The Pharmacology department is sending out a huge congrats to Katelyn Ahern (Pharmacology Graduate Student, in Thurl Harris’s Lab) for being a recent recipient of the Ruth L. Kirchstein Predoctoral Fellowship from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease (NIDDK) –effective July 1, 2020.
The Kirschstein-NRSA program enables promising predoctoral students, such as Katelyn, with potential to develop into a productive, independent research scientist, to obtain mentored research training while conducting dissertation research.
Members of the Harris lab study the development of hyperglycemia and insulin resistance during acute stress, such as critical illness, surgery, and trauma. The lab is particularly interested in characterizing the role of adipose tissue lipolysis in the development of these metabolic disturbances.
Katelyn’s NRSA will help her explore how products produced by lipolysis in adipose tissue can inhibit key proteins in the insulin signaling pathway and regulate the release of stored adipokines. This work will enable her and her team to better understand the complex inter-organ crosstalk that regulates whole body metabolism during stress and allow for identification of potential therapeutic targets.
Way to go, Katelyn! Please give her your sincere kudos and well-wishing as she continues her outstanding work as a student in research!