Showcase

As part of the Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering (ICRME) laboratory, our team is focused on developing novel strategies to improve perfusion in diabetic ischemic tissue. This project specifically aims to enhance wound recovery ... in diabetic patients by examining the genetic and epigenetic factors that contribute to poor circulation and delayed healing. As an LHSI intern, my responsibilities include learning and conducting laboratory techniques such as DNA isolation, DNA quality assessment, gene promoter methylation studies and immunohistochemistry to better understand the underlying genetics. Specifically, I have received extensive training in completing DNA methylation assays using murine DNA samples, including DNA Bisulfite Conversion, PCR, gel electrophoresis, and sending samples for Sanger sequencing. The DNA sequences obtained are then aligned to the target genome to quantify the extent of methylation. The findings from this project could have significant implications for diabetic patients, particularly those with critical ischemic limb and non healing diabetic ulcers. By understanding the genetic and epigenetic factors that contribute to diabetic wound healing impairment, our research may lead to the development of new therapies and interventions that can improve the quality of life for those living with this condition. Acknowledgement: The laboratory of Dr. Kanhaiya Singh is supported by U.S. Department of Defense grant W81XWH-22-1-0146. We would like to thank Dr. Chandan K Sen, Director, ICRME for his kind support during this internship duration. Read more

Kids Healthcast covers child-focused health topics that parents, teachers, caregivers, and anyone else who works with children might be interested in through a monthly 20 to 30 minute podcast. And what does it include? It is recorded by pediatricians ... at the Indiana University School of Medicine, so you'll be getting up-to-date and accurate information from people who see firsthand what needs to be talked about. Each month includes Health News, Medical Trivia, Parenting tips, and two key segments on children's health. As the interns, what do we do? We record and edit for the podcast, as well as manage all of its social medias. Read more

The Reach Out and Read (ROR) program encourages parents to read aloud to their children to promote literacy development. We found that there is no research around parents reading to babies before they are born. There is a ROR program at Riley Fetal C ... enter where each parent who receives prenatal counseling at the Fetal Center is given a book to read to their baby before birth. My team and I developed a survey based on literature review and expert opinion aiming to explore parents' perceptions and experiences after their participation in the prenatal ROR program. I had several meetings with the family support program at Riley NICU, the Fetal Center research coordinator, and my mentor. I learned how to do literature searches, how to use EndNote, and different research methods. I reviewed literature on relevant topics and provided feedback to the team. I was responsible for documenting meeting minutes and sharing them with the team. I fully participated in the creation of the survey. The survey is IRB approved and is being distributed amongst parents in two different languages. I plan to continue my work with UROP support to publish our findings and contribute to efforts promoting literacy for children. Read more

Healthcare worker wellness includes a balance of psychological, social, and physical aspects of an individual's life. The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the relevant challenges highlighted in my literature review. My personal experiences shadowing famil ... y medicine residents in the IU Health Physicians Family Medicine clinic downtown allowed me to observe the stresses and challenges healthcare workers face on a day-to-day basis. Physician wellness and well-being are an integral part of high-quality health care, thus needing to prevent burnout, emotional exhaustion, and mental health issues for healthcare workers. High-quality health care aligns with the four pillars of the Quadruple Aim which includes reducing cost, patient satisfaction, improved health, and provider satisfaction. Considering this, a more concrete definition of wellness and well-being is needed, which can then inform initiatives and support for those working in medical settings. Read more

The research focus of Dr. Singh's laboratory is to understand mechanisms underlying secondary complications of diabetes. The vascular system provides organs and tissues the necessary nutrients to relay their functions. The skewed gene-environment int ... eractions (aka epigenetics), predominant in diabetics, lead to deficiency in such vascular functions known as diabetic vasculopathy. My focus of research for this internship was how to detect such abrupt epigenetic changes particularly promoter DNA methylation in diabetic ischemic tissue. I studied how to detect if a methyl group is added to the cytosine residue in the promoter of vascular gene, thereby suppressing its expression. My responsibilities included learning and conducting laboratory techniques such as mammalian cell culture, collagen hydrogel preparation, immunohistochemistry, PCR, gel electrophoresis, western blotting, and bisulfite conversion for gene promoter methylation studies. In this presentation, I will be explaining how diabetes induced pathological DNA hypermethylation can silence vascular genes and can contribute to diabetic vasculopathy. Such information can be translated clinically by targeted demethylation of such epigenetically silenced genes to bring back ischemic tissue perfusion. Acknowledgement: The laboratory of Dr, Kanhaiya Singh is supported by U.S. Department of Defense grant W81XWH-22-1-0146. We express deep appreciation of Dr. Chandan K Sen, Director, ICRME for this opportunity and his support during this internship duration. Read more

“An end to breast cancer through thinking, sharing, and understanding normal.” The Komen Tissue Bank (KTB) is the only repository in the world that collects normal breast tissue, matched serum, and plasma for researchers to use as their control varia ... ble in their research. This year the KTB will hold four breast tissue collection events. Events occur at the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center in Indianapolis and in another U.S. city with high concentrations of a diverse population. I had the opportunity to help and attend two collection events with different roles each time. I volunteered as a surgical assistant my first time and I worked in the lab the second time. As a surgical assistant, I set up the room between each patient and aided the surgeon during the biopsy. As a laboratory assistant, I worked on aliquoting. Upon delivery of the blood, after centrifuge, I worked on collecting the plasma. In addition to my main two jobs, I also worked on escorting donors to the height and weight station, giving me an opportunity to speak with them and hear their inspiring reasons for donating. Read more