May 18, 2004

SIU Med School Announces Research Symposium Awards

Nine medical and graduate students and resident physicians received top awards in the 14th annual Combined Research Symposium at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine.

The top three projects in each category, as judged by a panel of faculty, received monetary prizes. The projects were judged on several criteria -- preliminary data and research approach, research design, project creativity, originality and the project's potential scientific or medical significance. Each project had a committee of advisors who provided assistance.

Sponsored by the School and SIU's chapter of Alpha Omega Alpha, the symposium offers medical students, graduate students and residents an opportunity to gain experience in making formal presentations of their research findings. A total of 19 oral presentations were given and nine poster presentations were displayed.

The first place medical student winner was Lindsay Jackson, a sophomore from Springfield, for her project, "Neuroprotective Effects of Estrogen in the Aging Brain: An Analysis of Proteins Involved in Synaptic Sprouting." Her faculty advisors were Mary McAsey, Ph.D., assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, and Robert Struble, Ph.D., associate professor of pathology and psychiatry and the SIU Alzheimer Center.

The second place winner was Ryan Majcina, a sophomore from Morton, for his project, "Cancer Survivors and Their Sequelae: St. Jude Long Term Follow-Up Survey." His faculty advisor was Dr. Melissa M. Hudson, professor of pediatrics, University of Tennessee Health Sciences College of Medicine in Memphis. Third place went to Laurel Bailey, a junior from Jonesboro, for her project, "Effect of Lifestyle Factors on Breast Cancer Incidence in Women with Gail Score." Her faculty advisor was Dr. Elizabeth Peralta, assistant professor of surgery.

The first place graduate student winner was Saif Lalani, a medical microbiology and immunology student from India, for his project, "C-maf Enhances Apoptosis in T Cells and Thymocytes." His faculty advisor was Mary Pauza, Ph.D., assistant professor of medical microbiology and immunology.

The second place graduate winner was Vikram Jadhav, a pharmacology student from India, for his project, "Role of Endogenous Prostaglandin E2 in Modulation of Autonomic Neurotransmission in Cerebral Arteries." His faculty advisor was Tony Lee, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology. Third place went to Preeti Puntambekar, a pharmacology student from India, for her project, "Direct Interaction of Adenosine with the TRPV1 Channel Protein." Her faculty advisor was Vickram Ramkumar, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmacology.

The first place resident winner was Dr. Lisa Little, an obstetrics and gynecology resident from Danville, Penn., for her project, "Apoptosis Induced by Vitamin E Succinate (VES) in Ovarian Cancer Cells Lines is Not Mediated by FAS. Her faculty advisors were Dr. L. Stewart Massad and Mary McAsey, Ph.D., both assistant professors of obstetrics and gynecology.

The second place winner was Dr. Suman Gupta, an obstetrics and gynecology resident from Flushing, N.Y., for her project, "Estradiol Promotes Transient Glial Proliferation and Neurite Growth in the Mouse Olfactory Bulb." Her faculty advisor was Mary McAsey, Ph.D., assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology. Third place went to Dr. Lara Hammond, a urology resident from Minneapolis, Minn., for her project, "New Approaches to Surgeon Training: A Model for Precutaneous Nephrolithotomy." Her faculty advisor was Dr. Bradley Schwartz, associate professor of urology.

Judges for this year's symposium were Robert Helfert, Ph.D., associate professor of otolaryngology; McAsey; Dr. Jacquelyn Quin, assistant professor of surgery; Dr. Krishna Rao, Ph.D., assistant professor of hematology/oncology; Dr. Laura Rogers, associate professor of internal medicine; Dr. Michael Schneider, assistant professor of pediatrics; Dr. Thomas Tarter, Ph.D., associate professor of urology; Ko Watabe, Ph.D., professor of medical microbiology and immunology, and Dr. Gayle Woodson, professor of otolaryngology.

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