Now in its sixth year, the 2008 Annual Medical Student Research Day featured 49 medical student research projects spanning basic and clinical research in presentations Wednesday, Feb. 27, in the Weill Greenberg Center.
Student Julie Lian discussing her research study on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at Medical Student Research Day, Feb. 27.
The number of students conducting research has grown significantly over the last two years, according to Dr. Joel Pardee, associate dean for research services at Weill Cornell and director of the Office of Medical Student Research, as students explore new and less conventional research topics. Last year alone, 65 first-year students, of a total of roughly 85 M.D.-track students, conducted some form of research.
According to Dr. Pardee, that growth reflects, at least in part, medical students' growing interest in clinical research projects, in addition to the traditional basic research students may conduct.
"Anything that we do here — psychology, ethics, clinical epidemiology — qualifies as research. And with that broadened definition, students have become more interested," said Dr. Pardee. For example, student presentations this year included research on physician attitudes toward palliative care and why patients choose different doctors in a fixed-price marketplace.
Student Marc Soares (right) presenting his research to Dr. Michele Fuortes (left) and Dr. Mark Lachs (second from left).
Even beyond looking at new topics, Weill Cornell student researchers are also exploring new geographies in their research experiences. While students continue to work in labs at Weill Cornell and Tri-Institutional partners Memorial Sloan-Kettering and the Rockefeller University, as well as outside labs such as the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., students expanded their reach even further this year, to Malawi, Tanzania and Brazil, among others.
"One thing that was apparent was the number of places that students had done their research," said Kendra Harris, a first-year MD-PhD student. "It speaks to the opportunities available at Weill Cornell," said Harris, who organized the Annual Medical Student Day along with fellow students Monica Saumoy and Clara Tow.
The guest lecture at this year's Annual Medical Student Research Day was given by Dr. Shahin Rafii, the Arthur Belfer Professor of Genetic Medicine and director of the Ansary Stem Cell Center for Regenerative Medicine at Weill Cornell. Dr. Rafii discussed the potential within the next five years for conducting translational stem cell research in organ regeneration and revascularization.
Medical Student Research Day participants and faculty
Ten students were honored with "Medical Student Research Day Awards" for their outstanding work. They include:
Matthew Scherer
Admixture Mapping of Peripheral Arterial Disease: Identification of Candidate Loci Associated With Ankle-Arm Index in the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study and the Cardiovascular Health Study
Allison Schulman
A Polymerized Bovine Hemoglobin Oxygen Carrier Preserves Regional Myocardial Function and Reduces Infarct Size After Acute Myocardial Ischemia
Jonathan Nowak
Embryonic Specification and Function of a Multipotent Skin Stem Cell Niche
Yifan Xu
The Role of Gustatory Nociception in Deet Avoidance by Drosophila Melanogaster
Judith Briant
OPRL1 Gene Variants Associate With Opiate Addiction Vulnerability in Caucasians
Esther Teo
Comparing a Dermal Stapler Device to Standard Dermal Sutures for Incisional Closure
Scott Montgomery
Augmentation of Tendon-to-Bone Healing With a Magnesium-Based Bone Adhesive
Tony Rosen
Managing Resident-to-Resident Aggression in Nursing Homes: Creative Staff-Developed Strategies Exist, but Comprehensive Evidence-Based Interventions Needed
Dan Weisholtz
Linguistic Threat Modulates Limbic, Visual and Language System Neural Activity
Anastasia Grivoyannis
Nevirapine-Use and Prevention of Vertical Transmission of HIV at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre
Photography by Amelia Panico.