NUCATS, Clinical Investigators Highlighted at Research Day
NUCATS members were among those who gathered to celebrate scientific discovery and present research posters and abstracts at Feinberg’s 18th annual Lewis Landsberg Research Day on September 12.
The campus-wide event provides a valuable platform for investigators to present their findings and receive collaborative feedback from trainees, students, and faculty attendees. More than 400 scientific research posters and abstracts competed for award recognition in basic science, clinical trials, public health, women’s health, and social sciences research.
Rex Chisholm, PhD, vice dean for Scientific Affairs and Graduate Education, began Research Day by presenting the Tripartite Legacy Faculty Prize in Translational Science and Education to Alan Hauser, MD, PhD, professor and vice chair of Microbiology-Immunology, and the Medical Faculty Council Mentors of the Year awards to Hauser and Scott Budinger, MD, chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care in the Department of Medicine. Both Mentors of the Year have advanced their careers through the NUCATS Institute, and Hauser is an Institute member.
“As an educator and T32 PI, my grants and the trainees they have funded have benefited from the many educational resources offered by NUCATS, including the MSCI degree and Responsible Conduct of Research course,” says Hauser. “I appreciate all the hard work and effort by NUCATS leadership and the Institute’s staff to make this amazing resource available to all of us at Northwestern.”
The mentor recognitions were followed with a keynote presentation by Fiona Watt, PhD, an international leader in stem cell biology and current director of the European Molecular Biology Organization. Poster presentations then took place in the Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center, Robert H. Lurie Medical Research Center, and the Northwestern Memorial Hospital Feinberg Pavilion.
Jane Gou, a third-year biological sciences student and intern in the lab of Milkie Vu, PhD, assistant professor of Preventative Medicine and KL2 scholar, presented on behalf of Vu’s research group. Her research poster discussed how to leverage community strengths and combat food insecurity in Asian-American communities. The research was supported by the NUCATS Institute.
“This is a really important issue that I am honored to help confront. We wanted to learn about the programs being implemented to address food insecurity, who is most vulnerable within the Asian-American population, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Gou said. “We have identified barriers and opportunities to continue adjusting to this issue.”
The afternoon concluded with an awards ceremony and reception in the Hughes auditorium.
Written by Alex Miranda