Burnett School Students Awarded for Graduate Research

• Burnett School College of Medicine Students

A dedication to inquiry and research is one of the foremost priorities for students and faculty at The UCF College of Medicine’s Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences. For 16 Burnett School graduate students, their work culminated with a Graduate Research Symposium on May 10.

Students presented their own extensive research projects on topics ranging from diabetes to cancer, heart disease to Alzheimer’s disease. “For most of the students, it’s a very important day in their maturation as graduate students,” said Dr. Mollie Jewett, chair of the Graduate Research Symposium Committee. “One of the biggest skills that a great scientist needs is to be able to tell their research to the world.”

The keynote speaker for Friday’s event was Dr. Timothy Osborne from the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research institute, the College of Medicine’s neighbor and partner at Lake Nona’s Medical City. Dr. Osborne presented his research on liver metabolism in the fight against obesity and said he hoped to inspire and motivate the scientific leaders of tomorrow. “I remember when I was a student, and someone would come from another institution to speak.” He said. “It was a very interesting experience to interact with that person in a way that made them seem like they were more human.”

After a full day of presentations, Dr. Deborah German, vice president for medical affairs and dean of the College of Medicine, led the awards presentation. “Research is the heart of academic medicine,” she said. “It’s a gift that will go on for a very long time.” The Burnett school and some of its faculty members have donated cash awards for the winners, many in memory of family members.

Research Symposium Award Winners:

1^st Place Ph.D.—Biomedical Sciences Award; $250; sponsor: Burnett School

Winner: Rania Bassiouni (mentor: Dr. Annette Khaled)

2^nd Place Ph.D.—Everett W. Cole, Jr. Memorial Award; $100; sponsor: Dr. Alex Cole

Winner: Nicole Barnette (mentor: Dr. Lawrence Von Kalm)

3^rd Place Ph.D.– Everett W. Cole, Jr. Memorial Award; $50; sponsor: Dr. Alex Cole

Winner: Micah Halpern (mentor: Dr. Mollie Jewett)

1^st Place M.S.—Kalyani Parthasarathy Memorial Award; $250; sponsor: Dr. Sampath Parthasarathy

Winner: Aladdin Riad (mentor: Dr. Shadab Siddiqi)

2^nd Place M.S.—Maya Singla Memorial Award; $100; sponsor: Dr. Dinender Singla

Winner: Namita Varudkar (mentor: Dr. Steve Ebert)

3^nd Place M.S.—Maya Singla Memorial Award; $50; sponsor: Dr. Dinender Singla

Winner: Vinal Menon (mentor: Dr. Michal Masternak)

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