2010-09-01
The Minority Medical Student Award Program (MMSAP) encourages minority medical students to pursue an interest in hematology research. For an eight- to 12-week period, MMSAP participants will work closely with their mentors on a hematology-related research project. The subjects investigated by this year’s students include thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), sickle cell anemia, MDS, and acute myeloid leukemia. The awardees will have the opportunity to present the results of their research at ASH’s annual meeting in December.
This year’s program has the largest number of participants yet, including four returning students. Each award recipient will receive the support of a research mentor and a career-development mentor, travel stipends to attend medical meetings, and subscriptions to The Hematologist and Blood.
Returning Participants
Imo Akpan
University of Illinois at Chicago
Research Project:
Determination of the manner in which changes within the γ-globin gene are linked to differences in histone H3 (lys9) methylation following decitabine administration in the baboon model
Research Mentor:
Joseph DeSimone, PhD
University of Illinois at Chicago
May Cho
Meharry Medical College
Research Project:
Structural requirements of LDB1 function
Research Mentor:
Stephen Brandt, MD
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Tiffany D. Jackson
Mercer University School of Medicine
Research Project:
Production of erythrocytes from human embryonic stem cells
Research Mentor:
Kenneth Zuckerman, MD
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center/University of South Florida
Courtney Nicole Johnson
University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
Research Project:
Disease knowledge in chronic myelogenous leukemia patients as a predictor of compliance to treatment
Research Mentor:
Sikander Ailawadhi, MD
Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center/University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
First-Time Participants
Tiana Carrillo
University of Illinois at Chicago
Research Project:
Iron-mediated ROS production as a mechanism for RARS and the basis for therapeutics
Research Mentor:
Seth J. Corey, MD
Northwestern University
Drees Griffin Jr.
University of Alabama School of Medicine
Research Project:
Creation of the UAB thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura–hemolytic uremic syndrome registry
Research Mentor:
Marisa Marques, MD
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Michelle Long
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Research Project:
Pediatric immune thrombocytopenic purpura: drug treatments and responses
Research Mentor:
Ellis J. Neufeld, MD, PhD
Children’s Hospital, Boston
Myntee Ngangana
The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Research Project:
Association between epigenetic changes and acute myeloid leukemia
Research Mentor:
Michael Caligiuri, MD
The Ohio State University
Jennifer Nichols
University of Illinois at Chicago
Research Project:
The effects of environmental cues and differentiation state on hematopoietic stem cell colony growth, morphology, and fetal hemoglobin production
Research Mentor:
Joseph DeSimone, PhD
University of Illinois at Chicago
Kandyce Pearson
University of Iowa
Research Project:
Characterization of K13-NEMO interaction
Research Mentor:
Preet Chaudhary, MD, PhD
Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center/University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
Stacey Pereira
Rush Medical College
Research Project:
Kinetics of engraftment: single-donor dominance versus dual-donor chimerism in double cord blood transplant outcomes
Research Mentor:
Colleen Delaney, MD
University of Washington
Pablo N. Quintana
University of Illinois at Chicago
Research Project:
Targeting miRNAs that regulate the glucocorticoid receptor as a potential therapeutic for multiple myeloma
Research Mentor:
Steven T. Rosen, MD
Northwestern University
Vanessa Sarfoh
University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Research Project:
Magnetic resonance imaging of liver and cardiac iron
Research Mentor:
Janet Kwiatkowski, MD
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Ngozidilenna Wilkins
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Research Project:
Characterization of platelet α-granule dynamics
Research Mentor:
Brian Storrie, PhD
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
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