Four students from The Ohio State University have been recognized by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program in 2025, and astonishingly three of them have connections to Molecular Genetics!

Paolo Sinopoli is an honors student and undergraduate Pelotonia scholar majoring in molecular genetics. He currently studies transfer RNA (tRNA) biology in Professor of Molecular Genetics Anita Hopper’s lab, investigating tRNA trafficking and tRNA introns.

Harsha Sanaka is an honors student majoring in biomedical science with a minor in Spanish and is planning for a research career in cancer biology. He currently works in the lab of Christin Burd, Professor of Molecular Genetics and Cabcer Biology and Genetics, identifying novel approaches to prevent melanoma.

Hajd Al-Marrawi is majoring in neuroscience with minors in medical pharmacology and disability studies. His research focuses on cancer genetics, where he works alongside Renee Bouley, assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Ruben Petreaca, associate professor of molecular genetics, to explore the roles of genes involved in DNA repair mechanisms and how mutations in these genes drive cellular transformation and immortalization.

Read the OSU News article about these students and their amazing accomplishments!