Poster Presentation at SFB Conference

Author: Konatsu Nagashima | Major: Biomedical Engineering | Semester: Spring 2023

The research I helped present is based on the problem affecting stem cell transplants. There is more demand for stem cells to be used to treat multitudes of different diseases. Stem cell transplants of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) require millions to be harvested for one dose. To mitigate this, interferon gamma (IFN) be used in addition to hMSCs to reduce the dosage and increase its therapeutic effect. The issue with using IFN is that it suppresses the proliferation of hMSCs. To increase proliferation, hMSCs are then cultured onto alternating layers of heparin and collagen. This project explored the pathway the bilayers affect to lower the negative side effects of IFN.

The conference that I attended was the Society for Biomaterials Conference that was in San Diego, California and I attended to present at a poster session. During the poster session, many people passed by and made comments that could potentially be the next steps to the research project as we are still unsure of how many pathways are potentially affected by the bilayers. Input from different perspectives is important and useful especially when you cannot quite figure out why the results are the way they are. Because our project focused more on why a certain result was produced, this was a bit of a different format than most other poster presentations, so we got a lot of positive feedback about that.

Being one of a few undergraduate students at the conference, it was a bit overwhelming and difficult to network and talk to professors or graduate students. However, I did attend a luncheon for students to be able to talk to and ask questions to a panel of scientists in the industry. because I have not thought too much about the specific concentration I would want to pursue in industry after going to graduate school, I mostly listened to the graduate students that were asking questions about how to get into the industry and what they needed to be competitive applicants. This talk inspired me to try to explore other aspects of biomaterial science and bioengineering as it is hard to switch concentrations when in graduate school and certainly once in the industry. Attending and watching presentations was a wonderful opportunity to see just how broad the topic of biomaterials is and helped me spark interest in some projects such as a nasal vaccine or the vast applications of hydrogels.

Although it can be scary to attend a conference, especially as an undergraduate student, it is an extremely rewarding and eye-opening experience. Being able to say that you went to a conference is very impressive and the networking you can do can very much help with plans for the future and is a wonderful opportunity to ask questions to the experts around you. Next, I would like to work on an independent research project and either explain my project at a talk or do a poster session independently. I want to explore other projects and topics that I am curious about and work independently enough that I can present without relying on any mentors.