Two Durham Tech students were given the chance to present their research at a national symposium earlier this month.

Qina Mo and Peter Said presented their research describing the isolation and characterization of two viruses that infect bacteria at the 8th annual SEA-PHAGES Symposium at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Janelia Research Campus in Ashburn, Virginia.

Mo and Said presented cumulative research performed during a two-semester course that focuses on the discovery of new viruses.

Doctor Steven Leadon, a biology instructor at Durham Tech, said in a release:

“This is a valuable and unique educational experience because it is a discovery-based undergraduate research course that begins to train students to think like scientists. Along the way, students develop a sense of project ownership. The culmination of the two-semester course is the opportunity to share their research findings with other students doing similar work at a national symposium. It emphasizes the idea that research is a collaborative and interactive process.”

Said, a biology student at Durham Tech, said the experience was very rewarding and inspirational to work with the nation’s leading scientists.

Said has been accepted to the UNC through the Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program.

For more information on the SEA-PHAGES Hunter’s Lab at Durham Tech visit here.

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