By Bob Holmes
Columbia International University Biomedical Sciences major Katlyn Mccormick is excited about doing medical research at the undergraduate level, giving her valuable experience as she eventually works toward a Ph.D. in biochemistry.
Mccormick is part of an upcoming eight-week summer research project designed to provide insight for treatment of patients with metabolic disorders such as diabetes, obesity and cancer.
The research, funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is under the guidance of CIU Biomedical Sciences Professor Dr. Jeong-Ho Kim.
Because scientific research at the undergraduate level doesn’t get the attention for funding as research done at the graduate level, CIU recently hosted a lunch hour gathering for CIU Biomedical Science majors presented by representatives of SCINBRE (South Carolina IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence).
SCINBRE Program Director Dr. Edie Goldsmith, who is also the department chair of Cell Biology and Anatomy at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine in Columbia, told the CIU students that when she was an undergraduate student at the College of Charleston, she never had the opportunity to work in a research lab.
“One of the things that makes me so passionate about SCINBRE, and why I was excited to get involved with it, is to give undergraduate students in South Carolina, an opportunity to get that experience,” Goldsmith said.
She noted that South Carolina falls in the bottom half among the 50 states when it comes to NIH research funding, and that SCINBRE is working to make South Carolina more competitive for those dollars.
“We’re interested in training the next generation of biomedical workers across the state,” Goldsmith said. “That’s where our interaction with undergraduate institutions comes in.”
She also noted that SCINBRE provides financial resources to support that work through a grants program.
“It’s our way of providing faculty and students to help them design the research that interests them,” Goldsmith said. “It pays for supplies, travel to meetings, and allows faculty members to advance their research programs — but also provide a training opportunity for students.”
There are currently 13 undergraduate colleges and universities who benefit from SCINBRE. Professor Kim says he would like to see CIU become #14, increasing CIU’s biomedical credibility. CIU will have the opportunity to be a member when its current NIH grant is renewed.
“SCINBRE is the driving force behind medical research in South Carolina for undergraduate institutions such as CIU,” Kim said.
Meanwhile, Mccormick smiles when she thinks about doing research this summer saying her career goal is to be a professor.
“I have so much joy in learning and I just want to share that with as many people as possible.”
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