Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy
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Recipient of the 2025 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award
No full textDr. Michael Ombrello is an internationally recognized physician-scientist and Principal Investigator at the NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, where he leads the Translational Genetics and Genomics Section. A global pioneer in Still’s disease genomics, he founded the INCHARGE Consortium and launched the first genomic studies of the disease. His team identified the first disease-causing PLCG2 mutations in humans, leading to the discovery of PLAID—an immune disorder featured in The New England Journal of Medicine and The New Yorker. His research has reshaped understanding of rare inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, with findings published in journals such as Nature Genetics and Arthritis & Rheumatism. Beyond research, Dr. Ombrello serves in leadership roles that guide genomic standards and clinical practice, and he is a committed mentor to the next generation of physician-scientists. He and his wife, Dr. Amanda Ombrello, live with their children, Olivia, James, and Evan
IMSA’s Residential Life Experience
No full textThis presentation will offer faculty and staff an inside look at the Residential Life experience, highlighting how our programs support student development, well-being, and community building. Through real examples and student stories, we’ll showcase the impact of intentional programming, peer leadership, and collaboration across campus. The goal is strengthening partnerships and exploring ways faculty and staff can further engage with and support the residential student experience
Family Reading Night 2025
No full texthttps://digitalcommons.imsa.edu/frn_images_2025/1003/thumbnail.jp
Tandem Chemical Processes for Efficient Purification and Separation of Lithium Salts and Electrolyte Solvents from Spent Batteries
No full textLithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become widely used due to the rapid growth of electronic devices and vehicles. However, the resulting waste of these spent batteries pose many risks to the environment. LIBs consist of cathodes, anodes, and electrolytes, where electrolytes typically present many risks due to its potential release of toxic compounds. Current disposal methods of spent electrolytes aggravate environmental and health hazards by generating harmful substances containing chemicals such as fluorine and phosphorus. Thus, these issues must be addressed urgently, and we must find more sustainable recycling methods of spent LIB electrolytes. Herein, we introduce methods to safely recycle spent LIB electrolytes, such as vacuum distillation, precipitation, and sublimation. Some electrolyte recycling processes utilize vacuum distillation. In vacuum distillation, the spent electrolyte is heated and evaporated in a vacuum environment, the volatilized electrolyte is then recovered through condensation. In this process, volatile organic solvents such as ethyl carbonate (EC) and dimethyl carbonate (DMC) are recycled, this promotes sustainability in the recycling economy. Subsequently, precipitation and sublimation, both requiring relatively mild conditions, can deliver high quality lithium salts, as well as electrolyte solvents. By preserving critical materials, these approaches are more environmentally and economically feasible for LIB recycling
Investigating the Role of TET Enzymes in PRC2 Activity and Overcoming Tazemetostat Resistance in MYCN-Amplified Neuroblastoma
No full textOne of the hallmarks of neuroblastoma is amplification of the MYCN oncogene which is associated with poor prognosis. In MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma, 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) and H3K27me3 co-localize to repress differentiation genes, driving malignancy. Despite evidence of in vivo efficacy, inhibiting the deposition of H3K27me3 with tazemetostat is not effective in patients as a single agent, suggesting the development of resistance mechanisms. We aimed to identify the role of TET enzymes, responsible for 5-hmC deposition, had in this resistance pattern. We hypothesized that combining tazemetostat with decitabine, a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, would overcome the role of TET. We generated CRISPR knockouts (KO) of TET2 in MYCN-amplified SK-N-BE2 neuroblastoma cells and found a reduction in 5-hmC levels and H3K27me3 deposition at differentiation-related genes. Despite this, the expression of these genes remained unchanged due to compensatory DNA methylation, which prevented transcriptional activation, maintaining an undifferentiated state. However, TET2 KO cells showed increased sensitivity to decitabine compared to wild-type cells. These findings suggest that DNA methylation may act as a mechanism of tazemetostat resistance in neuroblastoma. This combination therapy warrants further testing
Ivy League potential
No full textIvy League Potential is a college consultant company that helps provide world-class guidance, real skills and coaching to help students through the college admissions process and get into the college of their dreams. The focus of the business project for Ivy League Potential changed over time and included marketing media for business proposals, newspapers, and pages about different case studies and their majors. Over the course of six months, the company provided opportunities to work with different forms of designing marketing material. As well as opportunities to develop my experience with graphic design platforms like Canva. Over the course of the business project, the company benefited through the delivery of different forms of marketing media for a variety of platforms. The most significant impact of these deliverables was the One-pagers on different case studies done for different research projects that students were pursuing