Charlotte Engineer Khayzaran Qubbaj Wins Best Poster Award
More than 30 research posters competed for prizes at the 2024 Biomedical Sciences Symposium, which took place on Sept. 9 at the Dubois Center at UNC Charlotte Center City. Hosted by the Division of Research and the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, participants included students from UNC Charlotte, the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) and NC State University.
Niner Engineer Khayzaran Qubbaj ’22 BSME and current Biomedical Engineering PhD student won Best Poster Award in the Cancer category for her research, “Mitochondrial trafficking as a protective mechanism against chemotherapy drug-induced peripheral neuropathy.” The prize is $200.
Several Charlotte engineering students presented research in the day-long event that highlighted innovation and translational research. Together with fellow Niners from the College of Science and the College of Computing and Informatics, UNC Charlotte students accounted for half of the awards presented. Rob Keynton, dean of the William States Lee College of Engineering, joined other leaders in serving on a panel that discussed the challenges and advancements of the biomedical and bioengineering field.
The symposium provided opportunities for the more than 350 attendees to “seek catalytic partnerships that can lead to a big vision for building solutions in the biomedical sciences,” said Deb Thomas, associate vice chancellor for the Division of Research.