{"id":83,"date":"2021-05-11T16:37:05","date_gmt":"2021-05-11T20:37:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/?page_id=83"},"modified":"2026-04-10T20:20:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T00:20:03","slug":"news","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/","title":{"rendered":"News"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>2026<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<div><em><strong>Samuel<\/strong> <\/em>received the <strong>Chemistry Department Graeme and Hazel Baker Award<\/strong>, one of the top recognitions for senior students majoring in Chemistry and Forensic Sciences. <em>Well deserved! We are so proud of your accomplishments and wish you all the best in your future academic journey.<\/em><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-312 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Two people stand smiling between two UCF Chemistry banners, with one person holding a certificate in front of a table with trophies.\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/DSC03944-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/200;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Shaleh <\/strong><\/em>has defended his <strong>Master Thesis<\/strong> and will graduate from UCF with an <strong>MS in Chemistry<\/strong>. <em>Congratulations, Shaleh!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"183\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-304 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029-300x183.jpg\" alt=\"Four people stand in front of a presentation slide titled &quot;Structural Optimization and Analytical Applications of Thioflavin T-activating Light-up DNA Aptamer&quot; in a classroom setting.\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029-300x183.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029-1024x623.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029-768x467.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029-1536x934.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/1000017029.jpg 1647w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/183;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Samuel <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Marina <\/strong><\/em>have defended their <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis. <\/strong><em>Congratulations!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Andrea<\/strong><\/em> was recognized as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/founders-day-2026-student-awardees\/\">one of the 37 inductees into the <strong>Order of Pegasus<\/strong><\/a>. Order of Pegasus is the most prestigious and significant award a student can attain at the University of Central Florida as it recognizes exemplary performance by UCF bachelor\u2019s degree students in the areas of academic achievement, outstanding university involvement, leadership, and community service. <em>Well deserved, Andrea!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"201\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-308 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/IMG_3482-300x201.jpg\" alt=\"A person holding an award poses next to the UCF knight mascot behind large white UCF letters and a backdrop that reads &quot;BUILD WHAT'S NEXT.\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/IMG_3482-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/04\/IMG_3482.jpg 640w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/201;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Our lab participated in the <strong>Orlando Science Center\u2019s Spark STEM Fest<\/strong>! Many thanks to <strong><em>Harun<\/em><\/strong>, <em><strong>Justine<\/strong><\/em> and <strong><em>Renato<\/em><\/strong> for organizing and leading our booth exhibit, <em>\u201cVisualizing DNA.\u201d<\/em> It was a great success and was enthusiastically received by both kids and adults!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-294 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"Four people stand and sit behind a table with science models, informational materials, and lab items at a science fair or outreach event. A blue curtain and decorative elements are in the background.\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-1024x577.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-1536x865.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2026\/03\/20260215_134442-2048x1153.jpg 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/169;\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>2025<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Our lab had a strong presence <span style=\"font-size: 1rem\">at the 76th Southeastern and 81st Southwest Joint Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society (<\/span><a style=\"font-size: 1rem;background-color: #ffffff\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sermacs2025.org\/program.html\">SERMACS\/SWRM 2025<\/a><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\">). Congratulations to <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem\"><strong>Justine<\/strong><\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\"> for delivering a talk &#8220;<\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem\">Multicomponent deoxyribozyme probes: A versatile tool for detecting genetic signatures down to a single nucleotide&#8221;<\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\"> at the <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem\">Frontiers in Nucleic Acids symposium<\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\">, and to <\/span><strong style=\"font-size: 1rem\"><em>Samuel<\/em><\/strong><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\">, <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem\"><strong>Harun<\/strong><\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\"> and <\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem\"><strong>Shaleh<\/strong><\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem\"> for presenting posters!<\/span><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>AnnaMarie<\/strong><\/em> and <em><strong>Justine<\/strong><\/em> co-authored a paper published in JoVE. Check out the<a href=\"https:\/\/app.jove.com\/embed\/player?id=68483&amp;access=ad521d66a9&amp;t=1&amp;s=1&amp;fpv=1\"> video<\/a> of the published protocol.<a style=\"font-size: 1rem\" href=\"https:\/\/app.jove.com\/embed\/player?id=68483&amp;access=ad521d66a9&amp;t=1&amp;s=1&amp;fpv=1\">\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Vera Zavadskaya<\/strong><\/em> and <em><strong>AnnaMarie Knowles <\/strong><\/em>have defended their <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis. <\/strong><em>Congratulations, Vera and AnnaMarie!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Harun Kapidzic, Laila Ghasseminia, AnnaMarie Knowles <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Justine Monsalve <\/strong><\/em>represented our group at the <a href=\"https:\/\/researchweek.ucf.edu\/symposium\/\">2025 UCF Student Scholar Symposium<\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Our paper &#8220;Peroxidase-like Activity of G-Quadruplex\/Hemin Complexes for Colorimetric Nucleic Acid Analysis: Loop and Flanking Sequences Affect Signal Intensity&#8221; was published in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2673-8856\/5\/1\/12\"><em>DNA<\/em><\/a> journal.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Evangelia Brisby<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as an intern. <em>Welcome, Evangelia!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Harun<\/strong><\/em> starts his journey towards a <em><strong>PhD in Chemistry<\/strong><\/em>. Congratulations on acceptance to the program!<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Justine Monsalve<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as a <strong>Chemistry PhD student<\/strong>. <em>Welcome, Justine!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2024<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Valentina Fonseca<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as a volunteer. <em>Welcome, Valentina!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Shaleh Alazmi<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as a <strong>Chemistry MS student<\/strong>. <em>Welcome, Shaleh!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Harun Kapidzic, Laila Ghasseminia, AnnaMarie Knowles <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Jiyeong Hong <\/strong><\/em>attended<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/fame2024.fl-acs.org\/\"> the 100th Florida Annual Meeting and Exposition (FAME 2024)<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\">\u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"286\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-188 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/group-photo-300x286.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/group-photo-300x286.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/group-photo-1024x976.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/group-photo-768x732.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/group-photo.jpg 1284w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/286;\" \/> \u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"215\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-190 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Harun-explaining-his-work-at-his-poster-215x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Harun-explaining-his-work-at-his-poster-215x300.jpg 215w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Harun-explaining-his-work-at-his-poster-736x1024.jpg 736w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Harun-explaining-his-work-at-his-poster-768x1069.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Harun-explaining-his-work-at-his-poster.jpg 918w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 215px) 100vw, 215px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 215px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 215\/300;\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><em><strong>Laila<\/strong><\/em> was recognized with a <strong>&#8220;Best Poster Award&#8221;.<\/strong> <em>Congratulations, Laila!\u00a0 \u00a0 <\/em><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"222\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-193 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Laila-Ghasseminia_FAME24_best-poster-award-222x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Laila-Ghasseminia_FAME24_best-poster-award-222x300.jpg 222w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Laila-Ghasseminia_FAME24_best-poster-award-758x1024.jpg 758w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Laila-Ghasseminia_FAME24_best-poster-award-768x1038.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Laila-Ghasseminia_FAME24_best-poster-award.jpg 916w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 222px) 100vw, 222px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 222px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 222\/300;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Our collaborative paper <em>&#8220;Detection of Mtb and NTM: preclinical validation of a new asymmetric PCR-binary deoxyribozyme sensor assay&#8221;<\/em> was published in <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/doi\/full\/10.1128\/spectrum.03506-23\"><em>Microbiology Spectrum<\/em><\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>We hosted a lab tour the Ying competition finalists (high school students). <em>Thank you, Harun, Chris, Jiyeong and AnnaMarie, for your help in running the tour!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Christopher Linter<\/strong><\/em> and <em><strong>Jiyeong Hong<\/strong><\/em> were recognized with the UCF Chemistry Department awards for excellence in academic performance. <em>Congratulations!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"210\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-207 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Jiyeong-award-300x210.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Jiyeong-award-300x210.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Jiyeong-award-768x537.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Jiyeong-award.jpg 780w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/210;\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"190\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-208 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Chis-award-300x190.jpeg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Chis-award-300x190.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Chis-award-768x486.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2024\/06\/Chis-award.jpeg 841w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/190;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Timothy Asem<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as a <strong>Chemistry PhD student<\/strong>. <em>Welcome, Timothy!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2023<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Harun Kapidzic<\/strong><\/em> joins the group as a <strong>Chemistry MS student<\/strong>. <em>Welcome, Harun!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jaehyun Ahn <\/strong><\/em>has defended his <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis. <\/strong><em>Congratulations, Jaehyun!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Abryana Fergus<\/strong><\/em> has defended her <strong>Master Thesis<\/strong> and graduate from UCF with an <strong>MS in Chemistry<\/strong>. <em>Congratulations, Abryana!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><i>Pedro Madalozzo<\/i>\u00a0<\/strong>has defended his <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis. <\/strong>He has graduated from UCF with BS in Chemistry and been accepted into <strong>the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (Biochemistry, Quantitative Biology, Biophysics and Structural Biology track) PhD program at Yale University. <\/strong><em>Congratulations, Pedro!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>We hosted a lab tour for students from Valencia College. <em>Thank you, Jaehyun and Pedro, for your help in running the tour!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jaehyun Ahn <\/strong><\/em>has been awarded an <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis scholarship. <\/strong><em>Congratulations, Jaehyun!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Pedro Madalozzo\u00a0 <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Nicolas Raddi\u00a0 <\/strong><\/em>have been awarded a <strong>student research grant<\/strong> from the UCF office of Undergraduate Research. <em>Congratulations, Pedro and Nicholas!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jaehyun Ahn <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Nicolas Raddi\u00a0 <\/strong><\/em>presented their work at<strong> UCF Student Scholar Symposium.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-176 img-fluid lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2023\/06\/GSP_1497-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/200;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Pedro Madalozzo <\/strong><\/em>presented a poster at<strong> Spring 2023 American Chemical Society National Meeting<\/strong> in Indianapolis, IN.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Pedro Madalozzo, Jaehyun Ahn <\/strong><\/em>and <em><strong>Nicolas Raddi\u00a0 <\/strong><\/em>presented their work at<strong> Florida Undergraduate Research Conference<\/strong> in Miami, FL.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2022<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Abryana Fergus<\/strong><\/em> was awarded a <strong>NOBCChE Advancing Science Conference Grant<\/strong> to give a talk at <strong>NOBCChE Conference<\/strong> in Orlando, FL.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Mark Reed <\/strong><\/em>published a paper as a first author: development of a single-tube isothermal label-free fluorescent sensor for pathogen detection based on genetic signatures, published in <em><em>Frontiers in Chemistry as part of the Research topic &#8220;Nucleic Acid-Based Aptamers in Therapeutics and Diagnostics&#8221;<\/em><\/em><em>.<\/em> DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389%2Ffchem.2022.951279\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">10.3389\/fchem.2022.951279<\/a><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jaehyun Ahn<\/strong><\/em><em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>has received a <strong>student research grant<\/strong> from the UCF office of Undergraduate Research. <em>Congratulations, Jaehyun!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Ryan Connelly <\/em><\/strong>has defended his <strong>Dissertation.<\/strong><em> Congratulations, Dr. Connelly!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Yulia Gerasimova<\/strong><\/em> has been promoted to an <strong>Associate Professor<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Abryana Fergus <\/strong><\/em>presented her work at<strong> Spring 2022 American Chemical Society National Meeting<\/strong> in San Diego, CA.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2021<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Shannon <\/strong><strong>Beaton<\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>has defended her\u00a0<strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jack Mordeson<\/strong><\/em> has defended his\u00a0<strong>Honors in the Major\u00a0<\/strong>Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Nolan Bennett<\/em> <\/strong>and <em><strong>Hafsa Ali<\/strong> <\/em>have received a <strong>student research grant<\/strong> from the UCF office of Undergraduate Research. <em>Congratulations, Nolan and Hafsa!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Nolan Bennett<\/em> <\/strong>was awarded a <strong>Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship<\/strong> from the UCF Office of Undergraduate Research. <em>Congratulations, Nolan!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Jack Mordeson <\/strong><\/em>has been awarded an <strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis scholarship. <\/strong><em>Congratulations, Jack!<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Ryan Sapia\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>published his first paper as a first author: an investigation into the interaction between GelRed(TM) and single stranded oligonucleotides, published in\u00a0<em>Dyes and Pigments.<\/em> DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.dyepig.2021.109209\">10.1016\/j.dyepig.2021.109209<\/a><\/li>\n<li>We published an investigation into the light-up properties of the dapoxyl aptamer with arylmethane dyes in\u00a0<em>Chemical Communications.\u00a0<\/em>DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1039\/D1CC00594D\">10.1039\/D1CC00594D<\/a><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Michael Greenberg\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>received the\u00a0<strong>January Distinguished Undergraduate Research Award.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2020<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Pedro Madalozzo <\/strong><\/em>received\u00a0a <strong>Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship<\/strong> from the UCF Office of Undergraduate Research. <em>Congratulations, Pedro!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>We published our utilization of a deoxyribozyme cascade for <em>Mycobacterium tuberculosis\u00a0<\/em>drug susceptibility testing with colorimetric readout in <em>Biosensors and Bioelectronics<\/em>. DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.bios.2020.112385\">10.1016\/j.bios.2020.112385<\/a><\/li>\n<li>We published our successful interrogation of a highly structured RNA target at ambient temperatures using multicomponent probes in\u00a0<em>RNA<\/em>. DOI: <a href=\"http:\/\/doi.org\/10.1261\/rna.074864.120\">10.1261\/rna.074864.120<\/a><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>received the 2019-2020 award for\u00a0<strong>Excellence by a Graduate Teaching Assistant.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Michael Greenberg\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>has defended his\u00a0<strong>Honors in the Major<\/strong> Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Charles Dowis<\/strong><\/em> has defended his\u00a0<strong>Honors in the Major<\/strong> Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em> and <em><strong>Mark Reed <\/strong><\/em>presented their work at the <strong>2020 Pittsburg Conference (PittCon) <\/strong>in Chicago, IL.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>presented his work at the <strong>25th International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming<\/strong> in Seattle, WA.<\/li>\n<li>We published our findings on Split-G-Quadruplex based sensor design in <em>ACS Chemical Biology<\/em>. DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1021\/acschembio.9b00634\">10.1021\/acschembio.9b00634<\/a><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Michael Greenberg <\/strong><\/em>has defended his\u00a0<strong>Honors Undergraduate Thesis.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Rohit Karnati<\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>has defended his\u00a0<strong>Honors in the Major\u00a0<\/strong>Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Tamar Yishay<\/em> <\/strong>has defended her <strong>Honors in the Major<\/strong> Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Adam Reed<\/strong> <\/em>was awarded with\u00a0the 2019\u00a0Chemistry Department\u00a0<strong>Graduate\u00a0Teaching Assistant Award.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Tamar Yishay<\/strong><\/em> was awarded\u00a0<strong>Judges&#8217; Choice distinction<\/strong> at the 2019 Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence (SURE).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<pre style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-30 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"162\" height=\"122\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-678x509.jpg 678w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-326x245.jpg 326w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019-80x60.jpg 80w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 162px) 100vw, 162px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 162px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 162\/122;\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-31 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019_1-e1556640771838-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"217\" height=\"122\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019_1-e1556640771838-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019_1-e1556640771838-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019_1-e1556640771838-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/SURE2019_1-e1556640771838-678x381.jpg 678w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 217px) 100vw, 217px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 217px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 217\/122;\" \/><\/pre>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Colin Campbell<\/strong> <\/em>has been awarded a <strong>UCF Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship<\/strong> (SURF) 2019.<\/li>\n<li>Our lab members participated in the <strong>Spring 2019 American Chemical Society National Meeting and Expo\u00a0<\/strong>in Orlando, FL. <em><strong>Adam Reed<\/strong> <\/em>and <em><strong>Bidhan Dhar<\/strong> <\/em>contributed with oral presentations, <em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em>, <em><strong>Ryan Sapia<\/strong><\/em>, and <em><strong>Charles Dowis<\/strong> <\/em>presented posters.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-29 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"177\" height=\"133\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-678x509.jpg 678w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-326x245.jpg 326w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2019\/04\/charles-ACS-picture-80x60.jpg 80w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 177px) 100vw, 177px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 177px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 177\/133;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>We participated in the <strong>UCF Chemistry ACS Open House.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Adam Reed<\/strong> <\/em>has published his first paper as a first author: a deoxyribozyme cascade for label-free pathogen detection with visual readout, published in <em>Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical<\/em>. DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.snb.2018.11.147\">10.1016\/j.snb.2018.11.147<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2018<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>presented his work at\u00a0<strong>NanoFlorida 2018\u00a0<\/strong>in Melbourne, FL.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Charles Verduzco<\/strong> <\/em>was awarded the Chemistry Department <strong>Graeme and Hazel Baker Award,<\/strong> which recognizes an outstanding chemistry or forensic science major who has graduated in the previous summer, fall or current spring semester.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-70 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2021\/05\/7617090320782548701-e1717429219314-300x221.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"221\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2021\/05\/7617090320782548701-e1717429219314-300x221.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2021\/05\/7617090320782548701-e1717429219314-768x566.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/17\/2021\/05\/7617090320782548701-e1717429219314.jpg 800w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/221;\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Sheila Solarez\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>has defended her\u00a0<strong>Honors in the Major\u00a0<\/strong>Thesis.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em> and\u00a0<strong><em>Adam Reed\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>presented their work at\u00a0<strong>Biosensors 2018\u00a0<\/strong>in Miami, FL.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly, Adam Reed, Maithi Tran,<\/strong> <\/em>and <em><strong>Charles Verduzco\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>presented their work at the\u00a0<strong>Spring 2018 American Chemical Society National Meeting and Expo\u00a0<\/strong>in New Orleans, LA.<\/li>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly<\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>published his first paper as a first author: turn-on and turn-off colorimetric sensors that combine to form an alphanumeric array for instrument-free readout, published in <em>ChemBioChem<\/em>. DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1002%2Fcbic.201700626\">10.1002\/cbic.201700626<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>2017<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Ryan Connelly, Nicole Abedrabbo,\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>and\u00a0<em><strong>Rebecca Basch\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>presented their work at the <strong>93rd Florida Annual Meeting and Expo (FAME)<\/strong> in Palm Harbor, FL.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2026 Samuel received the Chemistry Department Graeme and Hazel Baker Award, one of the top recognitions for senior students majoring in Chemistry and Forensic Sciences. Well deserved! We are so proud of your accomplishments and wish you all the best in your future academic journey. Shaleh has defended his Master Thesis and will graduate from [&hellip;]","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-83","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>News - Gerasimova Lab<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/chemistry\/gerasimova\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"News - Gerasimova Lab\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"2026 Samuel received the Chemistry Department Graeme and Hazel Baker Award, one of the top recognitions for senior students majoring in Chemistry and Forensic Sciences. Well deserved! We are so proud of your accomplishments and wish you all the best in your future academic journey. 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