Dec 16, 2024

Two Huck graduate students receive American Heart Association fellowships

Two Huck graduate students awarded individual 2-year American Heart Association fellowships.

Junyao Yuan, a graduate student in the Integrative and Biomedical Physiology program, and Julio Flores Cuadra, a graduate student in the Neuroscience program, have been awarded individual 2-year American Heart Association fellowships.

Both students are supported by an NIH-funded T32 interdisciplinary program from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and administered by Huck. Titled Physiological Adaptations to Stress, the program provides interdisciplinary research training and educational experiences. With a strong focus on career development, the training prepares students for emerging academic and nonacademic careers in the biomedical sciences.

“This program provided me with a deep understanding of how the body adapts to stress,” said Yuan. “The rigorous training emphasized multidisciplinary approaches, from molecular biology to systematic analysis, which laid the groundwork for my current research. The mentorship I received also equipped me with critical thinking and experimental design skills that are directly applicable to my fellowship.”

Students in the T32 program are introduced to faculty mentors, and participate in activities that enhance professional development, such as a weekly journal club and business entrepreneurship training. Students can also participate in elective interest tracks to further their learning, and are encouraged to submit their own grant proposals.

“Engaging with PhD students and faculty from diverse programs improved my communication skills, allowing me to effectively present different aspects of my project to scientists across various research fields,” said Flores Cuadra.

Yuan’s research will focus on understanding inflammation and immune responses after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in postmenopausal women. She will investigate the role of different macrophage populations and inflammation-related cell death in cardiovascular health following ischemic stress. Additionally, Yuan will focus on clonal hematopoiesis of intermediate potential (CHIP), which occurs with aging and has been strongly linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

“Our studies may uncover previously unidentified interconnections between CHIP and AMI to inspire therapeutic interventions targeting myeloid cells to limit AMI,” said Yuan.

Flores Cuadra will research the effects of alcohol binge drinking on somatostatin neural activity and brain hemodynamics in the mice prefrontal cortex during sleep. The prefrontal cortex is a region of the brain that has been implicated in alcohol use disorder and regulating sleep patterns. Understanding the role of somatostatin neurons in the prefrontal cortex could provide insights into developing new therapeutic approaches for regulating disrupted sleep patterns seen during substance misuse.

“The AHA Predoctoral Fellowship will provide me with the opportunity to acquire advanced brain imaging techniques and cross-disciplinary research tools to investigate the effects of alcohol consumption on sleep-induced hemodynamic changes,” Flores Cuadra said. “This training will be instrumental in achieving my future goals of becoming a lead research scientist and contributing to the development of public health policies focused on health prevention strategies.”

“Junyao and Julio are truly outstanding trainees and have taken advantage of all of the professional development activities our training program has to offer,” said Donna Korzick, director of graduate training initiatives and professor of physiology and kinesiology. “They are outstanding young scientists and having these grants funded on the first submission is a reflection of their hard work and dedication.”