Tuesday, May 7, 2024
The has announced new student awards and an upcoming symposium to support and enhance translational cardiovascular research at The .
SBS students Selina Tucker and Lindsey Hudson are recipients of the inaugural Robert J. Hardin Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Translational Cardiovascular Research. The awards will be presented annually to PhD and MS students based on research achievements including publications, presentations at national and international meetings, grants and research awards.
鈥淭hese inaugural awards recognize the high-quality research of these very deserving students,鈥� said Dr. Johnathan Tune, chair and professor of physiology and anatomy at HSC.
鈥淐ardiovascular issues like heart disease and stroke affect millions of Americans every year. With these awards and the upcoming symposium, we鈥檙e raising awareness for cardiovascular health and calling attention to the critical research happening right here at HSC.鈥�
Selina Tucker is a PhD candidate in the Department of Physiology and Anatomy. Her
research is exploring how blood and oxygen levels to the heart change in mothers who
have recently given birth. Findings could help improve treatments that reduce the
risk of death in new mothers. Tucker works under the mentorship of Tune.
鈥淎s a young woman, this research is especially important to me. My hope is that it will help provide the groundwork for me and other women to have babies while also enjoying healthy and happy lives,鈥� Tucker said.
鈥淚t is an honor to receive this award in its first year and at a very important time in my trainee career as I am finishing up my dissertation this summer.鈥�
Lindsey Hudson is an MS student in the Department of Physiology and Anatomy. Her research aims to better understand the relationship between the stiffness of the carotid artery, blood flow changes in the brain, and protection of oxygen in the brain.
Her lab has developed a proposed therapy to increase survival rates during severe
blood loss or other conditions that cause low oxygen in the brain. Her project will
help the research team understand how vascular function might affect the effectiveness
of the proposed therapy and how the treatment may affect conditions like stroke or
cardiac arrest, particularly in older individuals with increased arterial stiffness.
Hudson works under the mentorship of Dr. Caroline Rickards, associate professor of
physiology.
鈥淏lood loss after trauma is the leading cause of death in Americans aged 1 to 46. I was drawn to this research because I worked in a hospital emergency department for years, and I saw first-hand the consequences of the limited interventions we have for severe bleeding,鈥� Hudson said.
鈥淚鈥檓 extremely thankful to have the opportunity to continue to be a part of this work that could potentially save lives.鈥�
The monetary awards will support research projects Tucker and Hudson are conducting as part of their degree requirements. They will also present their research at the upcoming Robert J. Hardin Translational Cardiovascular Research Symposium, which will be held at HSC later this year.
The awards and symposium are supported by the Robert J. Hardin Heart and Cancer Research Fund, the Department of Physiology and Anatomy and the School of Biomedical Sciences at The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth.
From - Research by Matt Havlik