Kelsey Foust
Senior Biology Major, Chemistry Minor
Biological Seminars
Intubation Workshop (Wake Forest University)
Dr. Ross
-During this interactive seminar, Dr. Ross gave a brief lecture on working as an Anesthesiologist as well as the requirements to pursue a medical career. After the talk, we were led to a simulation room and saw how a patient is intubated. We were also allowed to practice intubating a mannequin. This seminar was very insightful and the hands-on teaching provided a better understanding of some of the things that are involved in Anesthesiology.
Quinolate Salvage and Insights for Targeting NAD Biosynthesis in Group A Streptococci
Leonardo Sorci, Ian K. Blaby, Irina A. Rodionova, Jessica De Ingeniis, Sergey Tkachenko, Valérie de Crécy-Lagard, Andrei L. Ostermana
Dr. J. Boone
-In this seminar, Dr. Boone first introduced Streptococci including its shape and its effects in bacterial infection such as MRSA and a flesh-eating foot disease. he then proceeded to explain metabolism and how there are multiple pathways that NAD can be activated. At the end of his talk, he explained that by blocking those pathways, NAD will not be activated and the bacteria will not be able to divide, thus providing an insight into treating bacterial infections. He used this notion to discover a protein that helped his colleage in the treatment of a flesh eating infection that he had acquired.
Developments in therapeutic advances with transcranial brain stimulation
Dr. Victor Pulgar
-During this Seminar, Dr. Pulgar talked about his research at Wake Forest University involving electrical stimulation of astrocytes to enhance cell growth and migration. Dr. Pulgar's talk was very interesting and he made the topics that he covered, such as Transcranial Direct -current-stimulation, properties of astrocytes, as well as applications of tDCS , easier to understand.
Journey to Medical School
Ms. E. Evans
In this seminar, Ms. Ebone Evans, a medical student at East Carolina University and former WSSU student and RISE scholar discussed her journey to medical school. She talked about her experiences as an undergraduate student and stressed the importance of taking advantage of the various research and internship opportunities and supportive faculty members that are offered to students at WSSU. She also described her daily schedule as a medical student and shared her studying techniques for taking the MCAT. Overall, this talk was very inspiring since it showed that someone in my exact position went on to successfully pursue a medical degre.
-This seminar was one of my favorite seminars that I have attended. During Dr. Gilliam-Davis' presentation, she described her journey to obtaining a PhD after being out of college for several years. This talk was extremely encouraging and personable. One of the most impactful messages that I took away from the presentation was that everyone's journey to their goal is different; it may not be a perfectly laid out plan that adheres to what most people see as "acceptable" but may take an extended time to complete and may even be delayed. The most important thing, however, is remaining determined and focused so that no matter how long it takes, you will ultimately reach your goal, despite what others may say.