Chemistry

Department Spotlight

Biochemistry Student Participates in Brain Research at National Institutes of Health

Senior biochemistry major Kiara Cromer spent her summer taking part in cutting-edge brain-cell research that whetted her appetite for medical school and further research. Cromer received an Intramural Research Training Award Fellowship from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Laboratory of Clinical Sciences. The fellowship took her to the National Institute of Mental Health in Washington, D.C., where she joined the research lab of Dr. David Jacobowitz, section chief of histopharmacology at the institute.

Cromer, under Jacobowitz's tutelage, explored treatment options for Canavan's disease, a condition similar to Tay-Sachs disease; conducted an in-depth study of a protein found differentially expressed in patients with Parkinson's disease; and assisted with the development of a clinical test for Stiff Person's Syndrome.

The primary focus of Cromer's summer research was an area of the embryonic brain, the thalamic eminence, which potentially contains precursor cells. These are a highly localized group of neurons that contain the protein Calretinin, which has possible neuro-protective qualities.

"We explored the concept that during development these cells migrate from their origin to key regions in the brain," Cromer says. "In other words, we tried to prove that the neurons of the thalamic eminence are undifferentiated neurons, or 'stem cells,' in the brain.

"The entire experience was incredible. I was able to witness not only cutting-edge 'bench' science, but also some bedside applications of our research, which is the ultimate goal for all medical research."

After graduating from Whitworth, Cromer plans to spend a year conducting research for the National Institutes of Health and will apply to medical school or to an M.D./Ph.D. program.