Alumni Updates

Janille Miranda (SSRP '15) discovered her love of chemistry as an undergraduate student at Saint Mary's College of California. During her time with SSRP, she studied the Metabolic Syndrome in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients and its Association with Steatosis in the Liver during her internship. After receiving her Bahelor's degree, pharamacy school just made sense to her. Currently, Janille is a second-year student in the UCSF PharmD program.

Catherine Campusano (SSRP '18 and '21) interned in the Center for Genetics and the Gastroenterology departments at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland alongside Dario Boffeli, Phd and Jennifer Price, MD, respectively. Catherine currently is a medical student at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.

Troy Coaston (SSRP '19) always dreamed of medical school. During his SSRP internship, he worked with Dr. Carter Lebares studying stress resilence in surgeons. Currently, Troy is enrolled in the PRIME program at UCLA, a five-year MS/MD program designed for individuals wishing to serve diverse populations in the United States.

Chloe Ghent (SSRP '18) began as a volunteer under the mentorship of David Killilea, PhD asssiting in the development of a novel assay for identification of an antirnutrient found in grains to combat nutrient deficiency. After graduatin from UC Berkeley where she majored in Molecular Cell Biology with a focus in Biochemistry, she worked as a research assistant in UCSF's Biology department. Currently, Chloe is pursuing her PhD withing UCSF's tetrad program, investigation the regulation of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.

Bonny Alvarenga (SSRP '18) investigated Niemann Pick Type C, a rare metabolic disease under the mentorship of David Killilea, PhD. SSRP first opened the door for her to discover research for herself. Ever since then, she was enamored with the scientific method. After graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in Molecular and Cell Biology with a focus in Immunology, she worked as a lab technician at UCSF investigating potential therapies for autoimmune disease, such as Multiple Sclerosis. Currently, Bonny works as a staff research associate in the biotechnology industry, researching various immunotherapies.

Attending and presenting my research at the UCSF Health Equity and Anti-racism Research (HEAR) Symposium was an incredible opportunity. Upon arrival, I was warmly welcomed with pins to display my poster and a name badge. I eagerly immersed myself in the panel presentations, where one in particular caught my attention: a study highlighting the significant correlation between domestic violence cases and dental damage, revealing that 65% of head and orofacial injuries are linked to domestic violence. Research presentations such as this made me realize how important and necessary antiracism research truly is. The pinnacle of my experience at the HEAR symposium was the chance to both listen to and personally present my research to Dr. Tung Nguyen MD. Dr. Nguyen's speech was truly captivating, and his insights were enlightening. His acknowledgment of the Anti-racism framework upon which my research was based underscored its critical significance. I must extend my gratitude to Dr. Camara Jones, whose pioneering work established this framework. Witnessing the widespread adoption of this framework across various fields, including research and healthcare provision, was truly inspiring. This experience not only affirmed my passion for clinical research but also solidified my commitment to anti-racism research. Attending this conference for the first time was a transformative experience, and I am eager to participate again in the future.

-Kayla Jones SSRP '19, '23

Although my poster presentation was on Sunday, I choose to attend the first day of DDW (Saturday) beginning my day early. My mentor, Dr. Jennifer Price was giving a lecture on HCV screening in pregnant women at 8 AM. This was part of a panel made up of women researchers on women’s health in liver disease. The second lecture was on sex disparities in liver transplants. It brought up many problems in the match system which I had never considered. Dr. Lauren Nephew also discussed the revised guidelines which did nothing to address the systemic issue rooted in height-based disparities. When controlled for height, data reflected that taller women had match rates in line with those of men. Next was Dr. Carla Brady on guideline updates for the management of pregnant women with liver disease. I found this extremely interesting as the topic and data aligned with similar readings I had done in my Reproductive Justice/Health/Politics course this quarter. Lastly, was a lecture on the rising rates of alcohol- associated liver disease and its implications for the care of women patients. The widespread marketing campaign targeting women consumers was extremely thought-provoking and something I subsequently brought up with the women in my life. Next was a panel on advances in hepatology, which I found a bit less engaging because of the level of prior knowledge required to understand the data being presented. What was most surprising was a train-based model used by Dr. Marc Sherman which was the first time I truly understand the practical application of 1st order kinetics. This was a talk about mathematical modeling predicting the resolution and persistence of liver injury independent of absolute serum transaminase levels for real-time estimation of active liver injury.

Saturday evening into Sunday morning I was very nervous about my poster session and read over my speech script many times. I worried over possible questions I could be asked that I may not know the answer to. Saturday night I finished rereading the Viral Hepatitis National Strategic Plan for the United States: A Roadmap to Elimination (2021–2025). While waiting for my poster session to begin at 12:30 PM I was rereading the AASLD guidelines for chronic hepatitis B, Dr. Price contacted me. It was amazing that Dr. Price took the time out of her busy schedule, having completed her conference responsibilities that morning to meet with me. She answered last-minute questions I had. Additionally, a UCSF GI fellow took the time out of their schedule to drop by my poster. They posed great questions that have helped Dr. Price and me as we continue edits on our CID manuscript.

Overall, my DDW experience was an amazing education experience. As my first medical conference where many attendees were M1 students or higher in education levels, I was intimidated. But I felt so welcomed by the GI community and was reminded of the amazing mentorship that Dr. Price continues to provide even after SSRP 2021.

I attended the PAS Meeting (The Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting, which is the largest pediatric research conference in the world!) here in the Bay Area spring, 2017. It was an awesome experience; there were SO many attendees! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend much of it outside of the poster exhibition (because my finals started the next day), but I did get to walk around and talk with other poster presenters. It was especially interesting to speak with people who were performing molecular research on the same medication used in my clinical research project. I loved meeting so many brilliant minds and learning about other research currently happening with sickle cell. This was part of what drove me to connect with Dr. Kuypers and spend some time in lab with him this summer. It was inspiring to see so many researchers and physicians committed to improving all aspects of children's health. Thanks again for all of your ongoing support; I have learned so much!

This December, I presented a poster about my summer research at the annual American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition in Atlanta, GA. Due to the unusual weather conditions, I was unfortunately only able to attend the conference on the afternoon of my poster presentation, but even that was an eye-opening experience. This was my first time presenting research on a platform of this scale, and I learned a lot about how to communicate my findings to individuals from a wide range of avenues within the field of hematology. Furthermore, I was fortunate to be able to speak with researchers whose projects and interests aligned with my own, and to learn about different perspectives and approaches to exploring the same topic. From these conversations, I was able to think about how my own research project and interests could further develop in the future. Altogether, presenting at ASH was a wonderful experience, and I am so grateful to CHORI and to my mentors at BCHO for the opportunity to do so! 

Attending and presenting at ABRCMS (Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students) 2017 was truly an eye opening experience for me. I have met some really inspiring leaders in the medical field and had opportunities to interact with them. More excitingly, I got the chance to hear the amazing presentation from Dr. Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa (Dr. Q), who is a leading neurosurgeon, scientist and professor at Mayo clinics. Hearing his story of coming to America as a poor immigrant, and finally strived to where he is now is truly the best part of the conference in my opinion. Presenting at a national conference was also a very exciting experience for me. I have heard some valuable comments about my presentation and project. Seeing myself having confidence to engage in a deep scientific conversation with some leading professors and scientists in the field made me really grateful for the training I received from CHORI and my mentor Dr. Ho during the summer. The extensive literature review and presentation practice over the summer allowed me to speak very scientifically and passionately, which made strong impressions on listeners and opened up to some awesome connections. The CHORI program had a huge impact on my education, allowing me to find so many good role models in the field, and providing great opportunities for me to work towards my dream. Thanks CHORI for supporting me to go to ABRCMS and having such a wonderful experience. I am also very grateful for my mentor Dr. Ho for putting time into me, and training me to think and work as a scientist.

I had no idea when I reapplied for the program this summer that I would be able to present my research at a national conference in a room full of surgeons just a few months later. Not only did CHORI match me with an amazing mentor, I also felt so much support from the SSRP staff which served as motivation for me to put my best foot forward. 

The conference was amazing and I had the chance to listen to so many dynamic speakers from various backgrounds. Although I was nervous leading up to my presentation, I felt honored to present my research among practicing surgeons, surgery residents, and medical students. I was the only undergraduate presenter in my Quickshot Presentation session. While this placed a lot of pressure on me to do well, it also gave me great pride upon completing my talk successfully. I am so appreciative of Dr. Lebares for dedicating so much time and effort to helping me prepare. I look forward to continuing to do research with her in the future.

My experience at the 15^th Annual Academic Surgical Congress was extraordinary. While I’ve been involved with research for years in college, Dr. Carter Lebares, the mentor I was paired with during the CHORI Summer Student Research program, was the first mentor I’ve had that has really pushed me to present my data, as such, this was my first experience presenting at a conference.

            Other than the CHORI symposium, I had never presented my data to an audience before, this fact, coupled with my status as one of the only undergraduates at the conference, made presenting a nerve-racking experience. When I first got up to the podium, I could barely speak, I fumbled through my introductory slide and feared what would come next. Then a blessing in disguise occurred, technical difficulties with my presentation. I got to return to my seat while the tech support staff sorted out the issue. While I was sitting down, Dr. Lebares reminded me to take a deep breath and remember all the hours I spent practicing. My mind wandered to my experience presenting at the CHORI symposium and I felt ready to try again when they called my name to present once more. This time, I felt ready, and when I started, the words came to me easily and the presentation flew by. The review card I received at the end of the session featured high marks of praise, my second attempt passed with flying colors.

            The rest of the conference was informative. I learned about everything from how surgical robots work to gun control laws in other countries. I met a variety of surgeons and learned a great deal about the profession. It seemed like everywhere I turned there was something new to see and more things to learn.

            My time at the Academic Surgical Conference helped me to grow as a presenter and as an academic.  I expanded my comfort-zone by presenting in front of an audience of doctors and surgeons and learned about how to explain information clearly to a large group.  I also was able to meet new people and learn about a broad range of topics. My time at the conference will be a part of me forever as a rewarding and enriching experience. Thank you to the CHORI program and to Dr. Lebares for giving me this opportunity.

Attending the SACNAS conference was an incredible experience - the opportunity to network with dozens of biotechnology companies and top graduate programs was invaluable. I’m currently in contact with several potential employers and summer internship programs, and have never so confident in my decision to attend graduate school. SACNAS made me particularly grateful for CHORI, through which I was able to complete two summers of clinical hematology and basic neuroscience research, and mentor high school SSRP students as well. Without CHORI, I would not have been nearly as inspired to pursue science research, and I really can’t emphasize how much this program has helped support me throughout my education.