March 31, 2008
St. John’s University science students have earned distinctions
of excellence for research in their respective fields of science.
Vennesa Williams and Dwayne Punnette attribute their success to the
support from their faculty advisors, the strong St. John's science
ethos. These two international students also owe their success to
their own diligence and love for science.
Senior Vennesa Williams, a chemistry major, won the award for
best oral presentation at the national Annual Biomedical Research Conference
for Minority Students in November 2007. Williams is the
first St. John’s student to win for an oral presentation, which is
the highest honor at a national science conference.
Supporting Williams from the audience was Jay Zimmerman, Ph.D.,
Chair of Biological Sciences and Director of Initiative for
Minority Student Development (IMSD) and Wanda Rowe Johnson,
Assistant Director of IMSD. This is a St. John's scholarship
program founded to increase the enrollment of minority science
students in graduate schools. Williams credits IMSD with providing
her the direction and guidance to succeed.
Chemistry Goes “Green”
Williams’s award-winning research was based on the groundbreaking
work to which she contributed at Stanford University’s Summer
Undergraduate Research Fellowship program the previous summer.
Williams investigated the effectiveness of copper complexes on fuel
cells. Fuel cells, electrochemical devices that combine
hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity, as well as the
byproducts water and heat, are attracting growing interest as a
method to increase fuel efficiency and as a possible fossil fuel
replacement in cars, trucks, and buses.
Originally from Jamaica, Williams had never considered chemistry
as a major until she came to St. John’s and met her mentor,
Professor of Chemistry Elise Megehee, Ph.D. “Then my whole
perspective of chemistry changed.” She discovered that
“chemistry has a mystery to it” and now “adores” the subject.
Williams applied to several graduate programs in chemistry, and
has been accepted at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
and Northwestern University, two of the top 10 Ph.D. chemistry
programs in the country.
Dr. Megehee says that Williams works hard and is determined to
reach her goals, but she’s also a team player with a sense of
humor. “Vennesa has mentored several other students in my lab and
one of her goals is to be a model/mentor to other minority women in
science.”
Williams feels speechless when thinking about her past four
years. “St. John’s is a wonderful place for someone to grow and
mature, to find their place, because you don’t feel like an outcast
coming from a different country.” Excited about graduate school and
her future, Williams wants to use her knowledge to “improve all
life around her.”
Research Focuses on Enzyme
Dwayne Punnette won first place for research he presented at the Metropolitan Association of College and
University Biologists that was held at St. John’s University.
As a senior, he felt confident and prepared while presenting.
Punnette belongs to a science organization in St. John’s called
Data Club, where students meet once a week and present their
research to each other, so he was comfortable speaking and
presenting in a conference atmosphere.
Working under mentor Dipak Haldar, Ph.D., Professor of
Biological Sciences, Punnette conducted research focusing on the
nutritional regulation of the production of glycerol-3-phosphate
acyltransferase (GPAT) levels in cells. GPAT is an enzyme that
catalyzes the production of fat in the body. The discovery of a way
to regulate GPAT, Punnette explains, is important because it plays
a significant role in obesity. With the increase of GPAT there is
an increase in fat production and, therefore, increased chances of
obesity and heart disease.
Punnette works in Dr. Haldar’s cell and molecular biology lab,
enthusiastically saying, “He’s an excellent guy, so involved and
happy to be at St. John’s. He’s always encouraging students to
apply for graduate school.”
Punnette has applied for Ph.D. programs in biological sciences
and in biomedical engineering. He is continually intrigued by
all that happens at the cellular level. “It’s incredible to see how
these cells have lives of their own; it’s a whole different world
down there.”
Dr. Haldar said it has been a pleasure working with Dwayne. “He
is academically solid and takes his research work seriously.”
Originally from Trinidad, Punnette says that his campus visit to
St. John’s convinced him to enroll.
“The campus felt involved, they were constructing the church and
building the residential village—it was a place where a lot of
progress was being made. I knew I would see results and it has come
to fruition. The residential village is great, the church is
beautiful, they’re building the townhouses. St. John’s is a place
where a lot good things are happening and as a senior I’m glad I
was a part of it.”