Laredoan Daniel MuÒoa, 25, will spend the summer in Boston as a recipient of a Tufts University Biomedical Research Center fellowship sponsored by the American Society for Microbiology.

MuÒoa, a senior biology and chemistry major at Texas A&M International University, is the son of Pilar MarÌa MuÒoa. He is a 1995 graduate of United High School. He holds an associate degree in X-ray technology from Laredo Community College’s Allied Health Science Center.

MuÒoa has mentored under TAMIU professor Dr. Mario GarcÌa Rios in microbiology with applications of molecular biotechnology.

MuÒoa's research established a working protocol for Polymerase-Chain Reaction (PCR) Isolating Genes Encoding Resistance to Antibiotics. He recently presented a paper on the subject at a TAMIU conference for science faculty members, students, and members of the Laredo health community.

"The Tufts program is designed to expose undergraduates to doctoral studies and to give us an idea of what it is like to work for an M.D.-Ph.D., which is a seven to ten-year study plan," MuÒoa said.

"I’m really looking forward to working in a cutting edge research environment," he added.

MuÒoa was one of 20 minority undergraduates selected for the Tufts fellowship from a field of 1,000 applicants.

MuÒoa will leave May 20 and return August 17.