Rena Malai

Katona scholarship selects two winners

Rena Malai — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 15:52:58 +0000

Katona scholarship selects two winners Rena Malai Thu, 12/08/2022 - 10:52

During a 5th grade school assignment, George Mason University Bioengineering major Renae A. Bitor’s class picked what they saw themselves studying as college students. She said she chose bioengineering, without thinking twice.

It turns out her choice was a good one. Alongside fellow winner Sorie Koroma, Bitor achieved the Katona Scholarship for Excellence in Bioengineering.

This year, Koroma and Bitor captivated Dr. Peter Katona during the application process. Both were noted for their remarkable accomplishments, including managing and running events for the bioengineering department, and dedication. The choice was made to award two Katona scholarships this year, instead of one.

“What resonated most was demonstrated leadership in bioengineering,” says Katona. “Examples are active participation in the George Mason Student Chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society, assisting fellow students in bioengineering courses and labs, and gaining useful engineering experience in summer internships.”

Sorie Koroma and Renae A. Bitor (middle) pose with Dr. Peter Katona (far right) and
Dr. Avrama Blackwell (far left.)

Koroma, a member of and events coordinator for the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), is most interested in biomedical imaging and developing medical devices to help other people. He sees his scholarship win as helping to shape him into the engineer he wants to be.

“I was astonished when I was notified that I won. It felt like all the work I did has paid off,” says Koroma. “I am very appreciative of obtaining this.”

Bitor, also a BMES member, says she knew of the Katona scholarship since she was a freshman, when the then BMES president won. It inspired her.

“Winning the Katona scholarship was one of the goals I aspired to as a freshman,” says Bitor. “I feel it’s something I’ve been working up to for the past four years.”

She was thrilled to find out she won, but not extremely surprised. A little bit of good-natured pessimism helped quell some anxiety.

“I was saying to myself, if you win, fine, if not, fine,” says Bitor. “But I’m so happy I won!”

She says she’ll apply her scholarship winnings towards a master’s. Her advice to hopeful winners is to go for the internships, get to know the professors, maybe even join an extra -curricular activity or two to be well rounded.

And definitely don’t fall asleep in class, she says.

“You need a couple letters of recommendation from your professors, so you want to show your best self,” she says. “If you fall asleep in class, even if you get an A, the professors will notice.”

Koroma will also plan on using his scholarship winnings towards his education, and alleviate some of the financial stress of the semester.

“The main reason why I applied for this scholarship is because I've been actively putting myself forward in bioengineering opportunities since I started at Mason,” he says. “I decided that it would be best to take a chance after hearing about it over the years. I am grateful that I did.”

Koroma and Bitor will each receive $1,500 for their win.

The Katona Scholarship for Excellence in Bioengineering began in 2015, and is awarded to bioengineering seniors at George Mason who show excellence across their academic performance, leadership initiatives, and career aspirations that aim to support society at large. The award is named for Dr. Peter Katona, founder of the bioengineering program at Mason.

Topics

Bioengineering

Scholarship Recipient

scholarship

NIH HEAL initiative helps chronic pain sufferers

Rena Malai — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 19:53:49 +0000

NIH HEAL initiative helps chronic pain sufferers Rena Malai Thu, 10/20/2022 - 15:53

In This Story

Siddhartha Sikdar

Living with pain is debilitating and frustrating. If the cause of chronic pain is unknown, it can be a lifelong struggle to find appropriate treatment and relief.

George Mason Bioengineering professor Siddhartha Sikdar saw his mother-in-law struggle with chronic pain, as well as several students, friends, and colleagues.

“When patients are not able to get an appropriate diagnosis and effective treatment for pain, the reliance on using opioids may be greater,” says Sikdar. “The Helping to End Addiction Long-Term (HEAL) initiative is seeking ways to address pain without opioid intervention.”

Sikdar and several colleagues from CASBBI received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) HEAL initiative to study chronic myofascial pain. This type of pain originates from muscles and/or associated soft tissues, and is an important yet poorly understood area. In a two-part study, the team will first develop biomarkers to study the association between muscle tissue abnormality and pain, and then conduct clinical trials to test two different interventions.

“Chronic pain has a profound impact on life,” says Sikdar who is director of the Center for Adaptive Systems of Brain-Body Interactions (CASBBI). “It can affect mood, sleep, concentration and is often associated with anxiety and depression.”

Identifying the cause of chronic pain is often difficult and complex. According to Sikdar, it can involve many factors including stress, psychosocial factors, and long-term changes in the nervous system.

Currently, the mechanisms of pain related to injury, the skeletal system, or the nervous system are well understood, but the role of muscle tissue in pain remains enigmatic. According to Sikdar, one theory is that inflammation builds up over time in muscles and associated connective tissue and manifests as pain which doesn’t get better or go away on its own.

The first part of the initiative will involve the use of cutting-edge ultrasound imaging techniques as one of the primary methods to try to find out what happens in the muscles of chronic pain sufferers.

One of the treatments Sikdar and his team will evaluate during the clinical trial phase is dry needling, where a very thin needle is inserted into the skin to treat muscle tissue. Another treatment will inject an enzyme into muscle tissue to improve the gliding between layers of connective tissue. The goal is to identify what kinds of treatments work best for each individual suffering from chronic myofascial pain.

Twenty-five million Americans live with daily chronic pain and lack effective and safe non-opioid options for pain management. The NIH launched the HEAL Initiative® to provide scientific solutions to the opioid crisis and offer new hope for individuals, families, and communities affected by this devastating crisis. 

Topics

Chronic Disease Management

grants

Pain Management

CEC faculty research

Bioengineering student completes competitive NIH internship program

Rena Malai — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 14:22:19 +0000

Bioengineering student completes competitive NIH internship program Rena Malai Wed, 08/31/2022 - 10:22

Bioengineering student John Mutersbaugh has always been interested in the human brain.

“I am so fascinated by the brain and all its capabilities,” he says. “How it works is incredibly complicated. Our current understanding of the brain is very limited. We barely understand how it functions on many different levels.”

This natural curiosity drew him to apply for – and win – the National Institute of Health (NIH) Biomedical Engineering Summer Internship Program (BESIP), a competitive internship offered to rising senior bioengineering students. The program allows students to get hands-on experience in cutting-edge biomedical research projects.

“BESIP is just a really great experience,” says Mutersbaugh. “I was hired to work under a doctor and neuroscientist in the National Institutes of Health to do research along with my mentors Dr. Kareem Zaghloul and Dr. Uma Mohan. I had the opportunity to learn from post grad students and doctors working there.”

During Mutersbaugh’s 10-week internship, he worked on analyzing and researching data collected from drug-resistant epilepsy patients. These patients receive deep brain stimulation through implanted electrodes, which help to prevent seizures.

Muterbaugh says the stimulation helps to keep the brain in sync and this type of work suited his interests perfectly.

“Deciphering the brain and memory encoding signals is a big interest of mine,” he says. “I am very drawn to this field of neuroscience.”

He feels that along with this interest, his previous experience as a George Mason Office of Scholarship, Creative Activities, and Research (OSCAR) intern, a solid essay, and having his genuine enthusiasm for the opportunities offered through BESIP shine through helped him land the role.

“I think the formatting of my essay helped to really detail my previous experience and interest. I made sure to write about my interest in the research being done and details about why I’d be interested in working with the BESIP neuroscientists,” he says.

The fact the internship is paid is another motivator, he says, and it will open up doors whether he chooses to pursue a PHD or continue a research career.

His best advice for those wanting to apply to BESIP next year is to try to get some OSCAR experience first, and leverage it to gain the research experience desired for BESIP. He also recommends that theyseek out a professor doing medical related work on campus and ask them to be a mentor.

“By working with a professor, this can set you up with a solid letter of recommendation on your research skills, as well as experience which matters in the BESIP application process,” he says.

BESIP is for undergraduate biomedical engineering students who have completed their junior year of college. Applications for the 2023 summer BESIP program should re-open around the middle of November 2022 for the 2023 summer.

Topics

Office of Student Scholarship Creative Activities and Research (OSCAR)

internships

Bioengineering

NIH grant funding

Bioengineering undergrad Medhini Sosale awarded prestigious Goldwater scholarship

Rena Malai — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 18:45:45 +0000

Bioengineering undergrad Medhini Sosale awarded prestigious Goldwater scholarship Rena Malai Tue, 04/12/2022 - 14:45

In This Story

Parag Chitnis, Ph.D.

When George Mason Bioengineering undergrad Medhini Sosale was a child, she loved trivia and had a curiosity about everything around her. This knack for questioning her world led her to pursue a career in STEM research, and more recently, win the Barry Goldwater scholarship.

The scholarship is one of the highest rewards in the U.S. for undergrad students interested in developing STEM research careers, with winners receiving up to $7,500 annually. Sosale sees her win as not only helping her towards her career goals, but financially freeing up her time to delve into research more fully.

“I don’t really personally know many people who have pursued PhDs,” says Sosale, an Honors College student. “This scholarship offers a big community network of recent scholars and I’m excited to draw from this network, for general career advice and advice about graduate school.”

She says being inquisitive probably played a part for her in going after the scholarship. The application process has several steps, and Sosale made sure to start early and find out every detail she could about what she needed to submit. Although the application required one research essay, Sosale wrote two. She then worked with Karen Lee, her scholarship mentor, and other members in the Mason Office of Fellowships to decide which essay would work best.

Her essay work on research project Modelling Cerebral Blood Flow to Optimize Ischemic Stroke Treatment was the winning choice. The project focuses on studying the effects of various factors on ischemic stroke treatment. She also previously worked on a project with Parag Chitnis, assistant professor in Bioengineering, to develop a 3-D cell model that examines the barrier between the brain and the blood stream.

“I am very grateful to now be a Goldwater scholar,” says Sosale. “It definitely wasn’t a one - person process. There were a lot of people behind the scenes that helped me get here and I want to thank each and every one of them.”

The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation was established by Congress in 1986 to serve as a living memorial to honor the lifetime work of Sen. Barry Goldwater. The Goldwater Scholarship Program identifies and supports college sophomores and juniors who show exceptional promise of becoming the next research leaders in the fields of engineering, mathematics, and natural science.

Topics

Goldwater Scholarship

2021 Katona Scholarship recognizes stand out bioengineering students

Rena Malai — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 19:49:29 +0000

2021 Katona Scholarship recognizes stand out bioengineering students Rena Malai Mon, 11/15/2021 - 14:49

From left, Dr. Peter Katona, Inas Zabin, and Michael
Buschmann, Mason bioengineering
department chair and professor

Recognizing and motivating bioengineering students to help the community in the field of bioengineering is a big part of what the Katona Scholarship for Excellence in Bioengineering is about, according to Claudia Borke, advisor for the bioengineering department at Mason.

“This is a scholarship that recognizes not only bioengineering excellence, but looks at the student holistically,” says Borke.

Named for Dr. Peter Katona, founder of the bioengineering program at Mason, the scholarship awarded $1,000 to 2021 winner Inas Zabin, a Mason senior whose education combines bioengineering with a concentration in pre-health.

“Winning the scholarship gave me the little bit of extra push that I needed, and I’m very grateful,” says Zabin. “There are so many qualified people in the bioengineering department. But if you’re thinking of applying for the scholarship, just go for it.”

According to Katona, the students selected for the scholarship show exceptional promise to engage in a successful bioengineering career, which in turn helps society.

“We certainly look at GPA, and it’s a part of the criteria for the scholarship, but it’s not all we see,” says Katona. “We also look at a student’s leadership skills and how they have tried to enhance their skills outside of the classroom.”

Showing an initiative to help other students is also an example of leadership that is a welcome asset for a potential scholarship winner, says Katona.

“We have had some excellent applicants, and we are delighted that we can do this for our bioengineering students showing exceptional promise,” he says.

The Katona Scholarship for Excellence in Bioengineering began in 2015, and is awarded to bioengineering seniors at Mason who show excellence across their academic performance, leadership initiatives, and career aspirations that aim to support society at large.

Topics