Chemistry Researcher Earns UT System Jess Hay Graduate Fellowship

Shelby Phelps, a chemistry doctoral student at The University of Texas at Dallas, is developing new imaging technologies to further the understanding of the role that ions, such as chloride, play in human health and disease.

Phelps received the Jess Hay Chancellor’s Graduate Student Research Fellowship this fall from the UT System to support her work developing genetically encoded fluorescent indicators for chloride. These protein-based tools act as molecular flashlights, lighting up when they bind to chloride inside living cells.

“Chloride is the negatively charged component of table salt and is an essential nutrient involved in regulating electrical activity in the heart and brain as well as processes like digestion and blood pressure,” Phelps said. “I have harnessed the biotechnological power of protein engineering to generate indicators that allow us to visualize how and why the cells in our body use chloride to carry out vital biological functions. Building from this work, I aim to leverage these technologies to develop new therapeutic approaches for chloride-related disorders.”

​The fellowship was established by Jess Hay, who served on the UT System Board of Regents from 1977 to 1989 and was chairman from 1985 to 1987. Hay, a key supporter of UT Dallas, died in 2015. Two annual fellowships, which recognize exemplary academic and research achievements that benefit the state, rotate among the UT System’s academic and health institutions each year.

A native of Amarillo, Texas, Phelps earned a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry and a Master of Science in interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis in chemistry from West Texas A&M University. She began her doctoral work at UT Dallas in 2020 with faculty advisor Dr. Sheel Dodani BS’07 and is on track to earn her PhD in December.

“Over the past three decades, biological chloride imaging has progressed steadily through important foundational advances. Shelby’s pioneering technologies mark a turning point in the field.”

Dr. Sheel Dodani BS’07, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

“Over the past three decades, biological chloride imaging has progressed steadily through important foundational advances. Shelby’s pioneering technologies mark a turning point in the field — they are the first of their kind and are poised to transform how researchers will illuminate chloride, accelerating discovery across biology and medicine,” said Dodani, an associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and a Fellow, Eugene McDermott Distinguished Professor.

Phelps, who plans to continue her research with Dodani at UT Dallas after graduation, said receiving the fellowship has been both an honor and a transformative opportunity.

“The fellowship has given me the freedom and support to continue bold, curiosity-driven research with dedication,” she said. “It affirms that discovery in science is possible no matter where you start, and that growth arises from persistence, creativity and the resolve to step beyond comfort. As I grow toward an independent career, I am inspired to carry forward this spirit of mentorship to a future generation of scientists.”