UA Student One of Four National Recipients of Benjamin Cummings Biology Prize

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama sophomore biology major, University Honors Program student and Caldwell Lab undergraduate researcher Kyle Lee of Millry has been named a 2008 recipient of the prestigious Benjamin Cummings Biology Prize.

Lee, who has been conducting research into the molecular basis of epilepsy in the UA lab of Dr. Guy Caldwell since the first semester of his freshman year, was one of only four recipients selected nationally by the publisher of the general biology textbooks used at the University.

The Benjamin Cummings Co., a division of Pearson Education and Addison-Wesley, publishes books read by more than 100 million people worldwide. Competition for the award is open to students of any institution where Benjamin Cummings biology texts are used. Each of the four awards includes a $1,000 grant.

Lee joins UA students Renee Rivas and Cody Locke, past recipients of this honor. UA is one of the few colleges in the country to have three students win the Benjamin Cummings Prize within five years, said Caldwell, associate professor of biological sciences.

Lee, the son of Samuel and Regina Lee, aspires to become a neurologist. Although he wants to interact with patients in a clinical setting, he would like to spend much of his time continuing research. “I am fascinated by the human brain and would like to know where thoughts come from and how neurons work at a molecular level,” he explained.

In his college career so far, Lee has been awarded the Arts & Sciences Collegiate Scholarship, the Mary Petrea Marsh & Albert Hopkins Marsh Memorial Scholarship, the Robert C. Byrd Scholarship and the Halliburton Foundation Scholarship. He is also a member of Phi Eta Sigma, the National Society of Collegiate Scholars.

Lee said he had always been interested in UA. He wanted to expand his horizons at a large university and looked for a biology program with good research opportunities. When Lee received a copy of the school’s quarterly journal JOSHUA and a letter from Locke, he was sold on UA.

JOSHUA stands for The Journal of Science and Health at the University of Alabama. Lee is now on the publication’s staff, led by Caldwell, and found online at http://www.bama.ua.edu/~joshua/.

In the Caldwell Lab, Lee and other students conduct research on seizures, specifically ones associated with epilepsy, and their research has been presented at international conferences. They study microscopic nematodes scientifically known as C. elegans, but commonly referred to as worms. These worms possess many of the disease-causing genes found in humans and give the Caldwell Lab its nickname, The Worm Shack.

The Worm Shack, run by Drs. Guy and Kim Caldwell, has grown significantly due to enormous student interest. In the past few years, the Caldwells have had to conduct an application and interview process to select undergraduate researchers. “Last year, I went through 40 applications, all of which included essays. I interviewed 10 students, only wanting to bring on two but ended up taking six because these students were too good to be turned away,” Guy Caldwell explained.

The lab, located on the first floor of the biology building, is known internationally and has been funded by the March of Dimes and the Michael J. Fox Foundation. More information about the lab can be found online at http://www.bama.ua.edu/~gcaldwel/.

“Kyle is smart and hungry to learn,” Caldwell said about the award-winning student. “When it comes to research, Kyle is tenacious. He, like our other students in the lab, wants to make a difference and shows a tremendous amount of respect for the purpose of the research. They get the atypical college experience and know that discovery is addictive. I know they will be making contributions to the future biology textbooks.”