brien Concussions are, unfortunately, very common and can be difficult to assess and target rehabilitation due to various manifestations of symptoms.

While common concussion rehabilitation includes reduced screen time, decreased focus, and avoidance of high stimulation, new research suggests that early exercises focused on impacted neurological pathways affected. Virtual Reality (VR) allows for a highly controlled immersive experience. By creating concussion rehabilitation exercises in a virtual space, object motion, auditory/visual stimulation, and difficulty of performance can be modulated to progress rehabilitation. The work presented here includes the design and implementation of rehabilitation exercises in VR (Unity). Stationary Gaze Stabilization and Moving Gaze Stabilization exercises were developed and tested. Balance exercises were created using a tightrope and buoyed dock simulation in a virtual environment. C# script application was used throughout the project to help respawn targets, respond to target “hits”, and apply appropriate boat physics models. Research in movement rate, color and level of presence were included to minimize cybersickness symptoms.

WEEKS 203 CLASSROOM LIFE IS CELLULAR – YOUR CELLS AND MICROSCOPES Upper School Biology and Mr. Grant Wood Our 9th grade biologists have been applying the steps of the Scientific Method to ask questions, develop hypotheses, design controlled experiments, make empirical observations, analyze data, and draw conclusions while examining the structures and functions of cells. Come join them as they lead you on a fascinating hands-on, inquiry-based tour of discovery. As a multicellular organism, you are composed of approximately 100,000,000,000,000 body cells organized into approximately 200 different types with different structures and functions. These 200 different types of cells are organized into tissues, which are organized into organs, which are organized into organs systems, which are organized into you.

Most people have never observed even 1 of their own body cells. Through this discovery process you will learn proper microscope techniques to observe your own cheek cells. Once you are in the proper focus, your biologist will lead you to answer your own questions about the intricate structures and functions of your cheek cells. Our cheek cells are just 1 example of the 200 different types of body cells that must work together to ensure our survival and ability to reproduce to ensure the survival of our species, Homo sapiens.

WEEKS 205 CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATION OF WESTERN BLOT ANALYSIS Grace Livaudais Western Blot Analysis is a common technique utilized in research labs to detect and analyze the expression of proteins. This multi-step technique involves transferring proteins, also known as blotting, separated by electrophoresis from a gel to a membrane for visualization. Please stop by our Molecular Research Lab for a demonstration of this invaluable technique and witness real-time acquisition of data for our research.

Thank you to our incredible judges for their time and support of Baylor Research.

Dr. Brooke Daniel Tennessee Oncology Dr. Rob Headrick Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Tennessee College of Medicine- Chattanooga Dr. Evelyn Mobley Associate Professor of Biology, Chattanooga State Community College Dr. Hong Qin Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Tennessee- Chattanooga

Baylor Research would like to thank the Weeks Family Their generosity makes this celebration of hard-earned accomplishments in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics possible.