Congratulations to Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts (ASMSA) senior Carmella Lewis and her UAMS Biochemistry Department graduate student mentor, Ben May. Carmella won three prestigious awards for her research on the development of an assay to identify inhibitors of a protein that is a target for cancer therapy. Carmella earned first place in the Cellular and Molecular Biology division and second place overall in the West Central Regional Science and Engineering Fair, which was held at ASMSA on February 27^th-28^th, 2025. Carmella also qualified to compete in the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) at the West Central Regional Science Fair. ISEF is the world’s largest international STEM research competition for high school students in which nearly 2,000 finalists from more than 60 countries, regions and territories will compete in Columbus, Ohio from May 10^th-16^th, 2025. Carmella subsequently won second place in ISEF Finalist category at the 71^st annual Arkansas State Science and Engineering Fair, which was held at the University of Central Arkansas on April 4^th and 5^th.

Carmella conducted her award-winning research in the laboratory of Dr. Alicia Byrd in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at UAMS. This research and training opportunity was supported by grant number P20GM121293 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health and the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at UAMS.

Congratulations to 11^th grade Pulaski Academy high school students Akshara Chevireddy and Nyera Ali and their University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences mentor, Dr. Reine Protacio.  Nyera and Akshara recently won three prestigious awards for their research project on the efficiency of precise genome editing.  They earned third place in the Cellular and Molecular Biology division of the 43^rd annual Central Arkansas Regional Science and Engineering Fair, which was held at the University of Arkansas Little Rock on February 28^th, 2025.  They subsequently won first place in Microbiology at the 71^st annual Arkansas State Science and Engineering Fair, which was held at the University of Central Arkansas on April 4^th and 5^th.  They also won the Outstanding Project Award from the Society for In Vitro Biology.  In addition, Akshara and Nyera were among the seven students from Arkansas who were selected to compete in the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, the world’s largest international STEM research competition for high school students.  The week-long ISEF event, with nearly 2,000 finalists from more than 60 countries, regions and territories, will be held in Columbus, Ohio from May 10^th-16^th, 2025. Nyera and Akshara conducted their award-winning research in the laboratory of Dr. Wayne Wahls in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biologyat UAMS.  This research and training opportunity was supported in part by a research project grant (grant number GM145834) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health.

SRSF6 and SRSF1 coordinately enhance the inclusion of human MUSK exon 10 to generate a Wnt-sensitive MuSK isoform.
Nasrin F, Nagar P, Islam MR, Heeamoni SA, Hasan MM, Ohno K, Rahman MA.
NAR Mol Med. 2025

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DNA-PKcs governs LAT-dependent signaling in CD4 + and CD8 + T cells.
Rainwater RR, Azevedo-Pouly AC, Waldrip ZJ, Hicks BH, Callais NA, Koss B, Storey AJ, Burdine L, Burdine MS.
bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2025

Dr. Grover P. Miller, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, has been named Editor-in-Chief of Drug Metabolism Reviews, the journal of the International Society for the Study of Xenobiotics. The journal publishes reviews on a wide array of drug metabolism research including environmentally toxic chemicals, absorption, metabolism and secretion. The journal publication draws from leaders in academia, industry, and government research on the biological impacts of foreign, biologically active (xenobiotic) compounds to human health. Dr. Miller brings extensive expertise in the metabolic activation and clearance of small molecules, particularly in relation to pharmacological and toxicological effects.

Congratulations to Dr. Jessica Kelliher, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, on receiving a highly competitive fellowship award from the American Cancer Society (ACS). Dr. Kelliher will use the $217,500, three-year award for a research project aimed at exploiting DNA repair in cell therapy for solid tumors, in the lab of her mentor, Assistant Professor Dr. Brian Koss. Dr. Alan Tackett, Distinguished Professor and Executive Associate Dean for Research in the College of Medicine, is a co-mentor.

Congratulations to Dr. Alan Diekman, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Urology, on being selected to receive the 2025 Distinguished Service Award from the American Society of Andrology (ASA). Dr. Diekman is nationally recognized for his research into the molecular mechanisms of reproductive biology and has been active in the ASA for over two decades. He has served in numerous leadership roles and as ASA Treasurer coauthored the organization’s five-year strategic plan in 2021. He will be recognized in a March 30 ceremony at the annual conference of the ASA and the International Society of Andrology (ISA).

Autophosphorylation of the Tousled-like kinases TLK1 and TLK2 regulates recruitment to damaged chromatin via PCNA interaction.
West KL, Nguyen TTN, Tengler KA, Kreiling N, Raney KD, Ghosal G, Leung JW.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2024

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Regulation of autophagy by Rab27B in colorectal cancer.
Afroz S, Preet R, Vishwakarma V, Evans AE, Magstadt AN, Dixon DA.
Int J Biochem Cell Biol. 2024

Congratulations to Zijun Zhang who was awarded an Abstract Achievement Award for his poster at the American Society of Hematology annual meeting. Zijun is a graduate student in the laboratory of Fenghuang “Frank” Zhan, M.D., Ph.D.

Congratulations to Haven Griffin, Ph.D. on her successful defense of her dissertation entitled, “MC4R Synaptic Distribution and Modulation of Receptor Activity by Membrane Cholesterol Content.” Dr. Griffin was mentored by Giulia Baldini, M.D., Ph.D. and plans to stay as a postdoctoral researcher in the Baldini lab for a few months.

Targeted Forward Genetics: Saturating Mutational Analyses of Specific Target Loci Within the Genome.
Protacio RU, Wahls WP.
Methods Mol Biol.

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Beyond HRD status: Unraveling Genetic Variants Impacting PARP Inhibitor Sensitivity in Advanced Ovarian Cancer.
Kjeldsen MK, Jørgensen M, Grønseth DSB, Schønemann-Lund M, Nyvang GB, Haslund CA, Knudsen AO, Motavaf AK, Malander S, Anttila M, Lindahl G, Mäenpää J, Dimoula M, Werner TL, Iversen TZ, Hietanen S, Fokdal L, Dahlstrand H, Bjorge L, Birrer MJ, Mirza MR, Rossing M.
Cancer Res Commun.