 |
June 05, 2008
Medical, Dental, Veterinary Students Awarded Research Grants
Medical, dental and, for the first time, veterinary students will get a chance to conduct biomedical research full time for a year, as part of a $4 million initiative by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).
Two programs will give 110 talented students from across the country the opportunity to combine their interests in biomedical research and medicine by spending a year in the lab. “These students will one day be on the front lines between biomedical research and the public,” said Peter J. Bruns, HHMI's vice president for grants and special programs. “We want them to have a strong background in research and then pursue it as a career.”
“These students will one day be on the front lines between biomedical research and the public. We want them to have a strong background in research and then pursue it as a career.”
Peter J. Bruns
Researchers who bridge the gap between clinical medicine and basic science are in a unique position to exploit our knowledge of the human genome and other recent advances to make discoveries that will improve human health. Despite the unprecedented opportunity for translating basic science discoveries into clinical treatments, the number of students who actually pursue careers that bridge the lab and the clinic has remained flat. The range of possible research areas is immense; newly emerging areas include creating new technologies for biomedical imaging, identifying and using markers of disease progression, finding new molecular targets for agents that could be used as therapies, and understanding of the basic biological processes that cause human disease.
This year, 42 students—from 26 medical schools, three veterinary schools, one dental school, and one osteopathic school—will participate in the HHMI-NIH Research Scholars Program, which brings top medical students to the National Institutes of Health campus to participate in hands-on biomedical research. Students in this program are also known as Cloister Scholars because they live in apartments and dormitory-style rooms at a refurbished cloister on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md., during their training. They visit several NIH labs before choosing the research project they will pursue with an NIH mentor.
In a separate program, 68 students—from 26 medical schools and one dental school—will receive Research Training Fellowships for Medical Students, which allow students to implement a research plan and work at a lab anywhere in the U.S. except the NIH campus in Bethesda. These students submit a plan to conduct work in a specific lab with a mentor they have chosen. Most Medical Fellows do research at their home institution, but nine have chosen to work at another research center.
For the first time, veterinary students were among those invited to apply for both programs, and four veterinary students from three schools were chosen as Cloister Scholars. “We are acknowledging the biological and scientific relationship between animals and humans,” Bruns said. “Veterinarians play an important role in the future of biomedical research.”
Veterinary students bring a unique approach to biomedical research that complements that of physician-scientists, said Chand Khanna, a veterinarian and pediatric cancer researcher at the National Cancer Institute. “Veterinary students receive training across species and training that embraces diversity in biology,” said Khanna, who is one of few veterinarians working in the NIH. “This results in students who are comfortable moving not only between different species but between different models and different questions.”
Khanna has mentored students in the HHMI-NIH program before and knows the enthusiasm for research that is sparked during their time in the lab. “The importance of what HHMI is doing is recognizing that different perspective of veterinary students and providing opportunities for them to learn early on how a vet's perspective is valued in medicine,” he said.
This is the 24th year that HHMI has provided support for students to work in research labs. Most students in the two medical student research programs have completed at least two years of medical, dental, or veterinary school before they take the time off for research. “This allows the students to view research through a medical prism,” Bruns said. Though most of the students already have an interest in research, this experience allows them to confirm whether they want research to play a large role in their future career.
For the 2008-2009 year, 337 students from 98 medical, dental, and veterinary schools applied for 110 positions in the two programs. The applications were reviewed by panels of outside researchers and NIH scientists.
HHMI has developed a variety of programs aimed at increasing the pipeline of researchers who conduct fundamental research in biology and translate their discoveries into improved treatment for patients. In addition to the Cloister Scholars and Medical Fellows programs, the Institute also supports the careers of promising translational researchers through its Early Career Physician-Scientists program. Another program, the Med into Grad initiative, trains graduate students pursuing a Ph.D. in the biomedical sciences in the basics of clinical medicine so they can recognize and address research problems of importance to the advancement of medicine. Top physician-scientists have also joined the ranks of HHMI Investigators.
***
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a non-profit medical research organization that ranks as one of the nation's largest philanthropies, plays a powerful role in advancing biomedical research and science education in the U.S. Since the mid-1980s, HHMI has made investments of more than $10 billion for the support, training, and education of the nation's most creative and promising scientists. The Institute commits almost $700 million a year for research and distributes more than $80 million in grant support for science education.
The HHMI grants program emphasizes initiatives with the power to transform graduate, undergraduate, and precollege education in the life sciences. HHMI has challenged graduate schools to change their training programs in order to shorten the time it takes to translate basic science discoveries into new medical treatments and, in partnership with the National Institutes of Health, supports a parallel initiative to encourage interdisciplinary graduate studies. It also funds International Research Scholars, promising scientists from outside the United States who are making significant contributions to understanding basic biological processes or disease mechanisms but whose careers are still developing.
HHMI's flagship program in biomedical research rests on the conviction that scientists of exceptional talent, commitment, and imagination will make fundamental biological discoveries for the betterment of human health if they receive the resources, time, and freedom to pursue challenging questions. The institute's more than 300 investigators, selected through rigorous national competitions, include 12 Nobel Prize winners and 124 members of the National Academy of Sciences. Hughes laboratories, found at 64 distinguished U.S. universities, research institutes, medical schools, and affiliated hospitals, employ hundreds of post docs and provide training opportunities for more than 1,000 graduate students each year.
The Janelia Farm Research Campus in Ashburn, Va., further extends HHMI's commitment to research and discovery. Janelia Farm scientists probe fundamental biomedical questions best addressed through a collaborative, interdisciplinary culture. The initial research focus is the identification of the general principles that govern how information is processed by neuronal circuits and development of imaging technologies and other computational methods for image analysis. Researchers at Janelia Farm—including its most senior group leaders—engage in active bench science and work in small teams that cross disciplinary boundaries that bring chemists, physicists, computational scientists, and engineers into close collaboration with biologists.
HHMI has an endowment of approximately $18.7 billion. Its headquarters are located in Chevy Chase, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C.
|
2008-2009 HHMI-NIH Research Scholars
| Name
| School
| | Shila Azodi
| Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine
| | Amar Bansal
| New York University School of Medicine
| | Ayush Batra
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| | Kevin Blaine
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| | Patrick Blake
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| | Ian Buchanan
| The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
| | Marianne Castillo
| University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School
| | Jessica Chang
| Duke University School of Medicine
| | Rachel Chard
| Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine
| | Jenny Chen
| Indiana University School of Medicine
| | Audree Condren
| University of Oklahoma College of Medicine
| | Jeremiah Davis
| George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences
| | Natasha Fewkes
| Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine
| | Cedar Fowler
| Tufts University School of Medicine
| | Rachel Giese
| University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio School of Medicine
| | Lillian Guenther
| State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center College of Medicine
| | Jason Hawkes
| University of Utah School of Medicine
| | Caitlin Hicks
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| | Guy Jones
| University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School
| | Samantha Jordan
| Tufts University School of Dental Medicine
| | Anusha Kalbasi
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| | Wee-Tin Kao
| State University of New York at Stony Brook Health Sciences Center School of Medicine
| | Amelia Keaton
| University of South Carolina School of Medicine
| | Steve Khachi
| Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine
| | Angela Lee
| Harvard Medical School
| | Rell Parker
| University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine
| | Justin Poling
| Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
| | Matthew Reilley
| Dartmouth Medical School
| | Paul Romesser
| Boston University School of Medicine
| | Sarah Rusk
| Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
| | Alex Ryder
| Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
| | Michelle Samuel
| University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine
| | Logan Schneider
| University of Florida College of Medicine
| | Abigail Shearin
| University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine
| | Hubert Shih
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| | Jayesh Thawani
| University of Michigan Medical School
| | Mari Tokita
| The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
| | Jessica Valdez
| University of New Mexico School of Medicine
| | Dean Wang
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| | Frederick Wang
| Yale University School of Medicine
| | Jered Wendte
| Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health Sciences
| | Caroline Yeager
| Duke University School of Medicine
|
| 2008-2009 Research Training Fellowships for Medical Students
| Name
| School
| Fellowship Institution
| Shaka Bahadu
| Weill Cornell Medical College
| Weill Cornell Medical College
| Hasani Baharanyi
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Harvard Medical School
| Kristopher Bosse
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| Lior Braunstein
| Harvard Medical School
| Harvard Medical School
| Rebekah Browning
| The Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health
| The Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health
| Ann Cai
| Harvard Medical School
| Harvard Medical School
| Justin Chan
| Mount Sinai School of Medicine
| Mount Sinai School of Medicine
| Jennifer Chen
| Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Rex Cheng
| Duke University School of Medicine
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| Hao Jun Chong
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| Lisa Chu
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| Raul Clavijo
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Justin Cohen
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Mackenzie Cook
| Duke University School of Medicine
| University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
| Agnieszka Czechowicz
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Neil Desai
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Susan Emmett
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Lauren Frazer
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| Michael Galvez
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Matthew Goldstein
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Divakar Gupta
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Mohamad Halawi
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Seunggu Han
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| Asaff Harel
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| Le He
| Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
| Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
| Karim Helmy
| University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School
| Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
| Heidi Hillesland
| University of New Mexico School of Medicine
| University of New Mexico School of Medicine
| Susan Hiniker
| University of Michigan Medical School
| University of Michigan Medical School
| Suejy Hobson
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| Michael Hodavance
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Jennifer Hong
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Jeffrey Hsu
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| Ryan Huss
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Timothy Johnson
| Emory University School of Medicine
| Emory University School of Medicine
| Michelle Jonelis
| University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
| University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine
| Amit Khera
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| Thomas Kosztowski
| Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
| Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
| Carson Lam
| Northwestern University, The Feinberg School of Medicine
| Northwestern University, The Feinberg School of Medicine
| John Lewis
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Christopher Liu
| Baylor College of Medicine
| Baylor College of Medicine
| Gene Ma
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Allan Mabardy
| University of Massachusetts Medical School
| University of Massachusetts Medical School
| Kimberley Mak
| Harvard Medical School
| Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
| Priya Malik
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University
| Sean McEvoy
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Justin Mendel
| Emory University School of Medicine
| Emory University School of Medicine
| Yasha Modi
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Nikhil Nayak
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Paul Nuyujukian
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Sarina Pasricha
| Northwestern University, The Feinberg School of Medicine
| Northwestern University, The Feinberg School of Medicine
| Jeremy Pearl
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| David Perlmutter
| University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
| University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
| Rebecca Pomerantz
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
| Makeda Robinson
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Stanford University School of Medicine
| Karl Staser
| Indiana University School of Medicine
| Indiana University School of Medicine
| Rosalyn Sulyanto
| Harvard University School of Dental Medicine
| Harvard University School of Dental Medicine
| Tina Tailor
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Corinne Taraska
| University of Washington School of Medicine
| University of Washington School of Medicine
| Patrick Varley
| New York University School of Medicine
| New York University School of Medicine
| Matthew Vestal
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Guadalupe Villarreal
| Harvard Medical School
| Harvard Medical School
| Joshua Weiner
| Yale University School of Medicine
| Harvard Medical School
| Kari Wellnitz
| University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
| University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
| Emily Williams
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
| Sima Yazdani
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Duke University School of Medicine
| Hasan Zaidi
| Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
| Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
| Zachary Zumsteg
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
| Corinna Zygourakis
| Harvard Medical School
| Harvard Medical School
|
|
|
|
|
Howard Hughes
