Flobater Gawargi

 PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine

 

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2024-2025)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program promotes the integrated research and clinical training of promising students in predoctoral or clinical health professional degree training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health. Flobater Gawargi was awarded a two-year AHA fellowship for his project “Iron Homeostasis and Cell Death in the T1DM Heart.” Flobater’s project will investigate the disruption in iron homeostasis caused by diabetes, including ferroptosis—a cell death process characterized by iron accumulation and lipid peroxidation. This study not only seeks to unravel the mechanisms of diabetes-associated ferroptosis but also strives to discover therapeutic strategies to restore balance and prevent diabetes-induced cardiac damage. Flobater is a Ph.D. candidate in the IGPBS-Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine doctoral program working under the supervision of Dr. Paras Kumar Mishra, Associate Professor in the Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology.

Aaron Schwab

 PhD Candidate in MSIA - Clinically Reevent Basic Research

 NIEHS Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2028)

 

The NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NIEHS. Aaron D. Schwab, an MD/PhD Scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 5-year F30 NSRA from the NIEHS for his project, “Targeting the ACOD1 immunometabolic pathway of lung myeloid cells to reduce environmental exposure-induced lung disease.” Environmental lung diseases are preventable disorders caused or made worse by inhaled exposure(s) to inflammation-inducing aerosolized agents. Anthropogenic climate change and associated industrial and agricultural intensification synergistically elevate worker and non-worker risk of adverse respiratory health outcomes. Despite advances in understanding the key inflammatory signaling pathways initiating the lung inflammatory response, there remains a paucity of efficacious therapeutic options to hasten recovery and halt progression towards chronic disease. Therefore, this project will utilize an immunometabolic approach, with emphasis on the cis-aconitate decarboxylase 1 (ACOD1)-itaconate axis, to describe the biologic mechanisms underpinning environmental exposure-induced inflammatory lung disease, and potentially inform novel therapeutic approaches to hasten lung recovery post-inflammatory bioaerosol exposure. Aaron is a PhD candidate in the MSIA Clinically Relevant Basic Research doctoral program under the supervision of Jill Poole, MD, in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Allergy and Immunology.

Delia Omar

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine

 

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2024-2025)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program promotes the integrated research and clinical training of promising students in predoctoral or clinical health professional degree training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health. Delia Omar was awarded a two-year AHA fellowship for her project, entitled “Regulation of Lipid Droplets by Endosomal Sorting Complexes in Liver Steatosis”. This project will investigate the mechanisms underlying hepatic lipid droplets (LDs) accumulation and degradation, by identifying the correlation between Endosomal Sorting Complexes (ESCRTs) with LDs biogenesis and catabolism within mammalian hepatocytes. The central hypothesis is that specific ESCRT proteins play diverse roles in lipophagy and LDs biogenesis critical for hepatocyte metabolism. Understanding these mechanisms will have significant impact in discovering new therapeutic strategies for targeting liver steatosis and improve cardiovascular health.

Delia is pursuing her dissertation research in the IGPBS - Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine program under the supervision of Micah Schott, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Gabrielle Watson

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Immunology, Pathology, and Infectious Disease

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2024-2025)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program aims to enhance the integrated research and clinical training of promising students in predoctoral training programs who intend careers as scientists or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health. Gabrielle Watson was awarded a two-year AHA fellowship for her project, entitled “Identification of Arginine Transporters in Staphylococcus aureus.” This project will explore the function of arginine transport during the establishment of a S. aureus infection, which is the leading cause of infective endocarditis in North America accounting for nearly 40% of cases. Arginine is required for S. aureus survival and, during the initiation of infection, arginine biosynthesis is repressed therefore the bacteria are dependent upon arginine transporters to acquire arginine from the host. The data generated will provide further insight into the pathometabolism of S. aureus and will inform systems biology approaches to determine novel methods to inhibit serious staphylococcal disease. The innovative nature of this application lies in the utilization of microbiological techniques to identify transporters we hypothesize are critical for growth and survival in the host as shown with various pathogens. Gabrielle is a PhD candidate in the IGPBS-Immunology, Pathology, and Infectious Disease program, working under the supervision of Paul D. Fey, in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology.

Morgan T. Busboom

PhD Candidate in MSIA – Patient Oriented Research

NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2025)

The NIH National Institutes on Aging (NIA) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral PhD Fellowships (F31 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates who are obtaining specialized, mentored research training from preeminent faculty sponsors while completing dissertation research. Morgan Busboom has been awarded a 2-year F31 for her project “Robotic Exoskeleton Gait Training in Transition Aged Persons with Cerebral Palsy.” Cerebral palsy (CP) is one of the most prevalent and costly developmental disabilities in the United States. Current research and therapeutic interventions related to mobility for transition aged persons with CP is relatively sparse. With this project, Morgan will use a novel robotic exoskeleton gait training protocol and neuroimaging to probe a potential paradigm shifting therapeutic approach that will drive beneficial neuroplasticity in transition aged persons with CP. Morgan is a PhD candidate in the MSIA – Patient Oriented Research doctoral program under the supervision of Max Kurz, PhD, Director of the Physiology of Walking and Engineering Rehabilitation Laboratory at Boys Town National Research Hospital.

Amanda Macke

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral PhD Fellowships (2023-2024)

The NIH National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral PhD Fellowships (F31 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates in their mentored training throughout the completion of their dissertation research in the area of alcohol research. Amanda Macke has been awarded a 2-year F31 award for her project, “The impact of alcohol-induced ATF6-mediated ER stress and Golgi disorganization on pro-metastatic glycosylation of integrins in prostate cancer.” Growing epidemiological evidence indicates a link between alcohol consumption and prostate cancer risk, but the mechanisms of alcohol’s effect on prostate cancer growth remain to be elucidated. Amanda’s research is investigating this critical gap to identify proteins and cellular events affected by alcohol, including increased Integrin αv expression on the plasma membrane and fragmented Golgi morphology. This will elucidate events responsible for alcohol-mediated prostate cancer progression and inspire mechanism-based therapeutic strategies to prevent the effects of alcohol on tumor progression. Amanda is a PhD candidate in the IGPBS Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Doctoral Program under the mentorship of Armen Petrosyan, MD, PhD in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Kyle L. McAndrews

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Cancer Research

NCI Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2025)

The NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral PhD Fellowships (F31 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates who are obtaining specialized, mentored research training from preeminent faculty sponsors while completing dissertation research. Kyle McAndrews has been awarded a 3-year F31 award for his project, “Oncogenic insults within the pancreatic ductal glands produce pre-malignant lesions and PDAC.“  A broader understanding of pancreatic cancer initiation and early progression is needed in order to detect this disease and intervene at earlier stages. Kyle is utilizing a transgenic mouse strain which was generated at UNMC to interrogate the tumor-initiating capacity of a specific population of cells in the adult pancreas. He is pursuing this work as a PhD candidate in the IGPBS – Cancer Research program under the guidance of Michael (Tony) Hollingsworth, PhD in the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases.

 

Jake J. Son

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Neuroscience

NCI Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2027)

The NIH National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NIMH. Jake J. Son, an MD/PhD Scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 4-year F30 NSRA from the NIMH for his project, “Impact of Trauma on the Longitudinal Development of Cognitive Control Networks in Healthy Youth.” Childhood and adolescence are critical developmental periods during which traumatic experiences can lead to impaired executive function and increased likelihood of psychopathology. While stress related brain aberrations have been widely noted, far less is understood about their developmental trajectory and whether the specific timing of the emergence of stressors may impact long-term function of brain networks related to cognitive function. Jake's research aims to fill this gap by utilizing cutting-edge brain mapping methods and longitudinal analytic tools to identify the impact of trauma exposure and HPA axis activation on developmental trajectories of cognitive control. He is pursuing this work as a PhD candidate in the IGPBS Neuroscience doctoral program under the supervision of Tony Wilson, PhD, Director of the Institute for Human Neuroscience at Boys Town National Research Hospital.

 

Seth Springer

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Neuroscience

NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctotal MD/PhD Fellowship (2022-2027) 

 

The NIH National Institute on Aging (NIA) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NIA. Seth D. Springer, an MD/PhD Scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 5-year F30 NSRA from the NIA for his project, “Aberrant cortical entrainment in biomarker-confirmed Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment.”  The objective of this project is to quantify the cortical dynamics, during gamma band visual entrainment, in patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease, and decipher the relationship between local gamma activity and quantitative amyloid beta deposition. He is also interested in identifying deficits in the tracking of attended visual stimuli in patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease. Seth is a PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Neuroscience, pursuing his dissertation research under the mentorship of Tony Wilson, PhD, Director of the Institute for Human Neuroscience at Boys Town National Research Hospital.

 

Heidi Vieira

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Cancer Research

 

NCI Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2025)

The NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI) offers Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NCI. Heidi Vieira, an MD/PhD scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 3 year F30 NSRA from the NCI for her research project entitled “Molecular control of tumor-initiating cells in Ras-driven cancers.” Cancer recurrence can be mediated by a distinct, treatment-resistant subpopulation of cells. Heidi’s research project aims to understand the cellular mechanisms that promote the formation and maintenance of these tumor-initiating cells in cancers driven by oncogenic Ras and to develop strategies to selectively target them. Heidi is a PhD candidate in the Cancer Research Doctoral Program, pursuing her dissertation research under the mentorship of Robert E. Lewis, PhD, Professor in the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases.

 

Weilun Ai 

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2024)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program enhances the training of promising students in pre-doctoral or clinical health professional degree training programs and who intend to pursue careers as scientists, physician-scientists, other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global health and well-being. Weilun was awarded a two-year AHA predoctoral fellowship for his project entitled, “The role of thromboxane-prostanoid receptor in alcoholic cardiomyopathy.” The central hypothesis of Weilun’s research is that the thromboxane-prostanoid receptor mediates alcohol-induced myocardial dysfunction by inducing myocardial steatosis and impairing mitochondrial function. Understanding how thromboxane-prostanoid receptor signaling promotes alcoholic cardiomyopathy is essential for the development of therapeutic agents for the treatment of alcoholic cardiomyopathy. Weilun is pursuing his dissertation research in the IGPBS - Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine program under the supervision of Saraswathi Viswanathan, PhD in the UNMC Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Diabetics, Endocrinology & Metabolism.

 

Nozima Aripova

PhD Student in MSIA - Clinically Relevant Basic Research

Rheumatology Research Foundation Future Physician Scientist Award (2022-2024)

The Rheumatology Research Foundation offers the  Future Physician Scientist Award to support students who are enrolled in combined MD/PhD or DO/PhD dual-degree training program and who intend careers as physician scientists while they conduct dissertation research in health related fields relevant to the mission of the Foundation. Nozima has been awarded a 2-year Future Physician Scientist Award from the Rheumatology Research Foundation for her project, “Citrullinated and malondialdehyde-acetaldehyde modified proteins promote cellular and immune responses associated with rheumatoid arthritis.”  The objective of this project is to elucidate the combined contributions of citrullinated and malondialdehyde-acetaldehyde (MAA) modified proteins in regulating cellular and immune responses in the context of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathogenesis. The central hypothesis guiding this work is that citrulline and MAA- modifications act synergistically to promote robust inflammatory responses and drive tolerance loss resulting in autoimmunity characteristic of RA. Nozima’s research project will provide an understanding of how citrullination and MAA modifications promote inflammation and fibrosis, as well as an understanding of the role that these modifications play in regulating the autoimmune responses that are highly characteristic of RA. She is pursuing this work as a PhD candidate in the MSIA Clinically Relevant Basic Research doctoral program under the supervision of Geoffrey Thiele, PhD, Professor and Ted Mikuls, MD, MSPH, both of the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Rheumatology.

 

Nathan D. Hatch

PhD Candidate in IGPBS - Immunology, Pathology & Infectious Disease

NIAID Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2021-2023)

The NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral Fellowships (F31 NSRAs) to enable promising students to obtain individualized, mentored research training from outstanding faculty sponsors while conducting dissertation research in scientific health-related fields relevant to the mission of the Institute. Nathan Hatch has been awarded a 2-year F31 NSRA from the NIAID for his project, “Defining the persistence-associated transcriptome in Chlamydia trachomatis.” Without an effective prophylactic, Chlamydia will remain a significant threat to public health indefinitely. As vaccine development has been thus far unsuccessful, targeting persistence (the method Chlamydia uses to resist clearance) may be the best alternative. Nathan’s research will lay the groundwork for mechanistic studies into the persistent response, with a view to determining potential targets for drug development. Nathan is a PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Immunology, Pathology & Infectious Disease, pursuing his dissertation research under the mentorship of Scot P. Ouellette, PhD, in the Department of Pathology & Microbiology.

 

Kajal Kamra

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2022-2023)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program promotes the integrated research and clinical training of promising students in predoctoral or clinical health professional degree training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health. Kajal Kamra was awarded a two-year AHA fellowship for her project, entitled “Novel mechanism of neural control of breathing in acute lung injury.” This project will utilize integrative physiological strategies to explore a novel mechanism through lung spinal afferent nerves that may mediate breathing after acute lung injury (ALI). Moreover, because the occurrence and progression of ALI are heightened in patients with underlying pre-existing cardiovascular disease, she will also determine the role of pulmonary spinal afferent nerves in mediating respiratory abnormalities in the ALI animal model with and without pre-existing myocardial infarction. Identification and further understanding of this novel mechanism will provide important information for the long-term goal of developing novel targeted therapeutic approaches to improve clinical outcomes in cardio-pulmonary diseases. Kajal is pursuing her dissertation research in IGPBS Integrative Physiology & Molecular Medicine under the supervision of Hanjun Wang, MD, Associate Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology.

 

Corrine F. Monaco

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Integrative Physiology and Molecular Medicine

 

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2024)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program promotes the integrated research training of promising students in predoctoral training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health.  Corrine Monaco was awarded a two-year AHA grant titled, “Modeling angioregression of the corpus luteum.”  The ovarian corpus luteum, an ephemeral organ required for the establishment of pregnancy, undergoes complete angioregression at the end of a reproductive cycle. Disruption of ovarian vasculature adversely affects reproductive potential, but the underlying mechanism(s) of this effect remain unclear. Corrine will perform single cell nuclear RNA sequencing to identify a cell-specific transcriptomic profile of the corpus luteum before and during regression. To study luteal angioregression in further detail, Corrine will also utilize a novel 3D organoid culture system to study how factors from the tissue microenvironment impact the fate of luteal microvascular endothelial cells in vitro. Corrine is a PhD candidate in the IGPBS - Integrative Physiology and Molecular Medicine program, working under the mentorship of John S. Davis, PhD, in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the College of Medicine.

 

Nicholas J. Mullen

PhD Candidate in IGPBS - Cancer Research

NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctotal MD/PhD Fellowship (2021-2025)

The NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NCI. Nicholas J. Mullen, an MD/PhD Scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 4-year F30 NSRA from the NCI for his project, “Targeting pyrimidine biosynthesis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.” Recognizing that cancer cells display highly deranged cellular metabolism, including massive nucleotide production, that is critical to their malignant behaviors, Nick's research is examining the role of hyperactive pyrimidine nucleotide metabolism in promoting cancer progression. He is also investigating pharmacologic inhibitors of nucleotide synthesis as potential therapeutics for pancreatic cancer. Nick is a PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Cancer Research, pursuing his dissertation research under the mentorship of Pankaj Singh, PhD, in the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases. After completing the PhD requirements, he will complete the final two years of medical school at UNMC.

 

Suhita Ray

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2022-2023)

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program aims to enhance the integrated research and clinical training of promising students who are matriculated in predoctoral or clinical health professional degree training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health. Suhita Ray was awarded a two-year AHA fellowship for her project, entitled “Determining the Role of a Sterile Alpha Motif Domain Protein in Stress-Induced Signaling and Survival.” Recognizing that different mechanisms control red blood cell formation in pathological vs. physiological states, Suhita aims to understand these processes with the ultimate goal of developing new classes of therapeutics. To this end, her research aims to elucidate the mechanisms controlling red blood cell recovery during anemia – a condition in which blood stem cells respond differently to stress than they do normally, including upregulation of a “sterile alpha motif” protein that promotes stem cell survival and red blood cell production. She is pursuing this work as a PhD candidate in the IGPBS Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology doctoral program under the tutelage of Kyle J. Hewitt, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology & Anatomy.

 

Itidal Reslane

PhD Candidate in IGPBS – Immunology, Pathology, and Infectious Disease

American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship (2023-2024) 

The American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship program promotes the integrated research training of promising students in predoctoral training programs and who intend careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers aimed at improving global cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and brain health.  Itidal Reslane has been awarded a two-year AHA grant titled “Arginine Biosynthesis is essential for Staphylococcus aureus persistence within the kidneys.”  Staphylococcus aureus can infect all organ systems of the human host. Survival and persistence require adjustment of central metabolic pathways in response to aerobic and anoxic environments in addition to differing carbon and nitrogen sources. Although S. aureus encodes biosynthetic pathways to synthesize arginine, it remains a functional auxotroph when grown in a chemically defined medium lacking arginine.  It has been shown that 54% of S. aureus clinical isolates collected from diverse sites of infection can grow in medium lacking arginine (arginine prototrophs). Itidal’s research demonstrates that mice challenged with S. aureus exhibit a chronic kidney infection that persists indefinitely, while the infection is typically resolved within the liver, spleen, and heart within two weeks. Furthermore, her preliminary data show that S. aureus arginine prototrophs are readily isolated only from kidneys 20 days post-infection. Collectively, these data suggest that arginine prototrophs are selected within the kidneys facilitating the persistence of S. aureus within the renal abscess. Itidal will now test the hypothesis that mutations that facilitate arginine biosynthesis in S. aureus are selected within a persistent renal abscess. Itidal’s study will begin to uncover metabolic pathways that are critical for the survival of S. aureus in specific niches of the host. The data generated from this investigation will provide a better understanding of the staphylococcal metabolism in-vivo which is essential to develop novel therapeutic agents that disrupt specific metabolic and essential nutrient acquisition pathways.  Itidal is a PhD candidate in the IGPBS – Immunology, Pathology, and Infectious Disease program, working under the mentorship of Paul D. Fey, PhD, in the Department of Pathology and Microbiology.

 

Rebecca A. Slotkowski

PhD Student in MSIA - Patient-Oriented Research

NIMHD Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (2022-2027)

The NIH National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities(NIMHD) offers Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellowships (F30 NSRAs) to support promising doctoral candidates to perform dissertation research and training for an MD/PhD degree in a scientific health-related field relevant to the mission of the NIMHD. Rebecca Slotkowski, an MD/PhD Scholar at UNMC, has been awarded a 5-year F30 NSRA from the NIMHD for her project, “SPARKLED: Social Programming Affects Risk in Kids of Latent Endothelial Disease.”  Heart problems are the number one cause of pregnancy-related death in the United States and most profoundly affect poor and non-White women. Social health programming can help people lead healthier lives by teaching them about stress management and healthy diets, which can help prevent heart disease later in life. Rebecca’s research project is focused on determining how social health programming for teenagers can empower communities across the United States to overcome barriers to health and reduce the long-term burden of adult heart disease during pregnancy.  She is pursuing this work as a PhD candidate in the MSIA Patient Oriented Research doctoral program under the supervision of Ann Anderson Berry, MD, PhD, Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology.

 

Susan Solmos

PhD Student in Nursing

American Association of Critical Care Nurses Impact Research Grant (2022-2024) 
Sigma Foundation for Nursing Small Grant (2022-2023)

The American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) Impact Research Grant program supports research that will provide evidence-based resources that influence high acuity critical care nursing practice. Susan has been awarded the 2022 AACN Impact Research Grant for her project, “Predictors of Medical Device-Related Pressure Injuries (MDRPI) in Critically Ill Adults”. Painful and disfiguring MDRPI occur in critically ill adults despite best efforts to prevent occurrences. Preventing complications from these live-saving devices, such as endotracheal tubes, are a nursing priority. This case control study will examine unique biomechanical and physiologic risk factors hypothesized to be specific to MDRPI. Findings may inform future preventive interventions to reduce the harmful occurrence of MDRPI. Susan has also been awarded a Sigma Small Grant from the Sigma Foundation for Nursing for her project, a "Mixed Methods Approach to Investigating Healthcare Providers’ PPE-Related Facial Injuries As Posted on Social Media during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Global Perspective." PPE-related injuries are a form of device-related pressure injuries and show marked similarities to MDRPI seen in hospitalized patients.  PPE-related injuries garnered international media attention during the early months of the pandemic. By examining social media posts (selfies and text), Susan seeks to understand the recent COVID-19 related surge in PPE-related injuries including personal, environmental, and contextual factors surrounding PPE use to inform future preventive interventions. Susan is a PhD student in the College of Nursing, pursuing these dissertation research studies under the advisement of Janet Cuddigan, PhD, RN, FAAN.