The goal of the S.M.A.R.T. (Students Modeling A Research Topic) Team program is to allow high school students to experience the real world of science that occurs in biomolecular research in academic laboratories. This relationship allows high school students to contribute to the deeper understanding of current, high level research projects.  Pingry’s SMART Team has worked with research scientists to design and construct physical models using rapid protoyping technology of proteins that are being studied in laboratories using crystallographic data.

Pingry’s SMART Team had the distinct honor of presenting during a poster session at the prestigious Experimental Biology International Conference held in Washington, D.C. this past spring. The team included students: Brooke Conti, Michael Fernando, Max Horlbeck, Danielle Lashley, Audrey Li, and Sarah Paton. Pingry faculty mentor Deirdre O’Mara worked in conjunction with Dr. Andrew Vershon, faculty member at Rutgers University’s Waksman Institute of Microbiology, to assist the students in the study of Human SirT2 protein.

In addition to the presentation on protein, the team had the opportunity to meet with the director of the Center for Biomolecular Modeling (CBM) from the Milwaukee School of Engineering, Dr. Tim Herman, and his colleague, Dr. Margaret Franzen. Dr. Herman is the director of the CBM and has created the SMART team program.

Past teams have worked with Dr. Richard Ebright, Rutgers University, Dr. Fred Hughson of Princeton University, and Dr. Seth Darst of Rockefeller University. Pingry’s S.M.A.R.T. Team will continue to carry on its research as the students work on creating new models for future development in this innovative program. The 2007-2008 team will be working with Dr. Vince Fishetti of Rockefeller University build models of virus enzymes that can potentially used to treat infections.



© 2007 The Pingry School