Dr. Yao Houndonougbo

EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli Accepted to Fourth PhD Program

03/15/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Aulane Mpouli Graduate School Acceptances 2021 UCSD

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli. Aulane has been accepted by the Chemistry PhD Program at the University of California San Diego with full funding. This is in addition to her acceptances in Chemistry PhD programs from Duke University, Ohio State University, and the University of Utah, all with full funding! Aulane is majoring in Chemistry and plans on specializing in Analytical Chemistry. Her research interests include analytics, biological chemistry, and catalysis. Last summer Aulane was accepted into a Summer Research Program by Ohio State University, and while they were unable to continue due to COVID-19, she continued to participate in a series of online seminars provided by OSU. Additionally, Aulane completed a McNair Summer Research Internship here at EWU under the mentorshop of Dr. Yao Houndonougbo. Her research, Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex, relates to analyzing the successful ways in which the substrate Inosine Triphosphate (ITP) binds to the enzyme Inosine Triphosphatase in order for it to perform its enzymatic function and prevent the accumulation and over concentration of ITP, an intermediate in the formation of Purines which help make up DNA. The accumulation of ITP could cause mutations in the DNA causing cancers and other detrimental effects to the body. Aulane also works as a Teacher’s Assistant for the Quantitative Analysis, BioChem for Health Sciences, and General Chemistry courses where she grades lab reports, prepares unknowns for students, and helps with calculations and clarifications.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Aulane and we know she'll do amazing things at whichever PhD program she decides to attend! Click here to read more about Aulane or her research.

EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli Accepted to Duke University PhD Program

03/03/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Aulane Mpouli Graduate School Acceptances 2021 Duke

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli. Aulane has been accepted by the Chemistry PhD Program at Duke University with full funding! This is Aulane's third acceptance. She was also accepted by Ohio State University and the University of Utah, both for a PhD in Chemistry with full funding. Aulane is majoring in Chemistry and plans on specializing in Analytical Chemistry. Her research interests include analytics, biological chemistry, and catalysis. Last summer Aulane was accepted into a Summer Research Program by Ohio State University, and while they were unable to continue due to COVID-19, she continued to participate in a series of online seminars provided by OSU. Additionally, Aulane completed a McNair Summer Research Internship here at EWU under the mentorshop of Dr. Yao Houndonougbo. Her research, Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex, relates to analyzing the successful ways in which the substrate Inosine Triphosphate (ITP) binds to the enzyme Inosine Triphosphatase in order for it to perform its enzymatic function and prevent the accumulation and over concentration of ITP, an intermediate in the formation of Purines which help make up DNA. The accumulation of ITP could cause mutations in the DNA causing cancers and other detrimental effects to the body. Aulane also works as a Teacher’s Assistant for the Quantitative Analysis, BioChem for Health Sciences, and General Chemistry courses where she grades lab reports, prepares unknowns for students, and helps with calculations and clarifications.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Aulane and we know she'll do amazing things at whichever PhD program she decides to attend! Click here to read more about Aulane or her research.

EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli Accepted to the University of Utah PhD Program

02/26/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Aulane Mpouli Graduate School Acceptances 2021 Utah

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli. Aulane has been accepted by the Chemistry PhD Program at the University of Utah with full funding! This is in addition to her acceptance for a PhD Chemistry program at Ohio State University. Aulane is majoring in Chemistry and plans on specializing in Analytical Chemistry. Her research interests include analytics, biological chemistry, and catalysis. Last summer Aulane was accepted into a Summer Research Program by Ohio State University, and while they were unable to continue due to COVID-19, she continued to participate in a series of online seminars provided by OSU. Additionally, Aulane completed a McNair Summer Research Internship here at EWU under the mentorshop of Dr. Yao Houndonougbo. Her research, Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex, relates to analyzing the successful ways in which the substrate Inosine Triphosphate (ITP) binds to the enzyme Inosine Triphosphatase in order for it to perform its enzymatic function and prevent the accumulation and over concentration of ITP, an intermediate in the formation of Purines which help make up DNA. The accumulation of ITP could cause mutations in the DNA causing cancers and other detrimental effects to the body. Aulane also works as a Teacher’s Assistant for the Quantitative Analysis, BioChem for Health Sciences, and General Chemistry courses where she grades lab reports, prepares unknowns for students, and helps with calculations and clarifications.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Aulane and we know she'll do amazing things at whichever PhD program she decides to attend! Click here to read more about Aulane or her research.

EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli Accepted to Ohio State University Chemistry PhD Program

02/17/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Aulane Mpouli Graduate School Acceptances 2021 Ohio State

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli. Aulane has been accepted by the Chemistry PhD Program at Ohio State University with full funding! Aulane is majoring in Chemistry and plans on specializing in Analytical Chemistry. Her research interests include analytics, biological chemistry, and catalysis. Last summer Aulane was accepted into a Summer Research Program by Ohio State University, and while they were unable to continue due to COVID-19, she continued to participate in a series of online seminars provided by OSU. Additionally, Aulane completed a McNair Summer Research Internship here at EWU under the mentorshop of Dr. Yao Houndonougbo. Her research, Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex, relates to analyzing the successful ways in which the substrate Inosine Triphosphate (ITP) binds to the enzyme Inosine Triphosphatase in order for it to perform its enzymatic function and prevent the accumulation and over concentration of ITP, an intermediate in the formation of Purines which help make up DNA. The accumulation of ITP could cause mutations in the DNA causing cancers and other detrimental effects to the body. Aulane also works as a Teacher’s Assistant for the Quantitative Analysis, BioChem for Health Sciences, and General Chemistry courses where she grades lab reports, prepares unknowns for students, and helps with calculations and clarifications.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Aulane and we know she'll do amazing things at whichever PhD program she decides to attend! Click here to read more about Aulane or her research.

EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli Completes Summer Research Internship

11/18/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations EWU McNair Scholar Aulane Mpouli for completing her EWU McNair Summer Research Internship! Aulane's study is titled Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex. The project is an extension of the work that mentor Dr. Yao Houndonougbo has been doing to apply computational chemistry methods to study protein–ligand interactions and the property structure relationships in materials. Many thanks to Dr. Houndonougbo for his outstanding mentorship. Read more about Aulane's research on her EWU McNair webpage!

Aulane is now hard at work applying to graduate schools across the country. Keep up the exceptional work Aulane! EWU McNair is confident that you will succeed in graduate school and have a great impact on our world.

Representation Matters: McNair Chemistry Research Intern Aulane Mpouli

10/22/2020 by Dukich, Cynthia Leave a Comment

Aulane Mpouli understands from experience why representation matters in STEM fields. As an EWU McNair Scholar and Chemistry and Biochemistry major, Aulane is currently applying to chemistry PhD programs with the goal of conducting bench to bedside translational cancer research. Interested in mechanisms to evaluate protein-ligand interactions, as well as chemical biology, and enzyme dynamics in disease prevention, she also seeks to deepen her understanding of proteomics and drug designs. Her ultimate goal is to contribute to a team that furthers knowledge about the detection and prevention of cancers. She wants to use her education to make the world a better place as well as to be a role model for others. And to think we almost missed her.

STEM disciplines have not always been the most welcoming and inclusive, and there was a time in high school when Aulane could not imagine herself belonging to the world of science. Chemistry or biochemistry was not within her realm of possible futures. That is, until a chemistry teacher who looked like her expanded her perceived possibilities by demonstrating first hand that minority excellence in STEM was possible. This commitment to STEM excellence and inclusion gave her a sense of belonging and a dream. It made all the difference.

After that shift in mindset, Aulane began to seek out opportunities to develop her scientific skills and experiences through research, collaboration and dedicated scholarly engagement. She came to Eastern Washington University from the western side of the state on a track scholarship to compete as a Heptathlete, and determined to major in chemistry.

Reflecting on what is lost when we neglect broad inclusion, Aulane states: I believe not only do STEM fields, but many other high-impact fields of study miss out on the potential that people of color could and would bring to the progression of said field due to a lack of representation. In the year of 2020 it blows my mind that there are people of color who are still achieving titles such as "The first black man to…" and "The first Latina woman to..."

The federal TRIO Programs provide services to support students who come from backgrounds where they might have lacked opportunities to pursue higher education. As part of TRIO, Eastern's McNair program promotes a broadly welcoming future through education as we provide research and other scholarly activities to prepare our scholars for doctoral programs. Participating in a faculty-mentored research internship is key to the EWU McNair experience. So when EWU and the McNair summer research internships had to move on-line due to the pandemic, we worked hard to find creative ways to continue our McNair summer program workshops, seminars, and research projects virtually. Many students moved home for the summer, including Aulane, who conducted her McNair summer 2020 research internship totally in the virtual world.

While attending McNair Zoom workshops and seminars throughout the summer with the other fourteen McNair rearch interns, McNair staff and guest presenters, she also worked on-line with her McNair faculty research mentor Dr. Yao Houndonougbo, who recently was promoted to full professor in EWU's Chemistry & Biochemistry Department. She completed her 2020 McNair summer research internship with a project titled: Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex. The project is an extension of work that Dr. Houndonougbo has been doing to apply computational chemistry methods to study protein–ligand interactions and the property structure relationships in materials. These research projects have been funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As part of the NIH funded research and in collaboration with Dr. Nicholas Burgis, chair of EWU's Chemistry, Biochemistry & Physics Department, they have recently reported the study of the effect of mutation on the structure and dynamic properties of the inosine triphosphate pyrophosphatase (ITPA) protein.

You can read more about this research in an article that was recently published in the Journal of Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics: Structural dynamics of inosine triphosphate pyrophosphatase (ITPA) protein and two clinically relevant mutants: molecular dynamics simulations

Aulane Mpouli’s McNair summer research continues this study by using computational docking to explore bound conformation and energy in the binding of ITP to ITPA protein, seeking to better understand the mechanism of ITPA binding. The importance of this research pertains to visualizing operative configurations of a protein-ligand complex that will cleanse nucleotide pools and repair damaged DNA. She recently presented her project along with nine other EWU McNair scholars at the Baylor University Virtual Research Conference and Graduate School Fair, which virtually brought together over 350 students, staff, and faculty from McNair programs across the country to present their research.

You can view a poster that covers the information in that oral presentation at this link to the EWU Digital Commons McNair Collection website:

Aulane Mpouli: Molecular Docking Study of ITPA Protein Substrate Complex

Aulane's research required learning to use the Autodock program to create models of molecules to test potential reactions. The pictures below illustrate a comparison between an ideal configuration, and one that would yield lower success

Macromolecule-Lowest RMSD: the ideal configuration using Autodock to predict

Macromolecule-Run 1 is a configuration that would work in galvanizing the desired reaction, but would yield lower success compared to Macromolecule-Lowest RMSD)

Aulane's mother has told her to follow her dreams, because they know the way. She knows it's not always easy to be the positive change you want to see in the world, but is determined to do so in spite of the difficulties: I share the pain of young scholars of color who have a passion but are deterred from pursuing it with a perception that they will have no chance due to lack of representation. With the help and support of the McNair Scholars’ Program, I know I will become a figure of representation for those young scholars.

Please check back on our McNair website as we will keep you updated on Aulane Mpouli as she applies to PhD programs and continues on her journey, which she makes to follow her dreams, for our shared future, and for those who will continue after her as she shows them what might be possible.