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LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 8, 2022) 鈥 Four University of Kentucky faculty members received the 2022 Excellent Undergraduate Research Mentor Award for their exceptional leadership and support of student researchers.
PILOT PROJECT FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
THE CENTER FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH EXCELLENCE ON OBESITY AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES (COCVD)
Innovative research in pediatric cancers is happening every day at the University of Kentucky.
In the United States, 80% of children are cured of their cancer, but 20% are not.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 18, 2022) 鈥 The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the immune system, revealing there is still much about how it functions that is not well understood: Why do some people get severe disease and others don鈥檛? And why can certain factors like age, or comorbidities like obesity, cause the immune system to go haywire?
University of Kentucky 91小黄车 researcher Ilhem Messaoudi, Ph.D., has dedicated her career to answering these questions.
For students in research, the journey toward earning a graduate or postgraduate degree can be rewarding once they begin laboratory work, but at times, also very isolating.
鈥淥nce you join your lab, you go to your specific department, and even within departments, we hardly see each other because we are just doing the individual work that our lab focuses on every day, day in and day out,鈥 said Meagan Kingren, a doctoral student in pharmacology and nutritional sciences.
While completing his undergraduate degree at the University of Kentucky, Jonathan Davies, MS, found himself at a crossroads. He had stretched himself too thin with involvement in organizations and programs, and he started suffering burnout. He then missed the window to take his medical school entrance exam junior year.
The UK 91小黄车 is excited to announce that Sarah Hall, MD, PhD, and Eleftherios Xenos, MD, PhD, have been elected to represent the college on the University Senate.
The University Senate is the faculty voice in the governance of our college and the University and determines broad academic policies of the University. Dr. Hall and Dr. Xenos will serve as 91小黄车 representatives for three-year terms beginning in August.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 3, 2022) 鈥 The University of Kentucky鈥檚 UNited In True racial Equity (UNITE) Research Priority Area will host its inaugural research showcase on Wednesday, May 4. The 2022 UNITE Research Showcase is centered around elevating and promoting the importance of racial equity research at UK, across the Commonwealth and beyond.
In 2020, high-profile murders of Black civilians by police garnered national attention, shining a light on the growing need for social change. Learners at the UK 91小黄车 collaborated to compose a letter to their leadership, advocating for solutions to combat systemic racism. The 91小黄车 administration engaged with learners to implement strategies and initiatives that would address their concerns.
The 91小黄车 is pleased to announce the faculty, staff, and learner winners of the inaugural Mission, Vision, Pillar, and Enabler Awards.
A new division has been established in the UK 91小黄车 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology to improve the coordination of care in labor and delivery.
Assistant professor Andrea Tucker, MD, collaborated with department chair Wendy Hansen, MD, knowing that laborist services would be crucial for ensuring safe, quality care for patients and enhanced mentorship for future physicians.
Dr. Tucker spearheaded efforts to create a laborist division, which was officially established in July 2021.
Graduates say the online certificate program is 鈥1,000-percent worth doing.鈥
Cathryn Benson, APRN, has worked 13 years in health care, most recently in hospital medicine and anesthesia. She wanted to learn how she could further help her patients with nutrition, but as a mom who worked 14-hour days, she never thought additional schooling would be an option.
Then she heard about an online program offering flexible scheduling and a well-rounded nutrition-related curriculum 鈥 that was also, conveniently, run on the University of Kentucky鈥檚 campus.
The best solutions begin when you listen to the people whose problems you鈥檙e trying to solve. That community-based focus 鈥 the crux of what Nancy Schoenberg, Ph.D., says is her approach as a medical anthropologist 鈥 has been a guiding value through her 25 years at the University of Kentucky. In this 鈥淩esearch Made Possible鈥 podcast, Schoenberg shares what drives her work on diabetes and cancer in rural communities across Kentucky.
The motivation driving the work of Pete Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., is personal. His grandmother, Sylvia Becker, died with Alzheimer's disease, and he says his mother then grew terrified of developing the disease.
鈥淚t gives me purpose in life to attack that,鈥 Nelson said. As an experimental neuropathologist at the University of Kentucky鈥檚 Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, he is guided by that motivation. 鈥淚t is most every researcher鈥檚 dream to help identify and classify a disease, and then to go on and help beat it.鈥
The Gill Awards, given each year through the generous support of the Gill Foundation of Texas, honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of cardiovascular medicine, both through research and clinical care. The awards are based on nominations and assessment by a committee of prominent cardiovascular researchers from across the nation.
Housed in the UK 91小黄车 Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology is a new professional master鈥檚 degree program that is the only one of its kind in the state of Kentucky, and the fifth of its kind in the country.
And due to its unique educational experience and strong curriculum, this new program is seeing a jump in its number of students.
Shulin Zhang, MD, PhD, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, began his career as a clinical molecular geneticist when the famous Human Genome Project was in its final stages. A 23-year international research effort, the project was revolutionary as it determined the full DNA sequence of the human genome.
Jordon Burdette, a senior neuroscience and psychology major, was minutes away from presenting to a crowd of University of Kentucky scientists when the nerves set in. Her presentation, focused on cellular regeneration and spinal cord injury, was a culmination of a year of research she had worked on with her mentor, Warren Alilain, PhD, associate professor of neuroscience.
Burdette pushed through those nerves, and Dr. Alilain said she 鈥渃rushed鈥 it. She left feeling proud of her accomplishment and thankful for the opportunity to study a topic she didn鈥檛 expect to ever pursue.
Urim Geleta is only into her senior year of her undergraduate degree, yet she has already played a key role in neuroscience research at UK.