Dr. Alexander Lai and student Tanisha Valdez present posters at the NIH’s regional IDeA conference
With support from the NIH-funded KY INBRE (Kentucky IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence), Dr. Alexander Lai, Associate Professor of Biology, and biology/pre-med major Ms. Tanisha Valdez attended and presented posters at the Southeast IDeA Regional Conference in Columbia, SC, on September 15-17. The conference attracted hundreds of researchers from other IDeA states, including Arkansas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina, and West Virginia.
Dr. Lai’s poster entitled “A virologist’s perspective on COVID-19 pandemic” discussed the parallels between the SARS epidemic of 2003 and COVID-19 pandemic regarding the emergence of novel coronaviruses and the significant public health and economic impacts.
Ms. Tanisha Valdez, who completed the KY INBRE Summer Undergraduate Research Program at the University of Louisville earlier this year, discussed her research in a poster entitled “Cellular senescence in peripheral tissues after spinal cord injury.” The research was conducted in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Hetman, Endowed Professor of Molecular Signaling at the University of Louisville. Ms. Valdez’s poster was awarded second place in the neuroscience category. Congratulations to Ms. Valdez!
Dr. Scott Wicker, Vice Provost of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Chemistry, and Dr. Ethan Sharp, Director of Sponsored Programs, also attended the conference and participated in a special session with other HBCU representatives and NIH leaders that explored ideas for improving collaboration and developing research capacity.
Kentucky State University joined KY INBRE in May 2023. Led by the University of Louisville, KY INBRE aims to increase involvement in biomedical research and NIH funding in Kentucky, which like other IDeA states, has historically had lower rates of NIH funding. To learn more about opportunities available through KY INBRE, visit www.kyinbre.org.
Photo 1 Above: Ms. Valdez discusses her poster on the Southeast IDeA conference.
Photo 2 Below: Dr. Lai and Ms. Valdez in front of Dr. Lai’s poster at the Southeast IDeA conference
