WCU Student Selected for Research Project at Vanderbilt
Hattiesburg, Miss., April 9, 2013 - William Carey University senior chemistry major Tyree Ratcliff of Hattiesburg has been selected to participate in the 2013 Vanderbilt Summer Undergraduate Research in Chemical Biology program in Nashville, Tenn., May 27 - August 2. Ratcliff was one of the 10 chosen out of 500 applicants for the program. The ten-week, hands-on course is designed to introduce chemistry, biochemistry and biology students to the research processes and the interdisciplinary nature of contemporary research. The students will participate in a mini-symposium on drug discovery, attend seminars given by Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology faculty and participate in weekly discussions on various topics.
Ratcliff will work directly with Dr. Jens Meiler, associate professor of chemistry at Vanderbilt, on a current project involving structural and chemical biology. Dr. Meiler's laboratory develops computational methods to investigate proteins and their interactions with small molecule substrates, therapeutics, or probes.
"I am honored that I was selected for this distinguished program," Ratcliff said. "This will be the third summer research program I have participated in; I spent one summer working with the USDA and another at Kent State University in Ohio. I am grateful for the experience these research programs have given me, and look forward to working with Dr. Meiler this summer."