ANN ARBOR—The Life Sciences Institute (LSI) of the University of Michigan and the Perrigo Company, a pharmaceutical and nutritional products manufacturer based in Allegan, Michigan, have awarded summer fellowships to eight undergraduate students from the University of Michigan, Kalamazoo College, and Knox College.

The awards were made under the Perrigo Undergraduate Fellowship Program, a summer internship series at the LSI for undergraduate science students. The program is supported by the Perrigo Company, the LSI, and the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts.

Each student will be assigned to a laboratory in the Life Sciences Institute for hands-on experience with world-class researchers and will be considered for internships with Perrigo in the future. Fellows receive a stipend plus a housing and travel allowance for 10 weeks over the summer. Most applicants are undergraduate students in chemistry, biology, biochemistry, pharmacy, or engineering and related fields. To qualify, the students must be enrolled in a college or university.

“This group of student scientists holds incredible promise, and both Perrigo and the LSI are fortunate to be able to work with them,” said LSI research professor Daniel J. Klionsky, who directs the Perrigo internships program.” Side-by-side work at the research bench or other hands-on experiences are the best ways for people to learn, and the faculty members in the LSI are dedicated to providing a positive learning experience to undergraduates in Michigan. Furthermore, exposure to collaborative laboratory work by top scientists, the trademark of the Life Sciences Institute, will provide a unique experience that will help these students in their future career goals.”

The 2006 Perrigo/LSI Fellows are:

Andrew Harrison, a senior at U-M from Houghton, Michigan, is a neuroscience major. The goal of his project in the Gabby Rudenko lab is to over-express a protein in insect cell cultures and analyze its structural shape. The protein of interest is the human corticotropin-releasing hormone binding protein (hCRHBP) which controls cortisol levels in the body. Elevated cortisol is found in some depressive and anxiety disorders.

Andrew Prendergast is originally from the Chicago area and currently a senior at Knox College in Illinois. He will work in the Center for Stem Cell Biology, headed by Sean Morrison. Andrew will study the mechanism by which a certain population of neural crest stem cells migrates to its final destination in the terminal large intestine. There is a medical condition known as Hirschsprung disease in which this migration fails and the terminal colon is not ennervated.

Derek Peters is a rising senior at U-M from Pittsford, New York, who is concentrating in Cellular and Molecular Biology with a minor in mathematics. This summer, Derek is working in the laboratory of Dr. Patrick Hu and is studying the regulation of several newly identified genes in the insulin-like signaling pathway of the nematode worm C. elegans. Malfunctions in this pathway may contribute to cancer and diabetes.

Shari Rosen is a junior at U-M from Farmington Hills, MI. She was recently accepted to and will be attending the U-M College of Pharmacy this fall. She is interested in biochemistry and genetics and is considering an eventual career in pharmaceutical research. This summer, she will be working in David Sherman’s lab studying the natural chemistry that produces the protein 5-aminolevulinate.

Malorie Sprunger, from Saline, Michigan, is a sophomore at U-M studying biology and planning to pursue a career in pharmacy. This summer she is working in Janet Smith’s lab investigating the three-dimensional structures of proteins.

Jenny Thomson is a rising senior at Kalamazoo College from Novi, Michigan. She is interested in medicinal chemistry and hopes to attend graduate school beginning in the fall of 2007. She would eventually like to work in academia or government in the field of pharmaceutical sciences. This summer, she will be working in Dr. David Ginsburg’s lab with Dr. Karl Desch, studying the protein ADAMTS13, an integral protein in the study of thrombic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP).

Lauren Waltersdorf is a junior at Kalamazoo College from Rochester Hills, Michigan. She is majoring in biology with a Spanish minor. She is interested in biochemistry and biophysics and is applying for medical school for the fall of 2007. This summer, she will be working in Dr. Rowena Matthew’s lab studying the role of potassium in the enzyme methionine synthase.

Nick White is a junior at Kalamazoo College from Canton, Michigan. He will be spending the first six months of his junior year studying abroad in C