VCU news

By Frances Dumenci

Working with faculty mentors and research teams, biomedical sciences doctoral students at Virginia Commonwealth University are engaged in a vast array of research projects, from chromosomal changes in women with fibromyalgia to analyzing traumatic brain injury in the visual system. 

Hosted by Louis De Felice, Ph.D., professor and vice chairman in the VCU Department of Physiology and Biophysics  in the VCU School of Medicine and chair of admissions for the Biomedical Sciences Doctoral Portal (BSDP), the Laboratory Research Colloquium featured both oral and poster presentations by nearly 25 first-year graduate students. 

“The laboratory research colloquium has been a successful and informative event,” said De Felice. “It is a great opportunity for faculty to meet students and for students to meet faculty outside of their specific field of study.” 

During the colloquium, faculty and students were encouraged to ask questions of the presenters. 

“It’s really helpful to get feedback from faculty and students from other departments. And it’s also interesting to get different perspectives on the research we’re conducting,” said Kelly Rafferty, who is beginning her second year as a dual-degree doctoral student in human genetics and genetic counseling. 

Rafferty presented, “Acquired chromosomal changes in women with fibromyalgia: A pilot study,” a research project she’s been working on with her mentor, Colleen Jackson-Cook, Ph.D., professor ofpathology and director of the Jackson-Cook Cytogenetics Laboratory. 

“The goal of the study is to better understand the pathology of fibromyalgia. We know little about it. Understanding the genetic chromosomal changes will help us to learn more about this disease and some day might lead to better treatments for patients,” Rafferty said. 

Sean Evans, a microbiology graduate student, presented his poster, “Testing of potential vaccine candidate for Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi outer surface protein C, against mammalian sera.” Evans conducts his research under the guidance of Richard Marconi, Ph.D., professor ofmicrobiology and immunology. 

“We’re looking for a better vaccine for animals against lyme disease,” said Evans. “Polio, small pox – vaccines have been very important in terms of preventing sickness.” 

A fellow student in microbiology, Fadi El-Rami, presented his poster, “Tumor immune editing associated with autophagy and senescence.” 

“The colloquium provides good practice. It allows us to exchange knowledge with colleagues and to get feedback. It also helps build our communication skills for future presentations,” said El-Rami who works with faculty mentor Masoud Manjilli, Ph.D., associate professor of microbiology and immunology. 

The VCU BSDP program admits students into the first year of their Ph.D. training in six departments or two programs: anatomy and neurobiology; biochemistry and molecular biology; human and molecular genetics; microbiology and immunology; pharmacology and toxicology; physiology and biophysics; microbiology and genetics; or neuroscience. Students spend the first year rotating in laboratories selected from any of the departments. With the help of an academic counselor, students also select courses from any department. Courses are chosen to complement students’ research interests or, in some cases, to allow them to explore potential research interests. 

“Twenty-first century biomedical research is largely an interdisciplinary enterprise, and the most competitive and successful researchers will require technical and intellectual skills that reach beyond the narrow confines of particular disciplines,” said De Felice. “The VCU School of Medicine has developed an admissions portal for a Ph.D. in the basic health sciences that complements the traditional strengths of specialized departments and yet allows flexibility in selecting a Ph.D. program.” 

The first-year portal students, including those who participated in the colloquium, will now join specific departments to begin their second year of training toward their Ph.D. 

Subscribe for free to the weekly VCU News email newsletter athttp://newsletter.news.vcu.edu/ and receive a selection of stories, videos, photos, news clips and event listings in your inbox every Thursday. To learn more about research taking place at VCU, subscribe to its research blog, Across the Spectrum athttp://www.spectrum.vcu.edu/