Courtney Walker. Photo by Surabhi RaoWallace Goldin - Contributorwsgoldin@uab.edu
Students have the opportunity to become a part of a groundbreaking research with faculty members as well as to lead their own studies, and can gain academic credit both ways. UAB has a tradition of enabling and encouraging undergraduate research, and it has become a staple of presentations during student recruitment season. This provides a dynamic of cooperation and individual competition that is found in careers in research and graduate programs alike, but that is not necessarily expected in undergraduate academia.
Dana Pham, a senior chemistry major, recently returned from a summer spent at Johns Hopkins University studying Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that results in the rapid appearance of aging in early childhood.
Here in Birmingham, Pham conducts research on the immunological aspect of Type 1 diabetes, and has presented her findings at several expos.
Pham admits that participating in research as an undergraduate is not without its challenges, though.
“The main challenge that I have faced in performing research as an undergraduate student is learning to manage time,” Pham said. “Many experiments require that I collect data at certain times, and I often have to work late nights or come in early in the morning to perform these experiments.”
However, according to Pham the time commitment is definitely worthwhile.
“Sometimes it can be a handful,” Pham said. However, seeing good results after all the time and hard work is the most rewarding aspect.”
After graduation, Pham plans to have her research published and apply to medical school in the summer of 2017. She plans on continuing with research only after she receives her medical degree as a physician researcher.
As a senior neuroscience major, Courtney Walker also participates in research in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology to study human brain tissue obtained from deceased human schizophrenia subjects. Her lab’s primary focus is in determining if there are any structural differences in the cells of the brains of schizophrenia patients and those not diagnosed with the condition.
When Walker was named a recipient of the Goldwater Scholarship last year, she became the 21st recipient of this prestigious award for the university and one of only 252 recipients nationally. She also participated in the Neuroscience Summer Research Academy this year, where she was granted a stipend to continue her research here at UAB.
Walker is currently applying to graduate school in pursuit of a Ph.D. in neuroscience. She hopes to continue research on mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, schizophrenia and suicide.
“There is still so much we don’t know about these conditions, and I hope to be able to fill in these gaps,” Walker said.
Remy Meir, another member of UAB’s undergraduate neuroscience program, performs her research on the addictive properties of opioids. The junior from Auburn uses mice to test the addictive nature of morphine when combined with a muscle relaxer called Baclofen. Her goal is to create a protocol that heightens the pain relieving properties of opioids while decreasing the rate of addiction.
Meir has been awarded multiple scholarships for her research, including a scholarship to participate in the Honors Neuroscience Research Academy this past summer and the Patsy W. Collat Endowed Scholarship for outstanding female neuroscience majors. She also placed second in UAB’s summer research expo.
For Meir, conducting research was a new concept when she came to UAB.
“Coming to terms with the fact that I may not always get the results I expected is definitely something I had to get used to,” Meir said.
Meir plans to attend graduate school to receive her Ph.D. in neuroscience. She hopes to continue her research in drug addiction as well as teach at the collegiate level.
“I believe that asking questions and finding answers is important, but it is also important to inspire future generations to have the same deep curiosity about the world,” Meir said.
Editor’s note: The Office of Undergraduate Research specializes in placing students in research labs across campus. Students can contact program administrator Gareth Jones at ghjones@uab.edu or visit Heritage Hall 527 for information on how to get involved with research.
