NIEHS News in Brief

Research explained in just three minutes

Fourteen summer interns participated in the annual Three-Minute Communication Challenge hosted by the Office of Fellows’ Career Development July 11 in Rodbell Auditorium. The event gave students the opportunity to answer the question, “So, fellows, what type of research do you work on?” Top presentations were selected by audience vote.

First place was awarded to Aurea Michael, Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, who shared computational methods to study how genetic variation and environmental gene interactions are involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Second place went to Varun Kochar, Genome Integrity and Structural Biology Laboratory, who discussed allergic cross-reactivity and the similarities between proteins responsible for the allergic response to peanuts and tree nuts. Saachi Gandhi and Kiara Smith, Mechanistic Toxicology Branch, tied for third place. Gandhi shared her work on how HIV infection and antiretroviral therapy decreases effectiveness of the neural immune system. Smith described environmental factors and endocrine disruptor pathways impacting fibrosis and development of uterine fibroids. (BS)

Communication Challenge winners, from left to right: Kiara Smith, Saachi Gandhi, Aurea Michael, and Varun Kochar — Communication Challenge winners, from left to right: Smith, Gandhi, Michael, and Kochar. (Photo courtesy of Steve McCaw / NIEHS)

Summer interns present their projects

NIEHS hosted the 2024 Summer Internship Program Poster Session July 25, featuring presentations from 61 participating students. The poster session provided an opportunity for the interns to explain their research and celebrate the culmination of their summer projects. The event, which was attended by family, friends, and NIEHS staff, sparked lively discussions on a range of scientific topics related to toxicology. The diverse subjects covered included household products, cancer risk, mental health, genetics, molecular dynamics, the immune system, computational methods, and social science studies.

Madelyn Milazzo at the poster session — Madelyn Milazzo was one of 61 participants in the Summer Internship Program Poster Session. (Photo courtesy of Steve McCaw / NIEHS)

Winners were announced the following day at an ice cream social.

Undergraduate poster winners
First place: Breyana Robinson, Reproductive and Developmental Biology Laboratory
Second place: Riley Murphy, Genome Integrity and Structural Biology Laboratory
Third place: Kiara Smith, Mechanistic Toxicology Branch

Graduate poster winners
First place: Maya Deshmukh, Epidemiology Branch
Second place: Alma Solis, Epidemiology Branch

To learn more about the program and apply, visit the NIH Summer Internship Program website. (BS)

NIH participates in White House Climate and Health Forum

Lawrence Tabak, D.D.S., Ph.D., Principal Deputy Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) participated in a Climate and Health Forum convened by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Aug. 14. During the panel discussion, Tabak highlighted the transdisciplinary nature of the NIH Climate Change and Health Initiative and its goals to develop critical research infrastructure and support for the next generation of climate and health researchers. The forum brought together key leadership from across the federal government, including NIEHS, and the private sector to discuss ongoing efforts to understand and mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis on human health. Watch the replay. (SE)

Gwen Collman, Ph.D., Aubrey Miller, M.D., and Kimberly Thigpen Tart, J.D., Office of Scientific Coordination, Planning, and Evaluation, represented NIEHS at the forum. (Photo courtesy of the White House Climate and Health Forum)

(Brian Silver, Ph.D., is an Intramural Research Training Award fellow in the Mechanistic Toxicology Branch. Samantha Ebersold is a communications specialist in the NIEHS Office of Communications and Public Liaison.)