Your browser is unsupported

We recommend using the latest version of IE11, Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari.

Fellows

Adriana Ene, MS Heading link

Adriana Ene, MS

Ms. Ene has a strong academic and research background, including a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Bioinformatics and a Master of Science in Bioinformatics, both from Loyola University Chicago. She has employment experience as a research assistant working in microbiology on the wet lab bench as an undergraduate and exploring the distinction between bacteria in the urogenital tract as a graduate student.  She has contributed to 15 publications and has presented at multiple national conferences. Ms. Ene’s mentor is Cemal Yazici, MD, MS, and her research project focuses on the “concentration of gut microbiome and microbial metabolites to acute pancreatitis severity.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Carlos Font, MS Heading link

Carlos Font, MS

Carlos Font joins us from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria where he is currently a second-year medical student and CEMED scholar. Carlos is a Chicago native and received his Bachelor of Science from DePaul University in Lincoln Park. It was during college that Carlos decided to pursue medicine and became fascinated with biomedical research. During college, he began researching with the Organic Chemistry Dept. and completed an internship with the radiology department at the University of Chicago. After graduating college, Carlos moved to Philadelphia where he received a master’s in biomedical science with a Research concentration. It was during this time that he worked in the lab of Dr. Arturo Bravo-Nuevo PhD, investigating therapeutics for degenerative retinal disease. His research is still on-going and has been presented at various conferences. This summer, Carlos will be mentored by Professor and renowned scientist, Andrius Kazlauskas PhD. Carlos’ project will be to investigate the Notch pathway set of genes and their involvement with the development of Diabetic Retinopathy.

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Omar Garcia Martinez, BA Heading link

Omar Garcia Martinez, BA

Mr. Garcia is an outstanding medical student with a Bachelor of Arts in pre-medicine and a minor in biochemistry from Augustana College (IL). At UIC, he completed a post-baccalaureate through the College of Medicine Urban Health Program and is currently enrolled in the Equity Innovation Medicine (EquIMED) Scholarly Concentration 4-year Longitudinal Program. Mr. Garcia’s research experience includes work as a research assistant, where he reviewed the latest advancements in genetic engineering and immunology to help design a prototypical experiment that tests the viability of a Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) vaccine using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Mr. Garcia’s mentor is Anand Srivastava, MD, MPH, and his research project focuses on the “evaluation of kidney MRI-derived fibrosis to identify individuals at risk of CKD and ESKD.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Elisa Herrera, BS Heading link

Elisa Herrera, BS

Ms. Herrera is an exceptional medical student with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University. Her research experience includes work as a clinical research coordinator for clinical trials investigating therapeutics for Spinal Muscular Atrophy and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and as a research assistant contributing to projects that evaluate the effects of anesthesia on neurodevelopment. Ms. Herrera’s mentor is Tanika Kelly, PhD, and her research project focuses on “cardiovascular health, genetic susceptibility, and cognitive decline in chronic kidney disease.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Seok Jin Hong, MS Heading link

Seok Jin Hong, MS

Mr. Hong is a first-year medical student with an outstanding academic and research background, including a Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience & Medicine, Health, and Society, and a Master of Science in Physiology and Biophysics. In addition, he has employment experience as a senior analyst leading survey research on substance misuse prevention efforts, as a COVID-19 investigator for the Fairfax County Health Department, and as a lab manager and research analyst for a clinical schizophrenia research study. Mr. Hong has contributed to publications and presented at national and international conferences. His mentors in the program are Sirimon Reutrakul, MD, CDCES, and Pamela Martyn-Nemeth, PhD, RN, FAHA, FAAN. His research project focuses on the “effects of nighttime light on irregular sleep and health in type 1 and 2 diabetes.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Brad Isada, BA Heading link

Brad Isada, BA

Mr. Isada is a dedicated first-year medical student with a Bachelor of Arts in Biological Sciences and Mathematics from Northwestern University. His research experience includes work as a research assistant at the Knapp Center for Biomedical Discovery at the University of Chicago, where he participated in basic science by conducting and analyzing cell cultures and protein measurements. Mr. Isada’s mentor is Anand Srivastava, MD, MPH, and his research project focuses on the association of proteinuria trajectories with CKD progression in individuals with CKD.

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Harish Karthikeyan Heading link

Harish Karthikeyan

Mr. Karthikeyan is a committed trainee from a combined BA/MD program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. As a first-year medical student, Mr. Karthikeyan has research experience as a research assistant in a pulmonology lab where he collected and analyzed datasets, developed manuals of procedures, and performed statistical, qualitative, and quantitative analyses. His mentor is Waddah Alrefai, MD, and his research project focuses on the “potential roles of bile acids in the fibrosis associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Emma Pappano, BS Heading link

Emma Pappano, BS

Ms. Pappano is an outstanding first-year medical student with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research experience includes work at the Wisconsin Institute for Medical Research, where she participated in translational research for childhood cancer treatments.  As a part of this work, she performed in vitro bench work and conducted literature reviews of relevant research methods. Her mentor is Santosh L. Saraf, MD, and her research project focuses on the “association of candidate cell-free hemoglobin processing genetic variants with reduced kidney function in sickle cell disease.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Madison Pineda, BS Heading link

Madison Pineda, BS

Ms. Pineda is an enthusiastic and committed first-year medical student. She has a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry from Northeastern University. Her research experience includes employment as a research assistant at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, where she processed and analyzed human specimens for peripheral blood mononuclear cell isolation, cell culture, cloning, and Luminex. Ms. Pineda’s research mentors are Michael Fischer, MD, MSPH, and James Lash, MD. Her research project focuses on the “psychosocial health among Mexicans with chronic kidney disease.

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Rayaan Rauf Heading link

Rayaan Rauf

Mr. Rauf is a dedicated medical student from a combined BA/MD program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine.  As a first-year medical student, his research experience includes working as a research intern at the Mesulam Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease Center, where he contributed to investigating cholinergic axon abnormalities, brain aging, and neurodegenerative disorders. Mr. Rauf has multiple manuscripts in progress, has contributed to one publication, and has presented at many national conferences. His mentor is Ravinder K. Gill, PhD, and his research project focuses on the “role of intestinal serotonin transport in treating inflammatory bowel disease through modulation of epithelial barrier integrity.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Allison Raymundo, BS Heading link

Allison Raymundo, BS

Ms. Raymundo is a highly motivated first-year medical student seeking a dual degree (MD/MPH) from the University of Illinois Chicago.  She received a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience from the University of California, Riverside. Ms. Raymundo’s research experience includes employment as a research assistant, where she completed data collection, analysis, literature reviews, protocol development, and working with cell cultures.  She has presented at several national and local conferences. Her mentor is Jun Ma, MD, PhD, and her research project focuses on the “PIVOT Trial: Patient Activation Measure and Perceived Stress.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Darren Seaney, BS Heading link

Darren Seaney, BS

Mr. Seaney is an enthusiastic and dedicated first-year medical student. He received a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. His research experience includes work as a research assistant in the Darbar Lab, where he used machine learning techniques to identify changes in atrial fibrillation ECGs and to categorize disease phenotypes and genetic variants. Additionally, he worked in the Lab of Molecular Therapeutics at the University of Minnesota, where he used computational methods to understand molecular interactions in neurodegenerative disease. He has contributed to two publications, a pending patent, and has experience presenting at multiple conferences. Mr. Seaney’s mentor is Dawood Darbar, MD, and his research project focuses on the “mechanisms of atrial remodeling in diabetic patients with atrial fibrillation.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Zhengxin (Cindy) Tang, BS Heading link

Zhengxin (Cindy) Tang, BS

Ms. Tang is a highly motivated and outstanding first-year medical student with a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Illinois Chicago.  Her previous research experience includes working alongside her mentor, June Ma, MD, PhD, as a clinical research coordinator, where she screened, recruited, and onboarded patients to test the efficacy of a virtual health coach platform for managing depression and anxiety. She is the first author of two publications and has experience presenting at national conferences.  Her research project focuses on the “association between discrimination and depression/anxiety symptoms in SPEAC-2 Trial, and intervention design and delivery in IGNITE Trial.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

Benny Tom, BS Heading link

Benny Tom, BS

Benny Tom was born and raised in South Florida and received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Miami. Benny has a strong academic and research background. From early on in his career, he was passionate about gene therapy. He believed in treating diseases by addressing the root cause rather than just alleviating the symptoms. His employment experience includes work as a research assistant, where he learned both basic laboratory techniques and advanced genetic techniques. Most of these skills were obtained through gene knockout and rescue experiments using CRISPR-Cas9 on zebrafish. Benny’s mentor for this summer program will be Lewis Hsu, MD, PhD, and his research project will be focused on ways to “improve health education on gene therapy.”

T35 Research Fellow, Summer 2024  |  Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology

T35 Research Fellowship Heading link