Students from the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute’s SEED/STEM Summer Program gathered for an end-of-program research symposium on July 23rd in the atrium of the VanNuys Medical Science building in Indianapolis.
The SEED/STEM program offers an eight-week research experience to high school students. Participants are paired with a faculty mentor who helps guide them through an immersive research project in the lab setting. The summer 2025 cohort featured 79 students from 33 high schools across Indiana.
The symposium included a poster session where participants presented their research to faculty, family members and friends.
Anthony Thieu, from Zionsville Community High School, presented a project titled “Redox Modulation Using Innovative Catalytic Antioxidants for the Protection β-cells Against Tacrolimus-Induced Toxicity in NODAT.”
“We wanted to find a way to combine two different drugs to prevent the onset of diabetes,” Thieu said. “We found that we were able to help prevent it compared to just the immunosuppressant.”
Thieu worked alongside Jon D. Piganelli, PhD, professor of medicine and biochemistry and molecular biology. Thieu said the opportunity to work with researchers like Piganelli made a lasting impact.
“You can ask whatever you want, and they help you learn so much,” Thieu said. “They trusted me to do the work. That was a real experience that I couldn’t have found anywhere else.”
“Anthony’s efforts to explore manganese porphyrins as adjunctive agents offer a promising path to shield vulnerable β-cells, reduce the incidence of new onset diabetes after transplantation (NODAT) and redefine post-transplant care for children who must endure these drugs for life,” Piganelli said. “Programs like this and others that support STEM education are vital to guiding and inspiring the next generation of scientists.”
Another student, Chantal Aguilar Felix from North Central High School in Indianapolis, researched cannabidiol and its effect on inflammation in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).
Working alongside faculty mentors Michael T. Eadon, MD, associate professor of medicine and medical and molecular genetics, and Sachiko Koyama, PhD, assistant research professor of medicine, Felix studied immune cells in volunteers with and without CKD. She credits the program’s sense of community with sparking her interest in a new field. “The program really fostered a community with everyone,” Felix said.
Allison Kolhouse, from Columbus North High School, also researched CKD. Patients with CKD have higher rates of bone fracture, with CKD predominantly affecting cortical bone. Her project, “Impact of Bone Anabolic Treatment on Cortical Bone in Chronic Kidney Disease,” found that treatment with a bone anabolic drug led to differing responses based on age: younger mice developed increased cortical thickness and demonstrated greater bone mechanical strength when compared to aging mice.
Kolhouse worked alongside faculty mentors Corinne E. Metzger, PhD, assistant research professor of anatomy, cell biology and physiology, and Matthew R. Allen, PhD, professor of anatomy, cell biology and physiology.
“Everyone was very helpful, I feel like everyone really wanted me to do well,” Kolhouse said.
