Scientific Program

Program and Abstract Book – Final (Download!)

Date: May 4, 2024 (Saturday)
Location: Engineering Building (ENG-027 & Atrium)
Parking: Lot 8 @ UMBC

8:30-9:00      Registration & Light Breakfast

9:00-9:05      Opening Remark: Dr. Aaron T. Smith (UMBC)

9:05-9:55      Session 1: Moderator – Dr. Molly Sutherland (University of Delaware)

  • 9:05-9:25 – Dr. Yanxin Liu (University of Maryland, College Park): Multidrug resistance-related calcium-binding protein Sorcin as a model system for investigating chaperone suppression of protein aggregation
  • 9:25-9:45 – Dr. Fernando Vonhoff (University of Maryland Baltimore County): The role of the Drosophila Amyloid Precursor Protein Like (APPL) in neurodevelopment and aging
  • 9:45-9:55 – Masha Kapitonova (University of Delaware – P.I. Dr. Sharon Rozovsky): Selenoprotien S: Deciphering the function in endoplasmic reticulum

9:55-10:05    Morning Break

10:05-11:05   Session 2: Moderator – Dr. Sam Giannakoulias (SentauriAI.com)

  • 10:05-10:25 – Dr. Jeffrey S. Mugridge (University of Delaware): Deciphering the structural and chemical mechanism for tRNA wobble base modification by a conserved radical SAM enzyme
  • 10:25-10:45 – Dr. Deepak Koirala (University of Maryland Baltimore County): Understanding RNA structure-based strategies of viral genome translation and replication
  • 10:45-10:55 – Juliet Obi (University of Maryland, School of Pharmacy – P.I. Dr. Daniel J. Deredge): A structural and dynamic basis for the interactions of the dengue nonstructural 5 protein with stem-loop A
  • 10:55-11:05 – Dr. Yuri Rafael de Oliveira Silva (Lehigh University – P.I. Dr. Oriana S. Fisher): Exploring the role of the ycn operon in copper acquisition by Bacillus subtilis

11:05-11:50     Morning Poster Session I (M1-M50)

11:50-12:50    Lunch

12:50-1:35      Afternoon Poster Session II (A1-A50)

1:35-2:35        Session 3: Moderator – Dr. Mikell Paige (George Mason University)

  • 1:35-1:55 – Dr. Euna Yoo (National Cancer Institute, Frederick): Chemoproteomic-enabled covalent ligand discovery
  • 1:55-2:15 – Dr. Xiongyi Huang (Johns Hopkins University): Expanding the reaction space of metalloenzymes
  • 2:15-2:25 – Amanda Vangieri (Saint Joseph’s University – P.I. Dr. John Tomsho): Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel leucyl-tRNA synthetase inhibitors with activity against common pathogenic bacteria
  • 2:25-2:35 – Mark Lee (University of Maryland Baltimore County – P.I. Dr. Aaron T. Smith): Structural insights of nucleotide promiscuity

2:35-2:45      Afternoon Break

2:45-3:45      Session 4: Moderator – Dr. Cynthia “Cindy” Dowd (George Washington University)

  • 2:45-3:05 – Dr. Amy M. Whitaker (Fox Chase Cancer Center): Interplay between oxidative damage repair in DNA G-quadruplexes and transcriptional regulation
  • 3:05-3:25 – Dr. Ozlem Dilek (George Mason University): Small molecule-click chemistry probes for fluorescence imaging in cellular systems
  • 3:25-3:45 – Dr. Kathryn Gunn (Stony Brook University): Cryo-electron tomography reveals lipoprotein lipase vesicular storage structure

3:45-3:55      Afternoon Break

3:55-4:00      Keynote Introduction: Dr. Songon “Song” An (UMBC)

4:00-5:00     Keynote Speaker: Dr. Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz (HHMI Janelia): “Imaging protein synthesis at micron and atomic scales”

5:00-5:15      Poster Awards, Final Remark, and Announcement of the 2025 FCBIS

5:15-6:00     Social Hour and Departure