Proceedings_Spring_2010

THE
ANA G. MÉNDEZ UNIVERSITY SYSTEM (AGMUS)
AND THE
STUDENT RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CENTER (SRDC)
AGMUS INSTITUTE OF MATHEMATICS
CARIBBEAN COMPUTING CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE
ARE PROUD TO HOST THE
SPRING 2010 PRE-COLLEGE
RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM
SHOWCASING MINORITY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ MENTORED RESEARCH
Leadership at SUAGM Vice Presidency for Planning and Academic Affairs
Mr. Jorge L. Crespo Armáiz
Vice President for Planning and Academic Affairs
Juan F. Arratia, Ph. D.
Student Research Development Center
Executive Director
CONRAD SAN JUAN CONDADO PLAZA HOTEL
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO
May 29, 2010

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………. 2
Ana G. Méndez University System (AGMUS) Profile ………………………….. 3
Conference at a Glance …………………………………………………………… 4
Message from the Vice President for Planning and Academic Affairs
Mr. Jorge Crespo…………………………………………………………… 5
Message from the Chancellor of Universidad Metropolitana
Dr. Federico Matheu ………………………………………………………. 6
Message from the Chancellor of Universidad del Turabo
Dr. Dennis Alicea………………………………………………………….. 7
Message from the Chancellor of Universidad del Este
Lic. Alberto Maldonado……………………………………………………. 8
Message from the President of the Polytechnic University
Mr. Ernesto Vázquez-Barquet……………………………………………… 9
Message from the Director and Principal Investigator
Dr. Juan F. Arratia ………………………………………………………… 10
Prologue…………………………………………………………………………… 11
Keynote Speakers………………………………………………………………….. 12
Research Mentors…………………………………………………………………. 13
AGMUS Institute of Mathematics………………………………………………… 18
Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence (CCCE) Allinace…………………… 19
Schedule of Events ……………………………………………………………….. 20
Abstracts:
Biological Sciences………………………………………………………... 36
Computer Sciences………………………………………………………… 51
Applied Mathematics……………………………………………………… 72
Atmospheric Sciences……………………………………………………… 79
Acknowledgments ………………………………………………………………… 84
Index of Presenters ………………………………………………………………... 86

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Ana G. Méndez University System
AGMUS Institute of Mathematics
Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence
MISSION
The Model Institutions for Excellence (MIE) award granted by the National Science Foundation
helped transform Universidad Metropolitana (UMET) into a nationally recognized undergraduate
research institution, and a model in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Mentoring of undergraduates and pre-college students by research mentors was the cornerstone
of the MIE Project. We believe that creative research is one of the best ways to prepare students
to become persistent and successful in graduate school and professional careers. Today, the
Student Research Development Center (SRDC), which is part of the Ana G. Méndez University
System, is the entity that continues the MIE strategy by impacting students from the AGMUS
and universities across the nation, as well as pre-college students from the Puerto Rico
Educational System. Two NSF grants, the AGMUS Institute of Mathematics and the Caribbean
Computing Center for Excellence are the funding tools to implement the mission of the Student
Research Development Center in Puerto Rico.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Model Institutions for Excellence ended in 2009. It was a cooperative agreement between
the National Science Foundation and UMET. The primary goal of the cooperative agreement was
to increase the number of BS degrees granted to underrepresented students in STEM fields at
Universidad Metropolitana. In order to increase the number of BS degrees transferred to graduate
school, we will continue with the strategy of an early undergraduate research program and
partnership with key research institutions in the US mainland, Puerto Rico and abroad. Research
mentoring will be the central component of the knowledge transfer and creative thinking
activities at AGMUS. Cooperative and collaborative learning strategies, presentations at
scientific conferences, scientific writing and co-authorship, technology literacy, and preparation
for graduate school are activities that are transforming the philosophy of the institution. Now,
with the NSF grants, the AGMUS Institute of Mathematics and the Caribbean Computing Center
for Excellence, the MIE goals are reaching institutions outside the AGMUS campuses in Puerto
Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
GOALS
The main goal of the Pre-College Research Symposium is to: encourage pre-college research
with research mentors; develop students’ written and oral communication skills; provide a forum
in the Caribbean for students to foster interest in undergraduate education, particularly in STEM
fields; and set national research standards for pre-college research presentations.

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ANA G. MENDEZ UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
STUDENT RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CENTER
AGMUS INSTITUTE OF MATHEMATICS
CARIBBEAN COMPUTING CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE
SPRING 2010 PRE-COLLEGE
RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM
CONFERENCE AT A GLANCE
SATURDAY, MAY 29, 2010 CONRAD SAN JUAN CONDADO PLAZA HOTEL
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Poster Session Set-Up Ponce de León Ballroom B
and Ponce de León Foyer
Breakfast Ponce de León Ballroom A
Registration - Ponce de León Foyer
9:00 – 9:30 a.m. Opening Ceremony Ponce de León Ballroom A
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chávez, Arizona State University
9:30 – 11:30 a.m. Poster Session - Ponce de León Ballroom B
11:30 – 11:45 a.m. Coffee Break Ponce de León Foyer
11:45 – 1:15 p.m. Oral Research Presentations Session I-Ponce de León Ballroom A
Session II-Ponce de León Ballroom C
Session III-Almendros Conference Room
1:30 – 3:00 p.m. Lunch Ponce de León Ballroom A
Speaker: Dr. Dave Touretzky, Carnegie Mellon University
WORKSHOPS FOR SCIENCE AND MATH TEACHERS
2:00 – 4:00p.m. “Mathematics for a Modern Society” Almendros Conference Room
Dr. Carlos Castillo Chávez, Arizona State University-Tempe, Arizona
2:00 – 4:00p.m. “Introduction to Robotics Programming” Horizontes Conference Room
Dr. Dave Touretzky, Carnegie Mellon University-Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Award Ceremony and Closing Remarks Ponce de León Ballroom A
4:00 p.m. Symposium Adjourns

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May 29, 2010
Dear Pre-College Students:
The Spring 2010 Pre-College Research Symposium is the culmination of the activities and dissemination
process of the Saturday Academy Program of the Ana G. Méndez University System (AGMUS). For a
period of four months, since January 2010, all of you, more than one-hundred six pre-college students
from thirty-four private and public high schools in Puerto Rico worked long hours in the research
laboratories of the Departments of Science and Technology at UMET with the guidance and mentorship
of six college professors and student research mentors in ninety-nine research projects in the areas of
biological sciences, applied mathematics, computer sciences and atmospheric sciences.
One of the objectives of the Spring 2010 Pre-College Research Symposium is to offer young motivated
high school researchers the opportunity to learn and to practice their communication skills in a formal
professional scientific meeting. A second objective is to give high school students of Puerto Rico a forum
for the presentation of the results and findings of their research projects to teachers, research mentors,
family members, and the university community at large.
The Ana G. Méndez University and the Student Research Development Center are proud of the results
obtained by the pre-college students and their mentors in the Spring 2010 Saturday Academy Program
and the Spring 2010 Pre-College Research Symposium. I hope your experience inspires you and your
peers to select science, technology, engineering or mathematics as your field of study in the near future.
My sincere appreciation goes to the Student Research Development Center staff, student research mentors
and faculty from Arizona State University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and the Spanish
Research Council (CSIC) for their effort and commitment to implement the Spring 2010 Saturday
Academy Program and the Spring 2010 Pre-College Research Symposium. This event would not have
been possible without the ongoing support of the National Science Foundation and the NASA Puerto Rico
Space Grant Consortium.
Sincerely yours,
Juan F. Arratia, Ph. D.
Executive Director and Principal Investigator
PO Box 21150
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00928-1150
Tel: 787.766.1717 x.6000
Fax: 787.751.5386
Web: http://srdc.suagm.edu
Developing Minds Through
Research Experiences

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ANA G. MÉNDEZ UNIVERSITY SYSTEM (AGMUS)
As an Educational Institution
The Ana G. Méndez University System (AGMUS) is home to approximately 42,620 undergraduate and graduate students who
are mainly underrepresented low-income minority students from the Metropolitan San Juan area in Puerto Rico. Three
institutions form the AGMUS University System: Universidad Metropolitana (UMET), Universidad del Este (UNE), and
Universidad del Turabo (UT). UMET has been a teaching institution since its foundation in 1948. Today, however, its
philosophy has been changing to address the students’ study needs and the requirements of society. Our President, Dr. José F.
Méndez, has set the agenda to have it become the best undergraduate research institution in Puerto Rico. Additionally, the
President has set the goal to implement the MIE best practices at UNE and UT and transform AGMUS into a leading
undergraduate research institution through the Student Development Center at the Vice Presidency for Planning and Academic
Affairs. The Executive Director of the Student Research Development Center is Dr. Juan F. Arratia, who has set to accomplish
this goal by 2010.
As an Undergraduate Research Institution
In 1995, UMET was selected by the National Science Foundation as a Model Institution for Excellence (MIE) school. At that
time, a five-year Cooperative Agreement for more than $11 million was signed between UMET and the NSF. A second
Cooperative Agreement was signed on October 1, 2000 for an additional three years and for $7.5 million. The third phase of the
MIE grant for $2.5 million for three additional years was awarded on October 1, 2003. The main objective of the relationship
with NSF has been to transform UMET into a model for Hispanic Serving Institutions in the nation. Our major goal has been to
increase the number of BS degrees granted by UMET, to transfer a significant number of science students to graduate school, and
to enroll them in Ph. D. programs to fulfill the goals and aspirations of a greater participation of minorities in the science,
mathematics, and engineering fields. After 13 years of funding, UMET has been transformed through the MIE activities by
producing an effective pipeline from pre-college to undergraduate, and from undergraduate to graduate school for hundreds of
underrepresented minorities from Puerto Rico. It has also been transformed with faculty research mentors who are helping
science students create knowledge and disseminate creative thinking among the members of the university and pre-college
community. Our undergraduate and pre-college research program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation and NASA,
are paving the way for research-oriented activities for the benefit of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands students.
PROLOGUE
The sponsorship of the National Science Foundation has been fundamental for the implementation of the Pre-College Program at
the Ana G. Méndez University System at Universidad Metropolitana. For thirteen years, the Model Institutions for Excellence
(MIE) Project organized the Saturday Academy Program. In 2006, a new dimension was established with the dissemination of
the MIE best practices into Universidad del Turabo and Universidad del Este (UNE) under the Student Research Development
Center. The main goal of this program is to motivate high school students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering
and mathematics at the BS and graduate levels. The Saturday Academy Program usually extends for sixteen weeks during the
months of August through December. Students from public and private schools, enrolled in grades 10, 11 and 12, conduct
research under the mentorship of faculty and student research mentors from AGMUS and institutions in the US mainland and
abroad. More than two thousand pre-college students have learned the fundamentals of scientific research through their
participation in the Saturday Academy Program at AGMUS. For the last six years, a symposium has been organized to present
the results of this activity to the university community and to motivate other Puerto Rican students to engage in scientific
research.
The Spring 2010 Pre-College Research Symposium held at Conrad San Juan Condado Plaza Hotel on May 29, 2010, showcases
the research experiences of fifty-three (53) pre-college students from fourteen high schools in Puerto Rico. Forty-six research
projects are presented at the Symposium in the form of posters and oral presentations. The mentorship of faculty and
undergraduate research mentors from Arizona State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, and institutions participating
in the Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence across Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands made possible the
concretization of the research projects. Their results are documented in the pages of these proceedings.
The National Science Foundation, NASA/Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortium, the Ana G. Méndez University System, the
Student Research Development Center and institutions of the Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence across Puerto Rico and
the US Virgin Islands are proud of the research work conducted by the Saturday Academy Spring 2010 participants. We hope
this Symposium will be a vehicle by which the scientific productivity of high school students from Puerto Rico and the US
Virgin Islands will be disseminated in future years.

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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chávez
Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chavez is a Regents Professor and Joaquin Bustoz Jr. Professor of Mathematical Biology at
Arizona State University (ASU). His research program is carried out at the interface of the mathematical and natural
and social sciences. On July 1st
, 2008, Dr. Castillo-Chavez became the founding director of the Mathematical,
Computational and Modeling Sciences Center as well as the founding director of the graduate field in applied
mathematics in the life and social sciences at ASU and the founder and director of the undergraduate bachelor of
sciences degree in applied mathematics in the life and social sciences. He is also the Executive Director of two
institutes: the Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute (MTBI) which focuses on providing research
opportunities at the interface of the biological, computational and mathematical sciences from the undergraduate to
the graduate and postdoctoral levels and The Institute for Strengthening the Understanding of Mathematics and
Science, which focuses on providing college opportunities for high school students. Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chavez’
undergraduate/graduate summer program was established in 1996. This program has been held at Cornell
University, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Arizona State University (ASU). The American Mathematical
Society recognized MTBI’s program as a “Mathematics Program that Makes a Difference” in 2007. SUMS’ efforts
were also recognized with a Presidential Mentorship Award in 2002. Under his leadership the David Blackwell and
Richard Tapia Distinguished Lecture Series was established in 2000. He spent 18 years at Cornell University
(1985-2003) where he held joint professorships in the departments of Biological Statistics and Computational
Biology (BSCB) and Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (TAM). Castillo-Chavez has received numerous awards
including two White House Awards: a Presidential Faculty Fellowship Award in 1992 and a Presidential Award for
Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring in 1997; the 2002 Society for the Advancement of
Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) Distinguished Scientist Award and the 2003 Richard Tapia
Award. In 2003, he held the position Stanislaw M. Ulam Distinguished Scholar at the Center for Nonlinear Studies
or CNLS at Los Alamos National Laboratory. In 2004, he was named honorary professor at Xi'an Jiaotong
University in China. He has been elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
(AAAS) and is the recipient of the 2007 AAAS Mentor Award. Carlos Castillo-Chavez was a member of the
Arizona Governor’s P-20 Council’s Mathematics Alignment Team in 2008-09. Castillo-Chavez is currently a
member of three scientific mathematical sciences advisory boards two in the US and one in Canada, and a member
of National Research Council’s Board of Higher Education and Workforce (2009-2011). He is the 12th
recipient of
the American Mathematical Society Distinguished Public Service Award; and has been elected Fellow of the
Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.
Dr. David S. Touretzky
Dr. David S. Touretzky is a Research Professor of Computer Science and co-director of the graduate training
program of the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA. Since
2003 he has been developing the Tekkotsu software framework for teaching undergraduates to program
sophisticated mobile robots. In collaboration with Professor Andrew Williams of Spelman College, he formed the
ARTSI Alliance, a consortium of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and major research
universities, funded by the National Science Foundation, that promotes robotics education for African Americans.
In 2006 Touretzky was named a Distinguished Scientist by the Association for Computing Machinery.

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RESEARCH MENTORS
Dr. Juan F. Arratia
Executive Director
Principal Investigator
AGMUS Institute of Mathematics
Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence
Universidad Metropolitana
Dr. Juan F. Arratia was born in Pomaire, Chile. He graduated from Universidad Técnica del Estado with a BS in
Electrical Engineering in 1973. He was awarded an MSc in Engineering from Louisiana Tech University, Ruston,
Louisiana, in 1979 and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri in 1985.
He has taught and conducted research at universities in Chile (Universidad Técnica del Estado and Universidad
Austral de Chile), Puerto Rico (Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico and the University of Puerto Rico-
Mayaguez), and in the US mainland at Washington University, St. Louis, and Louisiana Tech University, Ruston,
Louisiana. He has lectured and given conferences on advanced automation, robotics, vision systems, artificial
intelligence, total quality management and science and engineering education in Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador,
Guatemala, Panama, Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, Perú, Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, Turkey, Japan, Philippines,
Singapore, Australia, China, Puerto Rico and in the US mainland. He was the Advanced Manufacturing Manager for
Medtronic, Inc., a leading pacemaker company, and is a consultant in advanced automation for pharmaceutical and
medical devices companies in Puerto Rico. From 1998 to 2006, he was the Director and Principal Investigator of the
Model Institutions for Excellence (MIE) Project, a National Science Foundation sponsored program based at
Universidad Metropolitana in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Since 2007, he has been the Executive Director of the Ana G.
Méndez University System (AGMUS) Student Research Development Center, designed to disseminate MIE best
practices at Universidad del Turabo and Universidad del Este. In November 2007 he was awarded the Presidential
Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring at a ceremony in the White House in
Washington DC.
Yvonne Avilés
Yvonne Avilés has a B.S in Computer Engineering and a M.S. in Computer Engineering, both from the University
of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez Campus. In 2000 she started her career as a Software Engineer in the Research and
Development Group for Lucent Technologies in North Andover, MA. Within Lucent she also worked in the
hardware division as a Verification Engineer. Later, fond to an academic environment she pursued a teaching career
at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico at San Germán, as a Computer Science Professor. Yvonne teaches
computer programming, computer graphics, and discrete mathematics at the undergraduate level.

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Cesar Banderas, Ph.D.
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Bandemar Networks, Inc.
Dr. César Banderas studied his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Electrical Engineer at the University of Buffalo
in New York and was certified in Executive Development at the Harvard School of Management in Boston,
Massachusetts. He is the President of BanDeMar Networks, a minority owned small company specializing in
advanced video solutions for e-learning markets. Dr. Banderas’ technical background is in active perception, which
combines real-time computer vision and other sensor modalities with machine learning and behavioral control. He is
interested in all aspects of active vision, including algorithms for signal processing and control, sensor VLSI, and
multiprocessing architectures. His experience in active perception comes largely from his work in foveal vision,
which exploits in the machine setting the multiacuity properties prevalent in vertebrate vision. Dr. Banderas has
been active in the field of pervasive rich media, which endeavors to provide spatiotemporally coordinated
multimodal streams to an audience with diverse demographics, player platforms and channel access (e.g.,
broadband-connected PCs, wireless PDAs, set-top boxes). In 1990, Dr. Banderas formed a research department at
Amherst Systems dedicated to the development and application of active vision. This work yielded operational
platforms with algorithms for video understanding and automaton behavior control, matching multiprocessor
architectures, and smart VLSI imaging sensors (imagers with monolithic signal processing). He has had profit/loss
responsibility, and was able to secure external funding for all R&D (over twenty customer grants and contracts)
while exceeding growth and profit estimates. To date, this active vision research has yielded six Ph.D. and four M.S.
degrees, several patents, highest distinction in the Air Force Small Business Innovative Research Accomplishments
Report to the U.S. Congress, a Small Business of the Year nomination from Rome Lab, and the 1999 NASA Space
Act award from Johnson Space Center. In 2001, he formed a research department at Manhattan-based Sorceron
(now BanDeMar) dedicated to the synthesis and delivery of object-oriented rich media. As CTO, Dr. Banderas is
member of the Association for Computing Machinery, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and the
International Society for Optical Engineering.
Franklyn Colmenares
Franklyn Colmenares has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico
(PUPR). He is the Chief Technician for the Advanced Plasma Engineer Laboratory at the same University. In his
third year of college he was granted an internship with the Nuclear Department of the University of Missouri-
Columbia. Since then, he started working as an Undergraduate Student Researcher sponsored by the NASA Puerto
Rico Space Grant at the PUPR Plasma Laboratory. He has an international publication for his work in plasma
applications and multiple presentations, and has used that experience to encourage current undergraduate students to
pursue an internship or research in science. Before and after graduating, Franklyn has being helping students with
plasma investigations as well as mentoring them on the opportunities for internships and graduate school.
Prof. Guillermo Mejía
Assistant Professor (full time) since 1976, with areas of expertise in C#, Visual Basic, ASP.NET, Intel Assembly
Language, Visual C++, and Object-oriented programming. Teaching interest in Electronics, later changed his
attention to Networks and multiprogramming, accepted a job teaching computer programming at Inter American
University in Puerto Rico since 1985, always working with students interested in Computer Science careers.

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Raúl Navedo
Raúl M. Navedo was accepted in the Pre-Veterinary Program at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez, Puerto
Rico, where he studied Pre-Veterinary and Industrial Microbiology. Later, he started a new university career in
electrical engineering, where he is still a student. In the summer of 2009, he was selected to participate in a summer
internship in the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University. At the time, he became part of the student and
research development center in where he is one of the research mentors of the research academy mentoring at the
Evolutionary Genetic Project at Universidad del Turabo in Gurabo, Puerto Rico. As part of the students working
with the Student Reserch Development Center, he has worked in the design of an electronic circuit for a laser beam
located in the Arecibo Observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico.
Hazel Ozuna
Hazel Ozuna was born in the Bronx, New York. Her hobbies include reading drama and science fiction books and
playing tennis. She entered Universidad Metropolitana In the fall of 2005, and was awarded the Model Institutions
for Excellence (MIE) scholarship and later, in the fall of 2005 and the spring of 2007, was included in the Honor
Excellence List.. She worked with Dr. Victor Rodriguez, a physics professor, in a research that consisted of
explaining the molecular evolution of the species with mathematical models. In the summer of 2006, she went to
Arizona State University and worked at the Polytechnic Campus in the research “Developing Java Applications for
Limited and Mobile Devices.” In the summer of 2007 she went to the University of Colorado and participated in the
research “Compositional trends might improve RNA secondary structure.” In the summer of 2008, she went to the
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and worked in the project “Alternative mRNA splicing of RAD 5 of mouse
tissues”. Finally, in the summer of 2009, she participated in the project “Validation of a fluorescent probe for the
detection of an oral bacterium found in environmental sites”. At present , she is part of the research “Proteases in
the ectodomain shedding of EGFR” at the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, with her mentor
and professor Dr. Luis E. Vazquez-Quinones. The focus of the research is on the epidermal growth factor receptor
(EGFR) in breast tumor cells, working with the ectodomain shedding of EGFR, the enzyme engaged in the shedding
and the development of therapy that target the shedding of EGFR in tumors that express high levels of this receptor.
This coming June she will be completing her Cellular Molecular Biology Bachelor’s Degree with a minor in
Mathematics. She has been admitted in the Microbiology Program of the Molecular and Cellular Biology
Department of the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and was awarded the
Graduate College Fellowship for Underrepresented Minority Students.
Joel Rivera Montes

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Joel Rivera Montes is a Security and Privacy Officer at Medical Card System (MCS). Joel at MCS is responsible of
maintaining and updating privacy policies, management of publications and privacy authorizations, and
implementation of privacy projects. He ensures the compliance of state and federal regulations with HIPAA, DACO,
and the Insurance Commissioner among others. He is in charge of conducting investigations on privacy and security
breaches within the company. Joel has a Bachelor Degree in Computer Science from Metropolitan University of
Puerto Rico, and completing a Masters Degree in Networks and Telecommunications in Turabo University of Puerto
Rico. In the course of his career he has been working in the Information and Technology industry for more than 13
years and specializing in Information and Technology Security for more than 6 years. Joel has obtained CompTIA
Network+ and Ethical Hacker certifications in his professional career. As an IT Specialist had done some consulting
and given lectures about the Internet, Computer Basics, and IT Security. From 1999 to 2003, worked for the
Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico has a Programmer, Network Administrator, and IT Specialist. In 2003 to
2009, was given the opportunity to work for the new Information and Technology Security Office at Ana G. Mendez
University System (AGMUS) Central Administration has an Information Security Analyst. In December 2009 a
great opportunity came to join MCS in the private Health sector.
Dr. Noemí Soto Nieves
Noemí Soto Nieves has a B.S. in Industrial Biotechnology from the University of Puerto Rico in Mayaguez. She
completed her Ph.D. in biomedical sciences with specialty in immunology, molecular genetics and molecular
biology in September of 2007 from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in New York.
During her graduate education she studied transcription factors involved in the inhibition of self-reactive T cells that
cause autoimmune diseases. Since January 2010 she is an Assistant Professor of the Biology Department at the the
University of Puerto Rico in Humacao. She teaches a variety of courses such as genetics, general microbiology,
human anatomy and physiology, general biology, biological sciences, among others, and provides many of the
biotechnology seminars. She participates actively in university academic committees and is the coordinator (link) of
technology and industrial alliances at University of Puerto Rico in Humacao. Currently, she collaborates with her
colleagues in research projects and is in the process of developing her own research lab.
Dr. David S. Touretzky
Dr. David S. Touretzky is a Research Professor of Computer Science and co-director of the graduate
training program of the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition at Carnegie Mellon University in
Pittsburgh, PA. Since 2003, he has been developing the Tekkotsu software framework for teaching
undergraduates to program sophisticated mobile robots. In collaboration with Professor Andrew
Williams of Spelman College, he formed the ARTSI Alliance, a consortium of Historically Black
Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and major research universities, funded by the National Science Foundation,
that promote robotics education for African Americans. In 2006 Touretzky was named a Distinguished Scientist by
the Association for Computing Machinery.
Jonahtan Vargas Rodríguez
Jonathan Vargas-Rodríguez is currently pursuing a B.S. in Computer Engineering at Universidad del Turabo. He is
currently in his third year of studies. Jonathan has experience programming in C/C++, Java, UNIX-like operating
systems handling and web programming components such as HTML, XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, JavaServer Pages

17
& Servlets. In 2009, Jonathan attended a two-week training focused on materials engineering research at the Center
for Materials Science and Engineering (CMSE) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and continued
to work over the summer at the Engineering Research Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere
(CASA) at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where he worked with graduate student Rafael Medina
designing and troubleshooting a graphical user interface to control T/R modules over computer commands. In
January 2010, Jonathan joined the Caribbean Computing Center for Excellence (CCCE) and started working with
high school students in engineering-related fields and modeling analysis in computer programs.
Dr. Osvaldo Cox, Internal Evaluator
He was born in Naguabo, Puerto Rico where he completed his elementary, middle and high school education. In
1958 he received a B. Sc. Degree in Chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras (UPR-R). After
serving in the US Army as an infantry officer, he returned to the UPR-R and completed his M.Sc. in Organic
Chemistry in 1964. That same year he traveled to Columbus Ohio to pursue graduate studies under the supervision
of Professor Leo A. Paquette at Ohio State University, where he received a PhD Degree with major in Organic
Chemistry in 1968. His PhD dissertation produced six peer-reviewed articles in Chemistry journals. While at Ohio
State, he was awarded an ESSO Research and Engineering and a Lubrizol fellowship, and was elected to the
Gamma Alpha Honorary Chemical Society. In September of 1968 he joined the Department of Chemistry of the
UPR-R as a tenure track Assistant Professor. Then he was awarded tenure and was promoted to Professor in 1982.
For several years he was the Coordinator of the Organic Chemistry area of the Department, and served in various
committees including the Graduate Admissions Committee (President), the Graduate Advisory Committee,
President of the Search Committee for a Director of the Environmental Science Program, elected as a member
Academic Senate and member of the UPR-R Honors Program Committee. He supervised ten Master’s theses and
Ph.D dissertations, and mentored more than two hundred undergraduates in chemical research. After thirty years of
service at the Chemistry Department at UPR-R, he retired in 1998 and joined the School of Science and Technology
at Universidad Metropolitana (UMET) where he served as Coordinator of the Chemistry Area and Professor of
Chemistry. He helped to develop the Bachelor’s Degree Program at UMET. He also served as an Academic
Consultant to the Model Institutions for Excellence (MIE) Program sponsored by the National Science Foundation,
where he collaborated with the Principal Investigator in the development and implementation of most of the current
undergraduate research, bridge to graduate school, and summer research internship activities at UMET. He was
appointed on two occasions by the governor of Puerto Rico to serve in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Board of
Examiners of Chemists. He did consultation work for the Commonwealth Environmental Quality Board in a high
profile environmental case. He has produced two US Patents (U.S. Patent 4,590,275, 1986 and US Patent
Application 12/416,962, US Filling date April 1st
2009) and has published more than forty papers in peer-reviewed
journals and given numerous presentations in local, national and international meetings. He is a member of the
American Chemical Society and the International Society of Heterocyclic Chemistry. At present he is a Research
Professor at the School of Environmental Affairs at UMET.

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Universidad Metropolitana
For more information contact :
Wanda I. Rodríguez Lugo
Coordinator of Institute of Mathematics
Tel:(787) 766-1717 x6009
Fax: (787)751-5386
Email.um_wrodrigu@suagm.edu
institute.math@gmail.com
The history of the AGMUS Institute of Mathematics began on September 1, 2008 when the National Science
Foundation awarded UMET a five-year grant for $2,100,000 to implement a program to enhance bio mathematics
at the Ana G. Méndez University System. The grant created a BS in Bio-Mathematics with scholarship
opportunities for students with a GPA of 3.00 or higher and a commitment to pursue graduate studies in partner
institutions in the US mainland. During the summer, math scholars will travel to research institutions in the US
mainland to work in research for a period of 8-10 weeks. A pre-college research agenda will be implemented on
Saturdays under the Saturday Academy of the Student Research Development Center (SRDC) of the Vice-
Presidency for Planning and Academic Affairs. Scholars of the AGMUS Institute of Mathematics will present
research outcomes in symposiaat the pre-college and undergraduate levels
SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
· Scholarship for the cost of Registration*
· Stipend of $400*
*This stipend is computed according to the student GPA and is subject to renovation is accordance with
academic progress.
ELIGIBILITY
· Be admitted at the Department of Science and Technology at UMET in the Bachelor Degree in Bio-Mathematics.
New Students
· Have a general high school average (GPA) of 3.00 or higher
- Score of 600 or higher in the math section of the College Board Exam.
Transferred Students
· Have a general high school average (GPA) of 3.00

19
ANA G. MENDEZ UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
STUDENT RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CENTER
“Developing Minds through Research Experiences”
 CCCE Stipend for Undergraduate ($1,600) and Graduate
Students ($2,000) /ten months
 Summer Research Experiences in the US mainland
and abroad.
 Bridge to Graduate School.
 Scientific conferences during the semester
 English Language Workshops
 Pre-College Research Program
For more information contact: Luis F. Font, CCCE Coordinator
(787)766-1717 ext. 6945, lufont@suagm.edu

20
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
SATURDAY, MAY 29, 2010 CONRAD SAN JUAN CONDADO PLAZA HOTEL
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. POSTER SESSION SET-UP
BREAKFAST
REGISTRATION
Ponce de León Ballroom B
Ponce de León Ballroom A
Ponce de León Foyer
9:00 – 9:30 a.m. OPENING CEREMONY Ponce de León Ballroom B
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chávez
Arizona State University
9:30 – 11:30 a.m. POSTER SESSION
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
COMPUTER SCIENCES
APPLIED MATHEMATICS
ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES
Chairperson: Dr. Juan F. Arratia
Executive Director and Principal Investigator
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Gregory Almena, José Gautier Benítez School, Caguas
Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease AssociateD Mutations in
the Homo Ssapiens phenylalanine hydroxylase,
PAH, phenylketonuria disorder, NM_000277
Yanisse M. Aponte, María Auxiliadora School,
San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Bioinformatic Study of Housekeeping Gene
Cytochrome C
Leila Ayala, Santa María del Camino School,
Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Determination of Conservation of Amino Acids in
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 4ª-II (EIF4A2)
(1)
(2)
(3)

21
Angélica M. Cardona, Santa María del Camino
School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Tetracycline Protein Analysis by Genedoc and
MEGA 4
Valeria M. Correa, Santa María del Camino School,
Analysis of Evolutionary Changes and Conservation of
Glyceraldehyde-3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (GADPH)
Between Homolog Species
Rosana C. Feliciano, PORFOR Educational Service
School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
The Homo Sapiens Polycystic Kidney Disease 1
Like 2 (PXD1L2)
Yarimar Figueroa, Santa María del Camino School,
Study of the Physical and Chemical Characteristics
of Strettomyces 6-Kinase Using Bioinformatic Tools
Andrea Flores, Santa María del Camino School
Study of the Percentage of Amino Acid Conservation
and Evolutionary Changes in Alpha Tubulin 1A
Angélica González, Carvin School, Carolina
Puerto Rico.
Study of the Percentage of Amino Acid Conservation
and Evolutionary Changes of DNA Topoisomerase
Stephanie Hall, Carvin School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Mutations in the Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycan 2 Gene
Natalie M. Jiménez, María Auxiliadora School,
Determination of Physical and Chemical Characteristics
of the Housekeeping Gene Succinate Dehydrogenase
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)

22
Natalia C. López, Carvin School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Amino Acid Changes in the Homo Sapiens Gene
Nebulin (NEB) and the Mutations Associated with
the Disease Nemaline Myopathy
Jaynee Mendoza, Bautista de Caguas School, Caguas,
Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease AssociateD Mutations in
the homo sapiens fibrilin 1 (FBN1), NM_000138
Alexander P. Molina, Bautista de Caguas Academy,
Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease Associated Mutations
in Homo Sapiens Calcium-Sensing Receptor, (CASR),
NM_000388
Karina Pérez, Santa María del Camino School,
Structure Analysis of C-SRC Tyrosine Kinase
Gina M. Robles, Bilingüe Padre Rufo School,
Carolina, Puerto Rico.
PSEN1 Gene Can Induce the Alzheimer Disease
Rebecca E. Rosado, José Aponte de la Torre School,
Analysis of the Amino Acid Changes in the PADI4
Gene (Peptidyl Arginine Deiminase Type 4)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)
COMPUTER SCIENCES
Gabriela Acebal, Wendy Figueroa, (18)
Clarianne Moscoso, Commonwealth-Parkville
High School, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Orlando Torres, Espíritu Santo School, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Electrode Shape Design for Uniform Glow Discharge
Confinement
Stefan G. Acevedo, Interamerican School, San Germán, (19)
Puerto Rico.
Binary Trees

23
Pablo Álvarez, Interamerican School, San Germán, (20)
Puerto Rico.
Architectural Forms from Fractals
Amarilis Araya, José E. Aponte de la Torre School, (21)
A Software Programming Version of the Classic
“Hangman Game”
Héctor L. Avilés, Interamerican School, San Germán, (22)
Puerto Rico.
Suns Designs from Fractals
Daniel Ayala, Interamerican School, San Germán, (23)
Puerto Rico.
Exploring Planet X
Cristian Bradley, San Jorge Academy, San Juan, (24)
Puerto Rico.
Othoniel J. Rodríguez, Bautista de Puerto Nuevo
Academy, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Alejandro Sánchez, Commonwealth High School,
Computer Forensics Validation Spring 2010
Christopher J. Cancel, Interamerican School, San (25)
Germán, Puerto Rico.
Walking on the Moon
Ubec Carambot, Manuel Mangual, José E. Aponte de (26)
La Torre School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Robotic Model for the Reduction of Landfills to
Improve the Environment
Odemaris Carrasquillo, Laura Roldán, José E. Aponte (27)
de la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Robotics Solution for Water Sampling at Difficult
Access Locations

24
Ana Castro, Carlos Morales, Petra Mercado School, (28)
Humacao, Puerto Rico.
Using Cluster Analysis to Discover Elements in
Hyperspectral Digital Images
Mei-Ling Chang, Patricia Rosario, Luterano (29)
Resurrección School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Evaluating Methods for Recovering and Destroying
Valuable Data
Enid M. Colón, Nuestra Señora de Belén School, (30)
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.
Fuel Cells Mathematical Model
Antoine Cotto, Ángel Figueroa, Christian Orta, (31)
José E. Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
Model of an Assistive Robot for the Treatment of
Patients with Back Pain Conditions
Alexis Figueroa, Santa María del Camino School, (32)
The Understanding, the Protection, and the Future of
Bluetooth Technology
Yaritza Flecha, Petra Mercado School, Humacao, (33)
Puerto Rico.
Kenneth Padró, San Antonio Abad Schoo, Humacao,
Puerto Rico.
Using Machine Learning Techniques for Classification
and Identification of Elements in Hyper Spectral Images
Natalie Fuentes, José Gautier Benítez School, Caguas, (34)
Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease Associated Mutations in
the Homo Sapiens Notch Homolog, Notch3 (Cadasil
Syndrome), nm_000435
Dinotchka M. García, Ireniamarel Morales, Petra (35)
Mercado School, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
The Presence of Mangroves and the Decrease of Turbidity
in the Water

25
Ricardo García, Nuestra Señora de Belén School, (36)
Mathematical Model of Levitation with Electromagnetic
Suspension (EMS)
Thalía Gómez, Josefa Pastrana School, Aguas Buenas, (37)
Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease Associated Mutations
in the Homo Sapiens Presenilin 1 (PSEN1), Transcript
Variant 1, NM_000021
Brianna M. González, Elizabeth Torres, San Antonio (38)
Abad School, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
Does Electrical Conductivity Affect Water Flow?
José A. González, José Aponte de la Torre School, (39)
Physics and Engineering Units Converter
Katherine A. Hernández, Interamerican School, (40)
San Germán, Puerto Rico.
Fractals in a Geometry Way
Jean P. Irizarry, Interamerican School, (41)
Iterations of Simple Forms
Edwin R. Jiménez, Eduardo García Carrillo School, (42)
Canóvanas, Puerto Rico.
Alejandro Ramos, Barbara Ann Roessler Academy,
Which Programming Language has a Better Readability
for a New Computer Science Student?
Jesús O. Martínez, Interamerican School, San (43)
Drawing Geometric Stars with Small Basic

26
Rocío del M. Méndez, Jean M. Rosado, Elvin Torres, (44)
Bautista de Caguas Academy, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Mindstorms NXT Trailer Pull Design Improvement and
Dynamic Analysis
Carlos Molina, Bilingue Padre Rufo School, (45)
Coffee-Harvesting Robot
Cristina Morales, Ernesto Ramos Antonini School, (46)
Nicole López, María Teresa Piñeiro School,
Toa Baja, Puerto Rico.
Which IDE is Easier to Use for a New Computer
Science Student?
Christian J. Ortiz, Petra Mercado School, (47)
David Pacheco, San Antonio Abad School,
Determining Areas in Biological Images Using
Techniques of Digital Images Processing
Casandra I. Pérez, Inter American School, San (48)
Shortest Path in a Graph
Ingrid G. Ramírez, Interamerican School, San Germán, (49)
Puerto Rico.
Global Warming
Joyce A. Rivera, Petra Mercado School, Humacao (50)
Puerto Rico.
Effects of Photosynthetic Plants in the Amount of
Dissolved Oxygen in the Water
Tiffany Rohena, José Aponte de la Torre School, (51)
The Software Program for the “Scramble Words” Game

27
Andrea Román, José E. Aponte de la Torre School, (52)
The Astrological GUI
Alex Sánchez, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy (53)
Samuel Urrutia, Santa María del Camino School,
How Secure is a Personal Computer and the Threats
it Faces Daily
Christopher Sepúlveda, Interamerican School, San (54)
A Realistic Paddle Game
Jean Paul Toledo, Santa María del Camino School, (55)
Why a Person’s Identity is More Valuable than Money
and How Easily it can be Obtained
Stephanie Torres, José E. Aponte de la Torre School, (56)
Expert Balance Nutrition System, “E.B.N.S”
Krystal C. Vega, Interamerican School, San (57)
Fractals from Small Symmetry Breaking
Nathalie C. Velázquez, Interamerican School, (58)
Graphs as Information Structures
Brandon Vélez, Interamerican School, San Germán, (59)
Puerto Rico.
Construction of Fractals

28
APPLIED MATHEMATICS
Dinorah Carrión, Thomas Alva Edison School,
The Use of Bioinformatics Tools to Build a Protein
Database for APOE4
Juan Espinal, María Teresa Piñeiro School, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Analyzing and Comprehending the SIR Model
Emanuel García, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy,
iRobot Create: State Machine and Behaviors
Gilmarie González, University Gardens School,
Household Chemical Compounds Effects Over
Bacteria Colonies
Carlos Oliveras, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy,
Presence of Coliforms in Different Bodies of Water
José Ortega, Luterano Resurrección School,
iRobot Create
Enrique Pérez, Thomas Alva Edison School,
The Hawksbill Turtle Nesting in Puerto Rico
Luis A. Reyes, Petra Zenón de Fabery Vocational
iRobot Create: Programming
Luis R. Santos, Notre Dame School, Caguas,
Puerto Rico.
iRobot Create: Anatomy
Kermit J. Toro, Petra Zenón de Fabery Vocational
(60)
(61)
(62)
(63)
(64)
(65)
(66)
(67)
(68)
(69)

29
A State Machine for the iRobot
David R. Díaz, Luis F. González, Juan Quirindongo
Morell School, Vega Baja, Puerto Rico.
Spherical Display of RSS Data
Pablo G. Díaz, Jonathan O. Espada, Carmen Sol School
Rising Water Levels
Wilma D. López, Alfredo Cabrera, Juan Quirindongo
Bounding Box Morphing
Michelle M. Mounier, Carvin School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
The Role of Major Importance of Freshwater Fungi in
Stream Ecosystems
Edwin Rodríguez, Nuestra Señora de Belén School,
Soil and Water Quality Analysis in Urban Streams at the
Puerto Nuevo Basin
Grace M. Russe, Kevin M. Otero, Juan Quirindongo
Ana M. Ortiz, Santa María del Camino School,
Early Warning Catastrophe Alert System
Natalia Santiago, Manuela Toro Morice School,
Maxine González, Bautista de Puerto Nuevo Academy
Comparison of Phosphorus and Macroinvertebrates in Two
Streams Surrounded by Residential and Commercial Areas
(70)
(71)
(72)
(73)
(74)
(75)
(76)

30
Tatiana Zambrano, Miguel Such Vocational School, San
Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Phosphorus Concentration in Urban Streams at the Puerto
Nuevo Basin
(77)
11:10 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. COFFEE BREAK PONCE DE LEÓN FOYER

31
11:45 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. ORAL PRESENTATIONS
SESSION I -
PONCE DE LEÓN BALLROOM C
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Chairperson: Dr. Ángel Arcelay, Universidad del Este
11:45 – 11:55 a.m.
11:55 – 12:05 m.
12:05 – 12:15 m.
12:15 – 12:25 m.
12:25 – 12:35 m.
12:35 – 12:45 m.
12:45 – 12:55 m.
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Tahiré Carrasquillo, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
The SIFT Analysis of the Homo Sapiens Triadin
Brianna M. Coriano, María Auxiliadora School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
Analysis of the Mutation in the BMP4 Gene Which Generates the
Disease Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva
Jennifer L. Delfaus, Notre Dame School, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Evolutionary Analysis of Disease AssociateD Mutations in the homo
sapiens Collagen type I, alpha 2 (COL1A2), NM_000089
Elvin A. Méndez, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto
Rico.
Evolutional Study of Amino Acid Changes of PTPRB
Frances C. Negrón, Bautista de Levittown Academy,
Analysis of Comparison and Protein Conservation in the
Telomerase
Alvin A. Peralta, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto
Rico.
Computational Study of Amino Acid Changes with Gene ECH1
Isamar Rivera, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
Study of AA Changes of Homo Sapiens Fanconi Anemia (FANCA)

32
12:55 – 1:05 p.m.
1:05 – 1:15 p.m.
Nicolle A. Rosa, Bautista de Levittown Academy, Toa Baja,
Puerto Rico.
Comparative Analysis of Amino Acid Sequence in ATP5B and
NA, K-ATPASE Proteins
Edgardo Vázquez, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
A Computational Study of Amino Acid Substitution in the Rasal 1
Gene

33
11:45 a.m. – 1:15 m. ORAL PRESENTATIONS
SESSION II -
COMPUTER SCIENCES
PONCE DE LEÓN BALLROOM A
Chairperson: Dr. Marlio Paredes, Universidad del Turabo
11:45 – 11:55 a.m. Isardo Braverman, José García, Stephan Remy, José Aponte
De la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Wireless Communication Network to Help on the Treatment
of Diabetes
11:55 – 12:05 m. Michael G. Carmona, Néstor D. Carrasco, Petra Mercado
School, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
High Temperature Decreases the Amount of Disolved Oxygen in
the Water
12:05 – 12:15 m. Carlimar Collazo, Interamerican School, San Germán,
Puerto Rico.
Airplane Flight Simulation
12:15 – 12:25 m. Kevin Estrada, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Exploring the Wireless Network and Why Security is Required
12:25 – 12:35 m. Sergio L. Hernández, Bautista de Levittown School, Toa Baja,
Puerto Rico.
Nicole Massa, Luterano Resurrección School, Carolina,
Puerto Rico.
Sensitive Data and the Importance of Keeping it Highly Secured
12:35 – 12:45 m. Steven Lugo, Interamerican School, San Germán,
Puerto Rico.
Construction of Fractals by Small Changes in Size
and Rotation
12:45 – 12:55 m. Gilberto Robles, Bautista de Levittown Academy, Toa Baja,
Puerto Rico.
Albert Santiago, María Teresa Piñeiro School, Toa Baja, Puerto
Rico.
What Programming Language is Easier to Learn for New
Computer Science Students?

34
12:55 – 1:05 p.m. Alex D. Santos, Carlos E. Sánchez, University Gardens School,
The Reliability of JAVA, C++ & PYTHON Programming
Languages
1:05 – 1:15 p.m. Melinda Vargas, San Antonio Abad School, Humacao,
Puerto Rico.
Jorge O. Méndez, Petra Mercado School, Humacao, Puerto Rico.
The True Effects of How Air Temperature Affects Water
Temperature

35
11:20 a.m. – 12:35 p.m. ORAL PRESENTATIONS
SESSION III -
ALMENDROS
CONFERENCE ROOM
APPLIED MATHEMATICS
Chairperson: Dr. Carlos Castillo, Arizona State University
APPLIED MATHEMATICS
11:45 – 11:55 a.m.
11:55 – 12:05 m.
12:05 – 12:15 a.m.
12:15 – 12:25 m.
12:25 – 12:35 m.
Sarah Matos, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Do Disinfectants Kill 99% of Bacteria?
Damarys Ramos, Bárbara Ann Roessler Academy, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Efficiency of Toothpaste Against Normal Human Oral Flora
Eric Santos, University of Puerto Rico High School, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
MATLAB: Simulating Mass Spring Damper System
José G. Curcio, Carvin School, Inc., Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Relationships Between Stream Quality and Freshwater Fish
Camila del Mar Rodríguez, Puertorriqueño de Niñas,
Tolerance of the Cyan-Bacteria Chroococcus to Changes in the
PH of Water
1:30 – 3:00 p.m. LUNCH PONCE DE LEÓN BALLROOM A
Speaker: Dr. Dave Touretzky
Carnegie Mellon University
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. AWARD CEREMONY AND
CLOSING REMARKS
PONCE DE LEÓN BALLROOM A
4:00 p.m. SYMPOSIUM ADJOURNS

36
ABSTRACTS
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
EVOLUTIONARY ANALYSIS OF DISEASE ASSOCIATED MUTATIONS IN THE HOMO
SAPIENS PHENYLALANINE HYDROXYLASE, PAH, PHENYLKETONURIA DISORDER,
NM_000277
Gregory Almena, José Gautier Benítez School, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
Research Mentor: Raúl M. Navedo, Universidad del Turabo, Gurabo, Puerto Rico.
Research Assistant: Karen L. Burgos, Universidad del Turabo, Gurabo, Puerto Rico.
Genetic diseases are caused by mutations in specific amino acid sites that encode important proteins and
human development processes. In this project, the amino acid sites that have been changed along species
that share a lineal evolutive history were studied. In this case, mutations in amino acid sites of human
diseases associated genes were studied. The purpose of this project was to determine patterns in variations
and differences of the amino acid sites that have been identified as Disease Associated Mutations and the
Non-Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms. This amino acid sequences was obtained from the UCSC
Genome Browser and then submitted to the Fitch program. Fitch program outputs the evolutionary rates
for these amino acid sites in the entire gene along multiple vertebrates species. The evolutionary test
shows that the low areas of evolutionary rates, between 0.0 and 1.5, have the greater concentration of
DAMs which reveals the importance of these sites for the vertebrate species. The nSNPs, in contrast, are
found at greater levels of the evolutionary rate scale which means that there is a lack of importance if they
are analyzed in terms of the change frequency. Another test is the Polyphen diagnostic tool that shows a
26 % difference for the DAM’s and a 31 % difference for the nSNPs. The PolyPhen test is important
because it can be used to improve this tool for future experiments.
BIOINFORMATIC STUDY OF HOUSEKEEPING GENE CYTOCHROME C
Yanisse M. Aponte, María Auxiliadora School, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Mentor: Krizia L. Cabrera, Universidad Metropolitana, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Assistant: Dorielys Valentin, Universidad Metropolitana, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Cytochrome c is a small heme protein found loosely associated with the inner membrane of the
mitochondrion. It belongs to the cytochrome c family of proteins. Cytochrome c is a highly soluble
protein, unlike other cytochromes, and is an essential component of the electron transport chain. It is
capable of undergoing oxidation and reduction, but does not bind oxygen. It transfers electrons between
Complexes III and IV. It is also a highly conserved protein across the spectrum of species. Its primary
structure consists of a chain of about 100 amino acids. Cytochrome c can catalyze several reactions such
as hydroxylation and aromatic oxidation. The purpose of this research is to evaluate cytochrome c by
means of bioinformatics tools. Molecular Evolutionary Genomic Analysis (MEGA 4) is a program that
compares the sequence of homologous genes and proteins of different species. With MEGA4, two
phylogenetic trees were created; the minimum (comparison of the proteins between species) and the
maximun (comparison between species). In the minimum phylogenetic tree, the most similar species were
Equus caballus and Bos Taurus, while the least similar was Oryctolagus cuniculus. In the maximum the
most similar were Sus scrofa and Bos Taurus, while the least similar was Rattus norvegicu. Genedoc, a
multiple sequence editor was used to determine the conservation of amino acids in the Cytochrome c and
which are non-polar and polar. According to Genedoc, the most present amino acid in all the sequences
was leucine. With Genedoc, it was determined that the Cytochrome c sequence of amino acids is 65.40%
conserved in the species studied, in which there are 149 polar and 422 non-polar. In conclusion, the
results may suggest that there are certain conserved amino acids because they may be important for the
function of Cytochrome c, and that there are various evolutionary differences between species.

37
DETERMINATION OF CONSERVATION OF AMINO ACIDS IN EUKARYOTIC
TRANSLATION INITIATION FACTOR 4A-II (EIF4A2)
Leila Ayala, Santa María del Camino School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
The eukaryotic translation is the process by which messenger RNA is translated into proteins in
eukaryotes. EIF4A2, meaning eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4A, contains 1 helicase C-terminal
domain and 1 helicase ATP-binding domain. The EIF4A2 (eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4A) can
be found in human, mouse, rat, dog, among other eukaryotes. The goal for this research was to determine
evolutionary changes in EIF4A2 in the selected organisms and determine the percentage of conservation
between evaluated species. Certain programs were used in this research, BLAST for finding regions of
similarity between biological sequences and TCOFFE for evaluating and manipulating multiple
alignments of proteins sequences. However, the programs used for analyzing the data were GeneDoc, a
program used for a full featured multiple sequence alignment editor and the MEGA4 -Molecular
Evolutionary Genetics Analysis- an integrated tool for conducting automatic and manual sequence
alignment, inferring phylogenetic trees, mining web-based databases, estimating rates of molecular
evolution. The results may suggest that the EIF4A2 percentage of conservation between was 82%. Of the
total amino acids present in the sequence, 443 were conserved. Of those conserved, 238 were polar and
206 were non-polar. Two phylogenetic trees were made, one that showed the comparison between species
(maximum) and a comparison between proteins (minimum). In the maximum, the species more related
were Monodelphis domestica and Pan troglodytes, while the least was Canis familiaris. In terms of
protein, Pongo abelli and Homo sapiens were the most similar and Pan troglodytes the least. In
conclusion, the objectives established were reached. This may help in gaining more insight into
translation factor proteins and their evolution among organisms.
TETRACYCLINE PROTEIN ANALYSIS BY GENEDOC AND MEGA4
Angélica M. Cardona, Santa María del Camino School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Tetracycline is used to treat certain infections and also to help control acne. This medicine will not work
for colds, flu or other virus infections. It is active against gram-positive bacteria, gram-negative aerobic
and anaerobic conditions. Tetracycline accumulates in bone and teeth causing them to become a yellow-
gray. To reach its target site tetracycline has to penetrate the cell wall through pores or by a transport
process. The purpose of this research was to determine evolutionary changes in the selected microbes and
to determine the percentage of evaluated species to gain more insight into tetracycline proteins. To
determine evolutionary changes in the species, the MEGA4 (Molecular Genetics Analysis) program was
used, which compares DNA or protein sequences through the use of phylogenetic trees. There are two
types of phylogenetic trees, the maximum and minimum. The maximum makes a comparison between
species, while the minimum compares the sequence of the protein between the species. In both trees, the
most similar species were Rhizobium leguminosarum and Rhizobium etli, while the least similar was
Streptomyces scabiei. GeneDoc is a powerful editor, which allows to manually edit and add a wide range
of attributes to multi-sequence alignments. The tetracycline sequences were analyzed with this program
and it showed that Alanine (A) was the amino acid with the highest abundance. GeneDoc also indicated
the percentage of conserved amino acids in the sequence, which was 47%. With these results it can be
said that the sequence of amino acids is not very conserved so it can be concluded that this protein can
vary among species. In addition, the results in the maximum and minimum phylogenetic trees are
extremely similar according to the MEGA4 analysis, which may indicate similarities between species
while showing possible evolutionary changes.

38
THE SIFT ANALYSIS OF THE HOMO SAPIENS TRIADIN
Tahiré Carrasquillo, José Aponte de la Torre, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Research Mentor: Dr. Ángel R. Arcelay, Universidad del Este, School of Science and Technology,
Student Research Mentor Assistant: Carol J. Díaz, Universidad del Este, School of Science and
Technology, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Mentor Assistant: Amir M. Rodríguez, Universidad Interamericana, San Juan, Puerto
Rico.
TRDN gene is a human gene associated with the release of calcium ions from the sarcoplasmic reticulum
triggering muscular contraction through calcium-induced calcium release. Triadin is a multiple protein
family, some isoforms being involved in muscle excitation-contraction coupling, and some are still
having unknown functions. It can be located at chromosome: 6; Location: 6q22-q23. Functionally, the
gene has been tested for association to the Cardiomegaly disease. Cardiomegaly is a condition where the
heart enlarges in a cardiothoracic ratio of more than 0.50. It can be attributed to a lot of causes, but mostly
it is because of low heart output, otherwise referred to as a cardiac failure. This condition is very common
to people who have chronic systolic heart failure or cardiomyopathies. It is believed that most athletes
have enlarged hearts, but in this case, theirs is not considered to be a medical condition at all. In essence,
cardiomegaly is not always bad, at least not for sports people. SIFT prediction has led to the conclusion
that 37% of mutations in TRDN are intolerant, proving that this gene is highly tolerant of towards
substitutions.
ANALYSIS OF THE MUTATION IN THE BMP4 GENE WHICH GENERATES THE DISEASE
FIBRODYSPLASIA OSSIFICANS PROGRESSIVA
Brianna M. Coriano, María Auxiliadora School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
The homo sapiens bone morphogenetic protein 4 gene found in chromosome 14 causes the disease
Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva. The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the bone
morphogenetic protein family which is part of the transforming growth factor-beta super family. This
disease arises from a mutation in BMP4 gene. FOP causes bone to form in muscle, tendons and
ligaments. Bone forms in the same way as when it heals after a fracture. Through the years it
progressively restricts movements and forms bone outside of the skeleton. There are no effective
treatments and surgery for the disease; for that reason, it worsen as a person ages. With the use of the
program SIFT, Sorting Intolerant from Tolerant, 20 changes in positions were studied randomly. The
result from the program was 0.05% or less intolerant. Beyond 0.05% change was tolerant to the amino
acid change. The result revealed a 39.75% intolerant; which means that it will resist the changes.

39
ANALYSIS OF EVOLUTIONARY CHANGES AND CONSERVATION OF
GLYCERALDEHYDE-3-PHOSPHATE DEHYDROGENASE (GADPH) BETWEEN HOMOLOG
SPECIES
Valeria M. Correa, Santa María del Camino School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH) is a housekeeping gene that catalyzes the NAD-
mediated oxidative phosphorylation of its substrate to D-1,3-diphosphoglyceric acid. The enzyme exists
as a tetramer of identical subunits. GAPDH displays diverse non-glycolytic functions as well, its role
depending upon its sub cellular location. The program BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) was
used to find regions of local similarity between sequences. It compares nucleotide or protein sequences to
sequence databases and calculates the statistical significance of matches. The program TCOFFEE was
used to create a multiple sequence alignment. In order to determine evolutionary changes in the GAPDH,
the percentage of conservation between evaluated species and to determine conserved amino acids with
their corresponding position, GeneDoc was used, a Full Featured Multiple Sequence Alignment Editor,
and MEGA4 (Molecular Evolutionary Genetic Analysis) an integrated tool for conducting automatic and
manual sequence alignment by inferring phylogenetic trees and mining web-based databases. The results
in GeneDoc showed that 57% of the amino acids were conserved. The results in MEGA 4 showed that in
the max phylogenetic tree the most related species were Pinus sylvestris with Marchantia polymorpha,
and the least related is Physcomitrella patens; and in the minimum phylogenetic tree the most related are
Sorghum bicolor with Zea mays, and the least related are Pinus sylvestris with Marchantia polymorpha.
The results of this research suggest that the species studied had suffered changes because the amino acids
were not conserved. This may be due to evolutionary changes.
EVOLUTIONARY ANALYSIS OF DISEASE ASSOCIATED MUTATIONS IN THE
HOMO SAPIENS COLLAGEN TYPE I, ALPHA 2 (COL1A2), NM_000089
Jeniffer L. Delfaus, Notre Dame School, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
The purpose of this project was to determine differences in evolutionary patterns of amino acid positions
associated to mutations in the COL1A2 Gene, previously classified in disease associated mutations and
non-single nucleotide polymorphisms. To achieve this, it was necessary to apply an evolutionary analysis
using the Fitch program that outputs evolutionary rates for the mutations on the gene. The results are
presented in a histogram that shows the frequency of amino acids positions based on their evolutionary
rates in scale. The mutations that have been identified as possible DAMs show o remarkable difference
when compared with the nSNPs positions. Most of DAM positions are under the 1.0 and most of the
nSNPs are above that point in the evolutionary scale. The differences observed between positions can be
explained in terms of evolutionary importance of certain amino acid positions over others of less
importance to be maintained in the evolutionary history because they are extremely necessary to life as as
it is known at present. Another analytical tool, the PolyPhen, was applied to the sequences to determine
the precision of this tool on mutations analysis. The result for this gene shows a 22% of error for the
DAMs and a 55% of error for the nSNPs. The error present for the nSNPs positions is acceptable
considering that the number of nSNPs is too small for statistical consideration in this gene.

40
THE HOMO SAPIENS POLYCYSTIC KIDNEY DISEASE 1 LIKE 2 (PXD1L2)
Rosana C. Feliciano, PORFOR Educational Service School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
This research will study the mutations related to PKD1, PKD2 genes. These genes are located in
chromosome 4. PKD1 and PKD2 encode a member of the polycystic family, that is polycystin-1 is a
protein that in humans is encoded by the PKD1 gene. Mutations in the PKD1, PKD2, AND PKHD1 cause
the autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. They can also lead the PKD1 or PKD2 gene to the
formation of thousands of cysts, which disrupt the normal functions of the kidneys and other organs.
People with mutations in the PKD2 gene, particularly women, typically have a less severe form of the
disease than people with PKD1 mutations. In this research, the changes of the amino acids in the proteins
were studied, with 20 positions picked randomly. For this research, a SIFT program that can predict if
amino acids changes are tolerant or intolerant was used. SIFT results predicted that this gene is 50.5%
intolerant and 49.5% tolerant.
STUDY OF THE PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF STRETTOMYCES 6-
KINASE USING BIOINFORMATIC TOOLS
Yarimar Figueroa, Santa María del Camino School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Streptomyces 6 kinase is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reactions and belongs to the family of
tranferases. This enzyme participates in streptomycin biosynthesis. Streptomycin is an antibiotic drug, the
first of a class of drugs called aminoglycosides to be discovered and was the first antibiotic remedy for
tuberculosis. The purpose of this research was to determine evolutionary changes, and the percentage of
conservation between evaluated species in the streptomyces 6 kinase ptotein. BLAST finds regions of
similarity between biological sequences while TCOFFE was used to do multiple alignments. GeneDoc
was used to find conserved amino acids and their respective positions and determine their percentage of
conservation. The Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA) version 4.0, was used to determine
evolutionary changes by means of phylogenetic trees. The amount of polar and non-polar amino acids and
the percentage of conservation were determined using GENEDOC. They indicated 48 of the amino acids
polar and 83 non-polar leaving a 0.3% of conservation. In the phylogenetic tree of streptomyces protein
comparison between species, similarity between Streptomyces griseus and Streptomyces roseosporus can
be seen while the least related are Streptomyces albulus and Streptomyces cinnamoneus. In the
phylogenetic tree of species comparison, the Streptomyces albulus and Streptomyces cinnamoneus are
more related while Streptomyces platensis is the least similar between species. These results suggest they
have suffered change due to low conservation in amino acids, implying that the Streptomyces 6 kinase
may vary in sequence with time.

41
STUDY OF THE PERCENTAGE OF AMINO ACID CONSERVATION AND EVOLUTIONARY
CHANGES IN ALPHA TUBULIN 1A
Andrea Flores, Santa María Del Camino School, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Mentor: Krizia L. Cabrera, Universidad Metropolitana, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Alpha Tubulin 1a is a globular protein with the designated names of alpha, beta and gamma Tubulin.
Together they form the major component of microtubules, which are often cell-type specific.
Microtubules tend to be functionally distinct and are involved in various biological processes like in a
non-neuronal cell process formation and in neurite outgrowth. In addition to this, Alpha Tubulin 1a forms
a soluble multi-protein particle with several others proteins. The goal of this research was to determine
evolutionary changes and the percentage of conservation between different species in the Alpha Tubulin
1a protein. To carry out the research, certain programs were used such as: GeneDoc, a full featured
multiple sequence alignment editor, analyzer and shading. Furthermore, MEGA 4 (Molecular
Evolutionary Genetics Analysis) was used to conduct automatic and manual sequence alignment and
inferring phylogenetic trees. The program MEGA4 provides two types of phylogenetic trees, the
maximum and the minimum. The phylogenetic tree compares between species, while the minimum
provides a protein comparison. The minimum phylogenetic tree indicated that the most related were
Oncorhynchus nerka with Danio rerio and the least related are Cricetulus griseus with Equus caballus. In
the maximum phylogenetic tree, the most related were Oncorhynchus nerka with Danio rerio and the
least related are Cricetulus griseus with Equus caballus, just as seen in the previous phylogenetic tree.
The conservation of percentage of amino acids was provided by the GeneDoc program. The result of
conservation was 91% and the most common amino acids were E (Glutamic Acid), G (Glycine) and A
(Alanine). These results suggest that any alteration in the sequence of Tubulin alpha 1a may affect its
structure and function.
HOMO SAPIENS NOTCH HOMOLOG, NOTCH3 (CADASIL SYNDROME),
NM_000435
Nathalie Fuentes, José Gautier Benítez School, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
The comparative genomics project focuses on the research of gene mutations and their effects on humans
in terms of health. There are two types of mutations: disease associated mutations (DAM's) and
associated single nucleotide Polymorphism (nSNPs). The evolutionary rates of amino acid positions play
a crucial role in determining whether a mutation is a harmful one, which occurs on low evolutionary rates
positions or simply irrelevant; meaning that it provokes the development of disease phenotypes. The latter
are usually present on high evolutionary rates. This project focused on the evolutionary rates of DAMs
and nSNPs, their role, and how they affect the NM_000435 (NOTCH3) gene in contrast with other genes.
This gene mutates and causes CADASIL (Cerebral Autosomal Dominant Arteriopathy with Subcortical
Infarcts and Leukoencephalopathy), the most common form of hereditary stroke disorder. In order to
obtain the evolutionary rates of the gene, computational tools are needed. The gene bank offers the data
necessary to calculate the evolutionary rates of a gene in several species. Polyphen is the most widely
used method for estimating potential lethal effects of amino acid mutations. During this research, not only
the gene's variation in Homo sapiens are being investigated, but also forty-one species. As more
information is collected, the computational tools become more efficient in understanding the mutations
that occur in genes and how they affect health. This can possibly revolutionize how these rare inherited
diseases are treated. To determine the difference between observed and expected values for DAMs, the p-
value is crucial.

42
HOMO SAPIENS PRESENILIN 1 (PSEN1), TRANSCRIPT VARIANT 1, NM_000021
Thalía Gómez, Josefa Pastrana School, Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico.
This project was focused on determining evolutive patterns in amino acid positions of the PSEN1. The
amino acid positions are classified into DAM’s or nSNPs to determine the differences that help to collect
more data related to the amino acid changes that cause a Human disease. The sequences are obtained from
the UCSC data bank and then edited to be analyzed with the Fitch program which brings a histogram of
frequencies of amino acid mutations in the whole gene based on its evolutionary rate using sequences of
the same gene in vertebrates that preceded humans in the evolutionary history. The patterns observed
reflect that most of mutations that have been previously identified as disease associated mutations show
an evolutionary rate between 0.0 and 1.0. By contrast the non-single polymorphism mutations are
between 1.0 and 2.5 which is a considerable difference between these mutations in the gene if these are
analysed in an evolutionary rate context. Based on the results of this test, it assumed that the aa positions
with low evolutionary rate are essential to the development of life as it is known and the other positions
are lack of importance based on the high evolutionary rate. The sequences have been submitted to the
PolyPhen diagnostic tool to determine the probabilities of damage in each position based on the domains
of the test. The PolyPhen test results in a 36 % of error for the DAMs and a 26% of error for the nSNPs.
The results are submitted to future experiments with different statistical tools for new conclusions.
STUDY OF THE PERCENTAGE OF AMINO ACID CONSERVATION AND EVOLUTIONARY
CHANGES OF DNA TOPOISOMERASE
Angélica González, Carvin School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
DNA topoisomerase is an enzyme responsible for uncoiling DNA which is the relaxation and the
extension of the DNA molecule. There are two types of topoisomerases, type I and type II. Type I cuts
only one strand of the DNA while the type II cuts both DNA strands. DNA topoisomerase helps in
different cellular processes such as transcription and replication of the DNA. The objectives in this
research were to determine the percentage of conserved amino acids and determine evolutionary changes
by means of a phylogenetic tree. Molecular Evolutionary Genetic Analysis (MEGA4) is an integrated tool
for conducting automatic and manual sequence alignment, inferring phylogenetic trees. To find the
percentage of conserved amino acids Genedoc was used, a full featured multiple sequence alignment
editor, analyzer and shading utility. There are two types of phylogenetic trees: the maximum and the
minimum. The maximum is a comparison between species and the minimum is a comparison in the
proteins between the species. In the minimum, the most similar species were Shigella dysenteriae and
Escherichia coli, while the least similar was Edwardsiella tarda. Similar to the minimum, the species
that were more alike in the maximum were Escherichia coli and Shigella dysenteriae but the least similar
was Erwinia amylovora. The percentage of conservation was determined by the use of Genedoc which
was 68% of conservation. These results may suggest that there have been changes in the amino acid
sequence but the ones that are conserved are there because they might be important to the structure and
function of the protein.

43
MUTATIONS IN THE HEPARAN SULFATE PROTEOGLYCAN 2 GENE
Stephanie Hall, Carvin School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
The heparin sulfate proteoglycan 2 is the gene that codifies for the perlecan protein, and it is located in
chromosome 1. This protein is expressed on different membranes and in vascular extracellular matrix
structures. The main function is to maintain vascular homeostasis and regulate growth factors, such as
bone development. Mutations in this gene cause the Schwartz-Jampel Syndrome Type 1 (SJS type 1)
disease and the Silverman-Handmaker, which is a type of Dyssegmental dysplasia (DDSH). The SJS
disease is associated with the nervous system, and it causes muscle spasm, skeletal dysplasia, and growth
retardation. The DDSH disease is associated with the cartilage structures, and it causes malformations and
deformations of skeletal structures at birth, such as a small chest, flat face and reduced joint mobility.
These mutations result in changes in the amino acids that compose the perlecan protein. The SIFT
(Sorting Intolerant from Tolerant) program predicts if substitutions of amino acids affect the protein’s
functions. Twenty different positions of the gene were chosen randomly, and they were visually graphed
so that the percentages of intolerant amino acids changes could be obtained. Results of this investigation
were that 78% of the amino acids changes are intolerant, meaning that the majority of the mutations affect
the perlecan protein. This information is useful for future references to manipulate the function of the
protein, so that it can adapt to new changes in the environment. This stimulates the evolution of
organisms in a way that they can survive and maintain their species in the circle of life.

44
DETERMINATION OF PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE
HOUSEKEEPING GENE SUCCINATE DEHYDROGENASE
Natalie M. Jiménez, María Auxiliadora School, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
A housekeeping gene is always expressed and encodes for proteins that are constantly required by the
cell, therefore, are essential to a cell and are always present in any condition. The encoded protein is
generally involved in basic functions and needed for maintenance in the cell. One housekeeping gene,
Succinate Dehydrogenase is a flavoprotein containing oxidoreductase that catalyzes the dehydrogenation
of succinate to fumarate. In most eukaryotic organisms, this enzyme is a component of complex II
electron transport of mitochondria and involved in the Krebs cycle and the electron transport chain and
contains FAD (flavin adenine dinucleotide) covalently. It catalyzes the oxidation of succinate to
fumarate, and is the only enzyme in the tricarboxylic acid cycle that is not free in the matrix
mitochondrial. The purpose of this work was to determine the percentage of conservation and
evolutionary changes of this housekeeping gene. Two programs used were: MEGA4 and GeneDoC. The
Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA) is a software application designed for comparative
analysis of homologous gene sequences. It was used to compare the housekeeping gene Succinate
Dehydrogenase using the following species: Escherichia coli, Shigella flexneri, Salmonella enterica,
Klebsiella pneumonia, Citrobacter koseri, Cronobacter sakazakii, Cronobacter turicensis, Dickey
dadantii, Pectobacterium carotovorum,and Vibrio coralliilyticus. In the minimum phylogentic tree, the
most similar species are Escherichia coli and Shigella flexneri and the least similar is Vibrio
coralliilyticus. In the maximum phylogentic tree, the most similar species are Escherichia Coli and
Shigella flexneri while the least similar is Vibrio coralliilyticus. Genedoc is a program used to determine
the percentage of amino acid conservation and non-polar and polar amino acids. According to GeneDoc,
all the species share amino acids that were conserved giving a 87.8% of conservation. Also, the
conserved amino acids were evaluated to determine which are polar and non-polar. It was determined that
there are 270 non-polar and 245 polar amino acids. In conclusion, the gene can tolerate some change, yet
other amino acids may be essential to the function or structure of the protein, hence this may be due to
evolutionary changes that the Succinate Dehydrogenase may have suffered.

45
AMINO ACIDS CHANGES IN THE HOMO SAPIENS GENE NEBULIN (NEB) AND THE
MUTATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DISEASE NEMALINE MYOPATHY
Natalia C. López, Carvin School, Inc., Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
The objective of this work was to analyze amino acids changes of NEB using the SIFT program. The
NEB gene is located in chromosome 2 and has a locus of 20632 bp. This gene encodes the protein
nebulin, which is the major component of the cytoskeletal matrix. In most vertebrates, nebulin accounts
for 3 to 4% of the total myofibrillar protein. Mutations on this gene are associated with recessive
Nemaline Myopathy (NM). NM is a disorder which presents skeletal muscle weakness, hypotonia
(decreased the amount of tension or resistance to movement in a muscle), and absent deep tendon
reflexes. The diagnosis of this disease is confirmed by identification of nemaline bodies in affected
muscles. In this study, the amino acids changes of NEB were analyzed using the program SIFT (Sorting
Intolerant from Tolerant). This program predicts which change in amino acids is tolerant or intolerant.
Twenty positions of amino acids sequences were chosen randomly to analyze them. From those positions,
46.25 % were tolerant and the 53.75 % were intolerant.
EVOLUTIONAL STUDY OF AMINO ACID CHANGES ON PTPRB
Elvin A. Méndez, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
Protein tyrosine phosphatase, receptor type B is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by
the PTPRB gene. The protein encoded by this gene is member of the protein tyrosine phosphatase family.
Protein tyrosine phosphatases are known to be molecules that regulate a variety of cellular processes
including cell growth, differentiation, mitotic cycle, and oncogenic transformation. This gene has been
tested for association to kidney cancer. The objective of this research was to examine changes on the
amino acids using SIFT, which predicts whether an amino acid substitution can affect protein function. It
also determines the tolerance and intolerance level on amino acids changes. Twenty positions of the gene
were taken randomly to observe the levels of intolerance, concluding that an average of 67% amino acids
from this gene were intolerant meaning that a high percent of amino acids did not resist the changes in
amino acid which caused the mutation.

46
HOMO SAPIENS FIBRILIN 1 (FBN1), NM_000138
Jaynee Mendoza, Bautista de Caguas Academy, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
This project is focused on investigating the differences between mutated amino acid sites of a disease
associate human gene. To achieve this work, it was necessary to make an evolutive comparative analysis
of these mutated amino acid sites in several sequences from the same gene in about thirty vertebrate
species, including the Human gene associated to the FBN1. The sequences are obtained from the UCSC
Genome Browser and analyzed by a parsimony program created in the Evolutionary Functional Genomics
Center at Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University. The program outputs the rates necessary to the
Histogram that show the frequencies for an evolutionary rate scale. The results for the DAM in the graph
show a considerable concentration of mutated sites at low evolutionary rates and high concentrations of
nSNPs at evolutionary rate between the 1.5 and the 2.5 units. The PolyPhen test was another tool used in
this project to measure the accuracy of the diagnostic tool with the information obtained from the EFG
lab. This tool shows a 25 % of difference for the DAMs and a 40 % percent of difference for the nSNPs.
EVOLUTIONARY ANALYSIS OF DISEASE ASSOCIATED MUTATIONS IN HOMO
SAPIENS CALCIUM-SENSING RECEPTOR, (CASR), NM_000388
Alexander P. Molina, Bautista de Caguas Academy, Caguas, Puerto Rico.
The most important issue in the analysis of molecular evolutionary patterns using genome sequence
projects is to make a good structure based on factors of the evolution of genetically-based diseases. The
analysis of evolution rates in amino acid positions between clinical and population genetics can help to
understand the phenotypes caused by disease mutations using computational tools. This investigation
allows for the understanding of the difference between DAMs and nSNPs in the evolutionary rates of
diseases. To present and compare the position of both, the evolutionary rates needed to be calculated. The
gene calcium-sensing receptor (CASR) is located on chromosome three. The protein encoded by this gene
is a G protein-coupled receptor that is expressed in the parathyroid hormone (PTH)-producing chief cells
of the parathyroid gland, and the cells lining the kidney tubule. It senses small changes in circulating
calcium concentration and couples this information to intracellular signaling pathways that modify PTH
secretion or renal caution handling, thus this protein plays an essential role in maintaining mineral ion
homeostasis. The nSNPs observed and expected are too few for a statistical significance. Meanwhile, the
p-value of DAMs is 1.55E-6, which establishes a difference between them. The results for evolutionary
rates for DAMs are expected in low rate levels and reveal the evolutionary frequency levels. The number
of nNSPs is so small that they are not significant; on the other hand, the DAMS in calcium-sensing
receptor genes have 29.4% of error. Diagnosis tools are based on structure and chemical composition and
their predictable accuracy is an important goal to clinical advances.

47
ANALYSIS OF COMPARISON AND PROTEIN CONSERVATION IN THE TELOMERASE
Frances C. Negrón, Bautista de Levittown Academy, Toa Baja, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Mentor: Krizia Cabrera, Universidad Metropolitana, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Student Research Mentor Assistant: Dorielys Valentin, Universidad Metropolitana, San Juan, Puerto
Rico.
The telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) is a protein-coding gene located in chromosome 5. This
enzyme is a reverse transcriptase that carries its own RNA molecule, which is used as a template when it
elongates telomeres, which are shortened after each replication cycle. The telomeres are the ends of the
eukaryotic chromosome and are specialized chromatin structures; this is a region of repetitive DNA at the
end of the chromosome. The objectives in this research are to determine the evolutionary changes in the
TERT gene, percentage of conservation between evaluated species, and conserved amino acids. The
programs that were used in the research were GeneDoc and MEGA4. GenDoc is a program used for the
comparison, visualization and alignments of the species that edits the alignments of the sequence. The
Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA) version 4.0 is software that compares DNA or
protein sequences of homolog species to estimate evolutionary rates using phylogenetic trees. There are
two types of phylogenetic trees, the maximum and the minimum. In the maximum there is a comparison
in the species; and the minimum is a protein comparison between the chosen species. GeneDoc showed
that the percentage of conservation between evaluated species was 37.13%. In MEGA4, the maximum
phylogenetic tree showed that Rattus norvegicus and Mus musculus are the most similar, and Cotumix
japonica is the farthest one that does not relate much with the other ones. The results in the minimum
phylogenetic tree were that Rattus norvegicus and Mus musculus are very related, while Cotumix japonica
is more related between them. In conclusion, GenDoc presents a low percentage of conservation
suggesting that the TERT protein can tolerate changes in its structure. MEGA4 shows that the relation
between each species and the protein is similar. Theses results may give more insight into TERT proteins.
COMPUTATIONAL STUDY OF AMINO ACID CHANGES WITH GENE ECH1
Alvin A. Peralta, José Aponte de la Torre School, Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Rico.
The gene ECH1 was analyzed with amino acid changes with the program SIFT. The gene’s full name is
Homo sapiens enoyl Coenzyme A hydratases 1, peroxisomal and it codifies the enzyme enoyl-coenzyme
A hydratase. This is an enzyme that reversibly catalyzes the hydration of unsaturated fatty acyl-CoA to
produce beta-hydroxyacyl-CoA. It plays an important role in the oxidation of fatty acids and in
mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis. This gene is believed to play a major role in the formation of
malignant and non-malignant pancreatic neoplasms (pancreatic cancer). The SIFT program, designed for
this type of research, was used to elaborate predictions for changes in amino acid positions. A 0.05 mark
indicates tolerance and intolerance; that is, if they can withstand the amino acid substitution or not. If a
prediction was below this level, it was intolerant; if not, it was tolerant. Results showed that 63% of
amino acid substitutions were intolerant towards the changes in the positions since they were below the
indicating value. Due to high intolerance levels, an apparent mutation (modified or abnormal expression
of amino acids) is made and negatively affected protein function in the majority of cases. This gene could
in return induce effects such as the development of possible diseases because of mutations.

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