The Georgetown-Howard Universities Center for Clinical and Translational Science (GHUCCTS) is proud to introduce our 2023-2024 Translational Biomedical Science (TBS) program scholars.
The goal of the TBS program is to prepare pre-doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows (MDs and PhDs) to serve as the critical link in advancing the translation of basic science into improved outcomes for health, aging and disease. The primary aim of the TBS program is to provide the training necessary for scientists to become the next generation of leaders in translational biomedical research. Emphasis is placed on teaching trainees how to build interdisciplinary collaborative research programs by providing them with dual mentored training experiences in preclinical and clinical research. The TBS Program leverages the rich partnerships that GHUCCTS has established among Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC), Howard University College of Medicine (HUCM), MedStar Health Research Institute (MHRI), the Washington, D.C. Veterans Affairs Medical Center (DC VAMC) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).
PRE-DOCTORAL STUDENTS:
Emma C. Rowland is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Department of Biochemistry. Her TL1 project will Investigating and targeting epigenetic and metabolic perturbations involved in TMZ resistance in Glioblastoma Multiforme. Her mentors are Nagi Ayad, PhD at Georgetown University and Jing Wu, MD/PhD at NCI, National Institutes of Health.
Mark D. Hatcher is a PhD candidate in the Howard University Department of Physiology and Biophysics. His TL1 project will look at the role of PPARα on the expression and activity of renal sodium transporters during high dietary salt consumption. His mentors are Dexter L. Lee, Ph.D. at Howard University and Kathryn Sandberg, Ph.D. at Georgetown University.
Arthur Patrick McDeed is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Department of Biostatistics, Bioinformatic, & Biomathematics. His TL1 project explores novel statistical methods for the analysis of methylated cfDNA in serial liquid biopsy samples. His mentors are Jaeil Ahn, PhD, Ming Tan, PhD, Anton Wellstein, MD/PhD at Georgetown University.
Adam Kaminski is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience. His TL1 project will focus on the functional integration of brain regions across executive control demands in general childhood psychopathology. His mentor is Chandan Vaidya, PhD at Georgetown University.
Deborah J. George is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Department of Biology. Her TL1 project looks at the role of Eph/Ephrin Signaling in Type II SGN Turning. Her mentors are Thomas Coate, PhD at Georgetown University and Michael Deans, PhD at the University of Utah.
Zeeba Manavi is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Department of Biology. Her TL1 project focus is currently studying the role of immune cell senescence in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS). Her goal is to understand if senescent cells contribute to disease pathogenesis in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), and whether the elimination of these cells could reduce disease severity. Her mentors are Jeffrey Huang, MD at Georgetown University and Daniel Reich, MD, PhD at the National Institute of Health.
Max Stevenson is a PhD candidate in the Georgetown University Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience. His TL1 project consists of using animal models of neurodegenerative disease to investigate the effects of novel pharmacological compounds on disease pathology, and clinical applications of approved preclinical compounds to better understand the full scope of translational research from animals to human patients. His mentors are Charbel Moussa, MBBS, PhD at Georgetown University and Raymond Turner, MD at Georgetown University.
POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWS:
Branka Stanic, MD is a post-doctoral fellow at Georgetown University. Her TL1 project investigates the protective effects of angiotensin type 1 receptor antagonists in a model of cognitive dysfunction and anxiety-like behavior induced by sudden ovarian hormone loss. Her mentors are Kathryn Sandberg, PhD, Juan Saavedra, MD at Georgetown University, and Dexter L. Lee, PhD at Howard University.
Ryan Staples, PhD is a post-doctoral fellow at the Georgetown University Department of Neurology. His TL1 project consists of examining how damage to a reading model relates to neural correlates of phonological and semantic contributions to reading using voxel-based lesion symptom mapping (VLSM), and connectome-based lesion-symptom mapping (CLSM). His mentors are Peter Turkeltaub, MD, PhD at Georgetown University and Andrew DeMarco, PhD, CCC-SLP at Georgetown University.
Sadaf Ghaderzadeh, PhD is a post-doctoral fellow at Howard University College of Medicine. Her TL1 project, "Systemic Administration of miR-451 Improves Autophagy Response," explores the intricate interplay between autophagy and microRNAs in the progression of DKD, providing valuable insights into potential therapeutic avenues for this prevalent diabetes complication. Her mentors are Maurice Fluitt, PhD at Howard University and Sergei Nekhai, PhD at Howard University.
For more information on our new and past scholars, please visit the TBS website.