Medical Student Research Experiences

The Office of Research Affairs can assist Wright State medical students who are seeking research experiences during their medical education. Typically, research experiences take the form of summer electives between Years 1 and 2 and Year 4 electives. Some students arrange to work with faculty mentors year-round or at varying time intervals. Please use our online form below to provide information about the types of research experiences that interest you. The information will be used to introduce you to appropriate SOM department chairs and other faculty research mentors. After letters of introduction are sent to faculty and copied to students, it is up to you to follow-up by making an appointment with the faculty to discuss possible research experiences.

The deadline for submitting information is Friday, January 4, 2008. Priority in processing the information will be given to Year I students who are seeking summer selectives. If you have questions about the process or problems using the online form, please contact Mark Willis in the Office of Research Affairs (937-775-3814). [Posted 120307]

Seed Grant Funding Level Is Raised

The maximum funding level for SOM seed grants in 2008 has been increased from $10,000 to $15,000 per grant. This is the first increase in maximum funding in more than ten years. It applies to all seed grant proposals for 2008, which are due in the Office of Research Affairs by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 10, 2007. Faculty who are planning to submit proposals can adjust their requested budgets accordingly. Faculty who have already submitted proposals can submit revised budget requests. See the seed grant guidelines for program and application details. If you have questions, contact Mark Willis (775-3814). [Posted 120307]

Department Chairs Will Speak to Research Club on Nov. 29

Two SOM department chairs will speak about medical student research opportunities at the next meeting of the Research Club on Thursday, Nov. 29, at 12 noon in 101 White Hall (Gandhi Auditorium. Arthur Pickoff, M.D. is chair of the Departments of Pediatrics and Community Health. Alex Little, M.D., is chair of the Department of Surgery. Pediatrics and surgery ranked at the top of student research interests in last year’s survey of the Class of 2010. At the meeting, we also will introduce a new online form for this year’s survey. For more information about the Research Club, contact Jessica Hoying. [Posted 112607]

ACS-Ohio Seeks Nominations for Cancer Research Award

Nomination materials for the Ohio Division of the American Cancer Society’s
Hero of Hope Research Medal of Honor Award are now posted at the ACS-Ohio web site. The award is a tribute to the late John Peter Minton, a physician, professor, mentor, and cancer researcher. Nominations are open to investigators who have contributed uniquely and significantly to the advancement of cancer research in Ohio and who demonstrate commitment to furthering research, service, treatment, education, and/or advocacy in the fight against cancer. The nomination deadline is December 19, 2007. [Posted 110907]

Research Challenge Grant Proposals Due Nov. 13

RSP has notified investigators who are eligible to apply for the Fall 2006 round of Research Challenge grants (early start/augmentation). Proposals are due in the RSP office by Tuesday, Nov. 13. Awards will be announced in December. Download an MS Word file of the program guidelines. [Posted 110107]

Neuroscientists Receive $4.8-Million Grant

Investigators in Wright State’s Comprehensive Neuroscience Center received a $4.8-million program project grant (PPG) from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). The grant will further their research into why full recovery is not always achieved after damaged nerves have regenerated. PPGs are designed to “encourage multidisciplinary research approaches to a diverse array of nervous system disorders,” according to NINDS. The five-year grant will fund the laboratories of (l to r in photo) Francisco Alvarez, Ph.D.; Timothy Cope, Ph.D.; Mark Rich, M.D., Ph.D.; Kathrin Engisch, Ph.D.; and Robert Fyffe, Ph.D. Their expertise includes the fields of developmental biology, synaptic function and sensorimotor behavior of the spinal cord and peripheral nervous system. Read more. [Posted 102407]

NIH Is Accepting Loan Repayment Applications

NIH is inviting health professionals engaged in biomedical and behavioral research to apply online for a loan repayment award. The loan repayment programs (LRPs) are a vital component of national efforts to recruit and retain highly qualified professionals to careers in research.

NIH annually awards loan repayment contracts to approximately 1,600 health professionals with an average award of $52,000. More than 50% of the awards are made to individuals less than 5 years out of school. Approximately 40% of all new applicants are funded and 70% of renewals are funded.

The LRP application cycle is open through December 1. NIH will repay up to $35,000 annually of qualified educational debt for health professionals pursuing careers in one of the five Loan Repayment Programs (LRPs). The programs also provide coverage for Federal and state tax liabilities.

To qualify, applicants must possess a doctoral-level degree, devote an average of 20 hours per week or more to research funded by a non-profit organization, university, or government entity (NIH grant support is not required). Applicants must also have outstanding educational loan debt equal to at least 20% of their institutional base salary and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

All applications for 2008 awards must be submitted online by 8:00 p.m. EST, December 1, 2007. To access the online application or for program information, see the LRP Web site. For assistance call the Helpline at 866.849.4047 or send email inquiries to lrp@nih.gov. [Posted 100107]

Medical Students Launch Research Club on Oct. 3

Wright State medical students will hold the first meeting of the newly formed Research Club at 12 noon on Wednesday, Oct. 3., in Room 120 White Hall. The featured speaker will be Mark Rich, M.D., Ph.D., who will present "Getting Involved in Medical Research." Dr. Rich is an associate professor in the Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Physiology. His research focuses on: 1) sodium channel abnormalities underlying paralysis in a muscle disease occurring in critically ill patients; and 2) synaptic plasticity and diseases of the neuromuscular junction. He is active clinically at the Dayton VA Medical Center where he performs nerve conduction tests for the neurology service. Dr. Rich did his neurology training at Johns Hopkins University, completed a fellowship in neuromuscular disease at the University of Pennsylvania and was an assistant professor in the neurology department at Emory University prior to joining the faculty at Wright State. For more information about the Research Club, contact Jessica Hoying. [Posted 091807]

Pediatric Research Opportunities for Medical Students

The American Pediatrics Society and Society for Pediatric Research offer a medical student research training program to encourage gifted medical students to consider careers in research related to pediatrics. This program is specifically designed for students seeking a research opportunity at an institution other than their own medical school. Students selected to the program are able to choose or are assigned to leading research laboratories. Currently, the APS-SPR directory lists research opportunities at more than 300 laboratories in the United States and Canada. Each research experience allows the student to spend eight to ten weeks at 40 hours per week in a research environment. The program provides students with a stipend of up to $4,270. The application deadline is January 25, 2008. See the APS-SPR web site for application details. Further information can be obtained from the student research program coordinator at student-research@aps-spr.org. [Posted 091407]

Wright State Study on Crack Cocaine Has National Implications

A team of researchers from the Center for Interventions, Treatment, and Addictions Research (CITAR) at WSU Boonshoft School of Medicine have reported the results of the first long-term study of crack cocaine smokers in the United States. “Crack Cocaine Trajectories Among Users in a Midwestern American City” was published in the September issue of Addiction, a leading journal in the substance abuse field.

Funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the study followed 430 crack users in the Dayton, Ohio area for eight years. The study found that people use crack cocaine for long periods of time, usually without prolonged periods of abstinence. Of the people in the study, nearly two-thirds of users continued to smoke crack over the eight-year observation period. Notably, the average length of time users reported having smoked crack cocaine before entering the study was 7.6 years. This suggests that once people become involved with crack they will continue to use it for a decade or longer.

Crack cocaine use is associated with a wide range of cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological and psychiatric health problems, which are often exacerbated by the simultaneous use of alcohol. In fact, the rates of alcoholism among crack users in the study were more than double those found among the United States general population.

An editorial appearing in the same issue Addiction, written by public health researchers in Canada commenting on the Wright State group s results, called crack cocaine the “neglected epidemic” in North America and noted, “Policy makers need to embrace the fact that both quantitatively and qualitatively crack use is one of the largest and most destructive pieces in the overall picture of our cities illicit drug problem.” [Posted 090707]

Neuroscientist Speaks Sept. 17 on Nerve Inflammation and Pain

William D. Willis, M.D., Ph.D., one of the founders of modern neuroscience, will present a lecture at Wright State University on Monday, September 17. “Dorsal Root Reflexes, Neurogenic Inflammation and Pain” begins at 12:00 noon in room E156 in the WSU Student Union. Dr. Willis is professor of neuroscience and cell biology at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston. He is a world leader in the field of sensory neurobiology. Early in his scientific career, together with Nobel laureate Sir John Eccles, he produced pioneering work leading to current understanding of presynaptic inhibition in the spinal cord.

The lecture is sponsored by Wright State’s Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology; and the Comprehensive Neuroscience Center.The lecture is free and open to the public. For more information, call (937) 775-2168. [Posted 090607]

Call for Proposals: 2008 Seed Grant Program

The Boonshoft School of Medicine awards seed grants to fully-affiliated faculty who are directly employed by Wright State University for promising new projects in basic biomedical, clinical, and medical education research. Seed grants provide funding up to $10,000. Uniform evaluation criteria are applied to all three proposal categories. Priority will be given to the criterion that all proposals demonstrate potential for future funding. The proposal deadline is Monday, December 10, 2007. Funding selection will be made by March 31, 2008. See the seed grant guidelines for program and application details. [Posted 090407]

ACS-Ohio Announces Oct. 3 Grant Deadline

The American Cancer Society’s Ohio Pilot Research Grants encourage beginning investigators to enter the field of cancer research and enable them to accumulate data that will lead to continued cancer research projects funded by national granting agencies. The grants support clinical research and corollary laboratory studies, epidemiologic research, cancer control and behavioral research. The maximum funding request is $30,000.

The application deadline is October 3, 2007 with notification by November 30, 2007. The project funding period is January 1-December 31, 2008. See the ACS/Ohio web site for application forms and more details. [Posted 081707]

NIH Shortens R01 Review Cycle

NIH has announced the full implementation of the shortened review cycle
process for new investigator R01 applications that are reviewed in Center for
Scientific Review (CSR) recurring study sections.  The process trims about
four months from the traditional cycle.

Beginning with the September/October 2007 Study Section meetings CSR is extending the consecutive review cycle option to all new investigator R01 applications submitted for standard receipt dates (this does not include submissions for RFAs and PARs with special dates).  The CSR recurring study sections that review new investigator R01 applications will meet on a schedule to allow consecutive cycle resubmissions. 

With the full CSR implementation of this effort:

• Study Sections participating will schedule meetings so that new investigators receive their summary statements no later than March 1, July 1, or November 1.

• The Summary Statements for qualifying applications will have an explicit note indicating eligibility for next cycle submission. 

• Resubmission applications for consideration at the next cycle must be submitted by March 20, July 20, or November 20.

• New Investigators who do not choose the next cycle option will use the standard resubmission dates for subsequent cycle submission (March 5, July 5, or November 5).

See NIH Notice NOT-OD-07-083 for more details. [Posted 081007]

BioOhio Annual Conference Scheduled Nov. 12-13

The 2007 BioOhio annual conference will be held November 12-13 at Embassy Suites in Dublin, Ohio. This year’s theme is “Diagnostics & Devices.” Speakers and panel sessions will break down the growth of these bioscience disciplines as well as their convergence with pharmaceuticals and advanced materials. [Posted 080107]

PhRMA Foundation Sponsors Career Development Grants

The PhRMA Foundation supports scientists in disciplines important to the pharmaceutical industry. The aim is to encourage young scientists who will be the leaders of tomorrow to pursue careers in research and education related to drug discovery. The foundation provides competitive research funding through predoctoral, postdoctoral, and sabbatical fellowships as well as research starter grants. Funding opportunities are available in Pharmacology/Toxicology (application deadline September 1, 2007) and Health Outcomes (application deadline October 1, 2007). For more information, see the PhRMA Foundation website. [Posted 080107]

SOM Prepares for LCME Site Visit

The Boonshoft School of Medicine has begun preparation for the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) site survey visit scheduled for March 22-25, 2009. The SOM LCME web page provides information about the institutional self-study process that precedes the site visit. Some materials for the working subcommittees are password protected.

Active participation by the faculty is both necessary and welcomed. Faculty can participate by choosing a subcommittee of interest as the SOM begins its comprehensive self-study. Please respond by sending an email to SOM_sitevisit@wright.edu to submit specific subcommittee interests. [Posted 071307]

International Conference Explores Learning with Disabilities

Wright State University will host the First International Conference on Technology-based Learning with Disability (LWD-07) on July 19-20. LWD-07 is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and WSUWSU's Technology-based Learning with Disability doctoral program.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Marcia Scherer, director of the Institute for Matching Person
and Technology, a senior research associate at the International Center for Hearing and Speech Research at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Scherer has authored numerous papers and books on technology and disability including Living in the State of Stuck: How Assistive Technology Impacts the Lives of People with Disabilities, now in its fourth edition.

The conference technical program includes 35 papers that span the range of technological and methodological approaches to providing persons with disabilities. All papers will appear in the conference proceedings, which will be available on CD during the event. Download a PDF of the LWS-07 flyer. [Posted 050707]

Research Challenge/ Technology Commercialization Proposal Deadline is July 10

As part of the Research Challenge Program, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs has announced the opening of this year's Technology Commercialization competition. This program is intended to expand the benefits of Wright State University research accomplishments through commercial application and technology development. The deadline for submitting applications for this competition is 5 PM, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Download an MS Word file of the application packet. [Posted 070207

Last updated 8/6/08 (mw). For more information, contact Research Affairs.