EAST LANSING, Mich. — Two Michigan State University medical students have been awarded research grants as part of an American Medical Association program aimed at rewarding outstanding young investigators and jump-starting their research careers.
Melissa Elafros of the College of Human Medicine and Shane Sergent of the College of Osteopathic Medicine are among 43 junior researchers the AMA Foundation has selected as part of its Seed Grant Research Program. The program provides medical students, residents and fellows with grants of $2,500 for basic science or clinical research projects.
Many young scientists experience difficulty finding resources to support their investigations, and consequently fewer physicians are choosing careers in research, according to the AMA. The seed grant program aims to build grant-writing and research skills in young researchers.
Elafros, a fourth-year medical and Ph.D student with MSU's International Neurologic and Psychiatric Epidemiology Program, will be studying the clinical effect of simultaneous treatment with HIV/AIDS medicine and antiepileptic drugs in developing countries.
"My research investigates a pressing, real-world problem and serves as the ideal foundation for a career in international health research," said Elafros, whose project is an extension of a National Institutes of Health study in Zambia led by MSU's Gretchen Birbeck. "I am grateful to the AMA Foundation and to my mentors at MSU for supporting my career goals."
Sergent, a third-year student at the College of Osteopathic Medicine, will be assessing cardiovascular and pulmonary disease markers among "double burden" populations.
"As third-world countries struggle with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, they are also affected by a rapid upsurge in noncommunicable disease risk factors, such as obesity," said Sergent, who recently attended a medical education trip to a small village in Peru.
"Understanding this new global epidemic and the impact it has on disease progression will directly contribute to better disease prevention models."
For more information on the AMA Foundation's seed grant program, go to http://bit.ly/oXw40c.
###
Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.