Research: Young Scholars Summer Program


Alumni

Alex Buck
albuck@nmu.edu

Alex Buck was a senior premedical student majoring in biology and French at Northern Michigan University. He was trained by Tracy Schwab, Ph.D., in basic laboratory methods including protein assays, electrophoresis, immunoblotting, and flow cytometry. For his summer project, Alex examined the contributions of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) in the peripheral neuropathy of diabetes. In particular, he investigated the role of the RAGE receptor for AGEs in producing the long-term biochemical changes that damage Schwann cells and dorsal root ganglia neurons under hyperglycemic conditions. In the future, he plans to enroll in medical school and/or a graduate program in biology, and to engage in medically relevant research.

Vanya Choumanova
ivankac@gmail.com

Vanya Choumanova graduated with honors from Stanford University with a degree in human biology. Over the summer, Vanya worked under the direction of Dr. Kelli Sullivan to understand the effects of resveratrol, an anti-oxidant found in grapes and red wine, on oxidative stress and diabetic neuropathy. Vanya received training in animal dissection, tissue embedding, sectioning, immunohistochemistry, and microscopy. After completing her research project with PNR&D, she headed to Santiago, Chile, where she planned to create a health education program for breast cancer patients. Vanya is taking two years off before attending medical school.

Megan Clark
megankc@stanford.edu

Megan Clark was a junior at Stanford University majoring in Human Biology. Megan studied protein interactions in tumorigenic neuronal cells common in neuroblastoma. She typically did tissue culture, migration assays, fluorescence microscopy, and fluoroskan quantification. She also wrote and edited the PNR&D newsletter the first year it was published.

Matthew Gilbert
gilbertm@stu.beloit.edu

Matt Gilbert is a junior at Beloit College and is currently pursuing a double major in cellular and molecular biology and creative writing. Matt joined the Feldman lab as one of three PNR&D Scholars. Matt’s project involved the use of immunohistochemistry of peripheral sensory fibers in the skin to detect diabetic neuropathy. He acquired the necessary skills to perform these experiments by working closely with John Hayes and Drs. Kelli Sullivan, Stephen Lentz and Alex Oh. Matt performed tissue sectioning, immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy, mouse dissection and tissue fixation with the goal of developing a better mouse model of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Alissa Kay Holman
biobroads377@hotmail.com

Alissa Kay Holman was a senior premedical student at Northern Michigan University. She graduated with honors in May of 2004 with a degree in Biochemistry. She joined the laboratory in the summer of 2003 as a PNR&D Scholar. Alissa worked under the direction of Kelli Sullivan, Ph.D., and received training in histochemistry, immunohistochemistry, microscopy, and animal dissections. Alissa examined the co-localization of the IGF-I receptor with receptors for the neurotrophins in dorsal root ganglia from diabetic and control animals. She also contributed to multiple projects in the lab by sectioning and staining material from other investigators. Alissa will join the medical class of 2008 at Wayne State University in the fall.

Susie Kim
sskim@wesleyan.edu

Susie Kim will be a senior undergraduate student attending Wesleyan University double majoring in neuroscience and psychology in the fall. Over the summer, Susie received training in basic laboratory techniques including polymerase chain reactions, protein assays, immunohistochemistry, and RNA interference. Susie worked with Dr. Jim Dowling to understand the process of organelle disorganization in centronuclear myopathy. In particular, she investigated the role of Mig-2, a protein that is involved in membrane trafficking and is expressed in the golgi apparatus and the centrosome during muscle development. After she graduates from Wesleyan University, Susie plans to continue her education in either medical school or a graduate program in neuroscience.

Matthew Lipshaw
mlipshaw@umich.edu

Matthew Lipshaw will be a junior undergraduate student at the University of Michigan in the fall. Matthew studies the expression of the apoptotic protein Drp-1 in Schwann cells exposed to hyperglycemic conditions. In particular, Matthew studies what metabolic processes specifically lead to heightened Drp-1 expression and cell death. Matthew plans to graduate from the University of Michigan with a bachelors degree in either molecular biology or neuroscience and either attend medical or graduate school.

Matt Lincoln
lincol18@msu.edu

Matt Lincoln was a junior undergraduate student from Michigan State University. He planned to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in human biology. Matt examined levels of glycation end products ( AGE ) known to be present in diabetic patients. Specifically, Matt investigated how one receptor, RAGE, produces an increase in the release of AGE in diabetic Schwann cells compared to healthy Schwann cells. His research may show a link between excessive release of AGE and the loss of nerve structure and function in diabetic patients. After he graduates from Michigan State University, Matt plans to continue with research in graduate school or possibly attend medical school.

Vidya Mahadevan
srimaha@jhu.edu

Srividya Mahadevan was a sophomore at Johns Hopkins University. She studied the expression of apoptotic proteins during embryonic development. She typically performed sectioning of animal embryos, immunohistochemistry, and fluorescence microscopy. She also occasionally did protein assays and Western blotting.

Christopher Pirok
pirokc@umich.edu

Chrisopher Pirok was a senior at the University of Michigan. He studied the biochemical mechanisms of tumor cell invasion and metastasis in human neuroblastoma cells. Christopher typically did tissue culture, protein assays, and Western blotting. He also did immunohistochemical analysis on primary neuroblastic tissue sections.

Laurel Roberts
laurelr@stanford.edu

Laurel Roberts was a sophomore at Stanford University. She studied protein interactions in tumorigenic neuronal cells common in neuroblastoma. She typically did tissue culture, lysate collection, protein assays and Western blotting. She also designed the initial PNR&D WebPages, and wrote and edited the first PNR&D newsletter.

Muhammad-Saleem Khan
lasko20@yahoo.com

Muhammad-Saleem received his training under the direction of Kelli Sullivan, Ph.D., in basic laboratory methods including histochemistry, immunohistochemistry, microscopy, and animal dissections. His summer project was examining intraepidermal innervation of the rat and mouse footpad. To gain insight concerning the damage caused by diabetes and the effect of treatment, the terminal projections of sensory nerve fibers will be examined. This model is currently used in human patients and is less invasive than traditional nerve biopsies. Muhammad Saleem worked during the summer to validate this technique for the animal experiments.

Thomas John Sutton
tsutton@umich.edu

Thomas John Sutton graduated from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor with a degree in biopsychology and cognitive sciences. He worked under the direction of Joseph Corey, M.D., Ph.D., on a project to help understand the role of cell shape in neuroblastoma cell behavior. He received training in substrate micropatterning, cell culture, immunocytochemistry, microscopy, and analysis of cellular morphology.