Amin Akbari, PharmD
University of Mississippi
Title: 3D feature viewer for UniProt: integration of protein annotations with structure for target biology
Evans Boateng-Boakye, PharmD
The University of Rhode Island
Title: Cinnamaldehyde-derived deoxyguanosine adducts impede DNA replication and induce G-to-T mutations
Tom Brenna, PhD
The University of Texas at Austin
Title: A non-toxic approach for neuroblastoma remission maintenance. Ultra-high dose omega-3 block tumorigenesis in MYCN-driven NB models via suppression of tumorigenic lipid mediators
Joe Brett, BS
St. Jude Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Title: In vitro chromatin modulation by a synthetic genome regulator
Shailesh Budhathoki
Arkansas State University
Title: Thiazole compounds as potent antibacterial agents to overcome Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE)
Taylor Bugbee
St. Jude Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Title: Uncovering critical functional domains within the ZFTA-RELA fusion oncoprotein
Erin Carlson, PhD
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Title: Bacterial resistance: threats and therapeutics
Neil Chada, BS
Vanderbilt University
Title: A supramolecular coiled-coil adapter for site-specific assembly of hydrophobic and cleavable nanobody–STING agonist conjugates
Kasturee Chakraborty, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Glucose dependence and metabolic compensation in H3K27M diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma
Niel Chakraborty
Scripps Research
Title: Discovery, characterization, and mechanistic studies of a protein-mediated cellular reductive activation of an efficacious N-Acyl O-Aminophenol duocarmycin prodrug
Claylee Chism, PhD
University of Mississippi
Title: Ionic liquid-coated nanomaterials signal for pathogen removal with assistance from inflammatory response
Ongira Chowdhury, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: In vivo glutamate imaging in a preclinical model of acute neuroinflammation
Arkajit De
Van Andel Institute
Title: Structure-based and AI-guided discovery of natural product-derived UPP1 inhibitors targeting the epigenetic-metabolic axis in lung adenocarcinoma
Adam Durbin, MD, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Dysregulated AKT signaling reprograms osteosarcoma to drive selective reliance on EP300
Andrea Garcia, PhD
The University of Texas at El Paso
Title: Exon-skipping antisense oligonucleotides targeting SUMO1 and SUMO2 demonstrate chemosensitizing effects in NSCLC cells in tissue culture
Hina Gaur, MS
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Title: Characterization of the tumor microenvironment and inter-tumoral heterogeneity in Fusion-Negative rhabdomyosarcoma
Andrea Gropman, MD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: From brain chemistry to precision therapeutics: magnetic resonance spectroscopy as a pharmacodynamic biomarker in urea cycle disorders
Wenjun Huang, DPhil
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Wdr82, Foxp3, and TCR signaling cooperate to direct regulatory T cell control of microbiota-driven intestinal inflammation
Xiao Huang, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Programming immune cell fate through precision control of extracellular signal architecture
Job Huxford, BS
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Mechanisms of molecular exclusion of transcription factors from condensed chromatin
Mohammad Zahid Kamran, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: WSD0628, a brain-penetrant dual ATM/PI3Kα inhibitor, improves radiotherapy response in pediatric high-grade glioma
Koon Mook Kang, PhD
Northwestern University
Title: Targeting conformational flexibility of a reactive intermediate to enhance selectivity of a GABA aminotransferase inactivator
Mohammed Khalifa, PhD
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Title: Fluorine-retentive photocatalytic hydrocarboxylation: direct access to α,α-difluorocarboxylic acids as a new bioisosteric scaffold for drug discovery
Prakash Khanal, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: High-throughput heteroresistance detection using the Geometric Viability Assay
Shawn King, BS
Arkansas State University
Title: Bringing chemistry to medicine: Phiazole and Thiazole compounds and their potential anti-biofilm properties tested against the oral pathogen Streptococcus mutans
Ha Won Lee, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Small-molecule screening identifies mTOR as a key regulator of cell death under immune and metabolic stress
DongGeun Lee, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Toward reliable brain exposure assessment: an interlaboratory evaluation of PK and binding assays
Wei Li, PhD
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Title: AI-guided discovery of small-molecule p73 activators targeting p53-deficient cancer cells
Wenshe Liu, PhD
Texas A&M University
Title: A proximity-driven and regioselective peptide bicyclization (PReP-Bicyc) approach to generate phage displayed bicyclic libraries for drug discovery
Elizabeth Matlock-Buchanan
The University of Memphis
Title: Omega-3-acylated chitosan-mannitol microparticles for localized berberine delivery and antimicrobial wound applications
Juan Manuel Mejía-Arangure, MD, PhD
Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica
Title: Genetic ancestry and acute lymphoblastic leukemia subtype in Mexican children
Mohammad Ali Mohammad Nezhady, PhD
St Jude Children's Research Hospital
Title: Oncogenic neomorphic ATRX-in-frame fusion mutations mechanistically enforce a new immunotherapeutic vulnerability through altered epigenomic regulation
Ashraf Mohammed, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Programmable small-molecule recruitment of transcriptional and chromatin-remodeling machinery reactivates silenced genes in repeat-expansion disorders
Srujana Mohanty
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Development of SLO3 and CatSper inhibitors as non-hormonal male contraceptives
Uma Neelakantan
St. Jude Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Title: Generalized analysis of electrophilic small molecules
Seye Oladeji, BSc
Rice University
Title: Structural basis and rational engineering of a thermophilic Cas13a for robust nucleic acid detection
Han Wee Ong, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Discovery of ultrapotent pregnane X receptor (PXR) agonists for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treatment
Steven Philips, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Mapping synthetic genome regulators (SynGRs) across the human genome
Jude Quarshie, BSc, MPhil
Purdue University
Title: PROTACs for mouse models: Brd9 as a case study
Melissa Ramirez, PhD
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Title: Enantioselective bifunctional iminophosphorane catalysis for tandem sulfa-Michael addition/cyclization of enoates
Manjula Ramu, PhD
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Title: Structure-guided optimization of benzothiazole FabK inhibitors for narrow-spectrum antibacterial therapy
Tharindu Ranathunge, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Speed meets accuracy: high-throughput identity mapping of small-molecule libraries
Alaa Refaat, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: GSPT1 degradation potentiates the cytotoxicity of MDM2 inhibition in pediatric rhabdoid tumors
Homa Rezaei, PharmD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Targeting gene circuits: a chemical biology approach to transcriptional modulation
Elaine Ritter, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: The master transcription factor PHOX2B controls retinoic acid sensitivity in high-risk neuroblastoma
Jael Rodriguez
University of Michigan
Title: Development and implementation of a cell-permeable dual-site inhibitor of CREBBP/p300 KIX protein–protein interactions in AML
Alondra Sanchez
Northwestern University
Title: CRISPR screen identifies BAP1 as a deubiquitinase regulating SPIN4 stability
Evan Savage, MS
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Identifying and exploiting DNA damage repair defects in pediatric high-grade gliomas
Emily Sekera, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Development of mass spectrometry imaging and cell painting workflows for multimodal spatial analysis of drug-induced cellular responses
William Simke, PhD
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Title: RiPP biosynthesis of an unknown natural product by a heme oxygenase-like enzyme
Hannah Snoke, MS
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Development of pyrimido pyridazine analogs through increased whole cell target engagement of the dihydropteroate synthase pterin binding site in gram-negative bacteria
Yuichiro Takagi, PhD
Indiana University School of Medicine
Title: Molecular basis of how ASX-173 inhibits human asparagine synthetase to activate the integrated stress response
Rajendra Tangallapally, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Development of small molecule pantothenate kinase inhibitors and their synergy with histone acetylation targeting therapies
Gintvile Valinciute, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Targeted degradation of Aurora kinase A (AURKA) prolongs survival in medulloblastoma PDX models
Eirinaios Vrettos, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Direct-to-biology for bacterial ribosome binders
Jingheng Wang, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Selective chemical modulation of promiscuous drug metabolism systems
Allexie Williams, BS
UTHSC / St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Title: Influence of host-factors on antibiotic sensitivity
Charlie Wright, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Genotype-selective drug synergy in Neuroblastoma
Qiong Wu, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Identification of a potent GSPT1/2 degrader with therapeutic activity in rhabdomyosarcoma
Jin Yang, PhD
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Title: Biochemical basis of the regulation of the SCF(Met30) E3 ubiquitin ligase by sulfur metabolism and cadmium
Y. Jessie Zhang, PhD
The University of Texas at Austin
Title: Power of repetition: regulatory grammar of eukaryotic pol II
Changlei Zhu, PhD
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Title: Parp1 directly disassembles nucleosomes to regulate DNA repair
Zhe Zhuang, PhD
Stanford University
Title: Molecular glue discovery enabled by targeted degron display