Voorhees biology students present scientific findings at a national conference
July 08, 2016
Two Voorhees College students, Denzel Bolden and Akeena Harper, recently attended the 64th Annual American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) national conference held in San Antonio, where they presented their research results on mass spectrometry and allied topics.
ASMS, which was founded in 1969, is a non-profit 501(c) (3) corporation. Membership includes over 8,500 scientists involved in research and development.
Members are from academic, industrial and governmental laboratories. Their interests include advancement of techniques and instrumentation in mass spectrometry, as well as fundamental research in chemistry, geology, forensics, biological sciences and physics. The annual ASMS conference is attended by more than 6,500 scientists and approximately 3,000 papers are presented utilizing posters and discussions.
Under the leadership of Dr. Jianye Zhang, assistant professor in chemistry and environmental science, Bolden, a senior, was able to develop and present his research results during the conference. His presentation was titled “Chromatographic Mass Spectrometric Detection of Arsenic Species in Sulfidic Waters – Method Development.” The research was co-authored by Harper, a sophomore.
“Through the NSF supported research project, I was able to explore more chemistry- related fields in mass spectrometry. I gained hands-on
experience about liquid chromatography which was very interesting,” said Bolden.
Bolden is a player for the Voorhees Tigers Men’s Basketball team and the Louisiana native aspires to be a physical therapist in his hometown of Houma.
Harper, a Detroit native, aspires to be a pediatrician and believes research, due to its medical nature, will be a necessary component in achieving her career goal.
“As I worked with Dr. Zhang on the NSF supported research project, I learned elaborate lab skills, advanced analytical technology and the negative short and long term effects of arsenic in the environment,” said Harper.
Zhang is the principal investigator of the HBCU-Undergraduate Program Research Initiation Award project. He hopes the project will provide more research training and learning opportunities for Voorhees students giving them more exposure to the environmental science program. The program was established in 2012.
For more information, contact Megan Freeman, director of communications, at 803-780-1191 or at mfreeman@voorhees.edu.