The School of Medicine’s Student Research Program has announced winners of the October 2016 Sarah Morrison Student Research Awards. Eight students received awards to support their research efforts and help fund their presentations at conferences and scientific meetings.
Seven of the recipients are B.A./M.D. students: Muhammed Alikhanm, Hunter Faris, Luke He, Jacob Lee, Imran Nizamuddin, Carlee Oakley and Sai Vanam. One recipient, Ara Staab, is a School of Medicine graduate student.
“We had many excellent proposals,” said Agostino Molteni, M.D., Ph.D., director of student research. “All of the projects selected for funding were of extremely high scientific quality.”
Sarah Morrison award recipients are reviewed by a committee of faculty judges and processed through the school’s Office of Research Administration. Awards of up to $1,500 are presented each April and October. Since 2013, 45 student research projects have received more than $61,000 of financial support from the Sarah Morrison award program.
Each School of Medicine winner at the 2016 UMKC Health Sciences Student Research Summit had received Sarah Morrison award recognition. Two received top awards for research posters at the annual Missouri chapter of the American College of Physicians annual meeting, and others have been invited to present their research at national and international scientific meetings.
Students interested in the Sarah Morrison Research awards are encouraged to apply prior to the April 1 and Oct. 1 deadlines each year. For complete application information, visit the Office of Research Administration’s student research website.
Award winners, abstract titles and faculty mentors
- Muhammed Alikhanm, “Achieving blood pressure control through patient engagement in a safety-net hospital; feasibility study of a hypertension education program,” Rebecca Pauly
- Hunter Faris, “Regulation of Src Family Protein Kinases in the Rat Striatum by Muscarinic Acetylcholine M4 Receptor,” John Wang
- Luke He, “New Insight into Fructose and Retinopathy: Potential Adjunct Treatment with Metformin,” Yun Yan
- Jacob Lee, “Sensitivity and Specificity of Abdominal Ultrasound in Diagnosing Necrotizing Enterocolitis in Preterm Infants: A Meta-Analysis,” Sherwin Chan
- Imran Nizamuddin, “Pharmacological control of endocannabinoid signaling pathways as a strategy for neuroprotective therapy development,” Peter Koulen
- Carlee Oakley, “The Effects of Trimethylamine-N-oxide on Cardiovascular Function,” Mike Wacker
- Sai Vanam, “Effects of extended storage on cell biological properties, structure and function of cornea tissue,” Peter Koulen
- Ara Staab, “Adapting the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet in urban African-American communities: a feasibility study,” Lakshmi Venkitachalam
