Search

Congratulations, Tatiana Coverdell- Recipient of F31 Fellowship Award

April 16, 2021 by zrb8mf@virginia.edu

The Pharmacology department is sending out a huge congrats to Tatiana Coverdell (Pharmacology Graduate Student in John Campbell’s Lab) for being a recent recipient of the F31- Ruth L. Kirchstein Predoctoral Fellowship from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

The Kirschstein-NRSA program enables promising predoctoral students, such as Tatianna, who has potential to develop into a productive, independent research scientist, to obtain mentored research training while conducting dissertation research.

Parasympathetic input to the heart is mediated via cardiac vagal preganglionic neurons (CVNs), which are found in a hindbrain region called the nucleus ambiguus (nAmb) along with other neurons that controls aspect of speech, swallowing, and respiration. Despite the importance of these neurons in mediating cardiovascular health, research has been limited due to inability to specifically access these neurons.

This fellowship award will enable Tatiana and her team to explore a comprehensive approach to characterize CVNs based on transcriptome-wide mRNA expression, anterograde tracing of each subtype’s axonal projections, and activation of each subtype to assess the changes in heart rate, respiration, and upper airway motor function.

Way to go, Tatiana! Please give her your sincere kudos and well-wishing as she continues her outstanding work as a student in research!