BOSTON – Stephen Mathieu, a Lewiston resident attending Northeastern University, has been working in a laboratory full-time as part of the university’s co-op program.

He designed and carried out a project under the supervision and guidance of Northeastern faculty.

Every year, a handful of undergraduates at Northeastern University get the opportunity to pursue advanced research through the Matz Biotechnology Research Co-op program.

The program puts students into labs in the Barnett Institute or the Chemistry, Biology or Pharmaceutical Sciences departments, where under the supervision of Northeastern professors, they work full time on research projects they have designed.

Mathieu, who is pursuing bachelor and masters degrees in chemistry, took advantage of the Matz Co-op program to research the effects of water molecules on double-helical DNA and RNA. He worked with chemistry professor Eriks Rozners throughout his co-op.

“The Matz Co-op program was an exciting opportunity for me to be involved in academic research into the fields of chemistry and biotechnology,” said Mathieu.

Mathieu, a native of Lewiston, has worked in the chemistry department of Northeastern University since 2004, where he has developed necessary laboratory skills.

He is active in the Northeastern chapter of the American Chemical Society and has taken numerous advanced chemistry courses.