University: Johns Hopkins University
Hometown: Springfield, IL
NIH Research Project:
Channeling Our Intuition: Deriving Mechanistic Understanding of Kv Channels from Toxin Interactions
Mentor: Kenton J. Swartz, Ph.D.
Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Unit
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
|
|
 |
Science is an acquired taste. The culture at Johns Hopkins University, where I recently completed a biomedical engineering degree, introduced me to the art of scientific inquiry. My family's continuous support, despite my departure from Nigeria, has fueled my determination to succeed. That and the prospects for medical advancement through research are sufficient motivation for me to continue working to elucidate the mechanisms underlying human biology.
My first formal research encounter, with Harvard-MIT professor Emery Brown, was integral to shaping my attitude toward research. We developed real-time quantitative indicators of cardiovascular regulation by the autonomic nervous system, the brain region responsible for most involuntary actions. At Hopkins, I worked with Drs. Leslie Tung and Roselle Abraham studying arrhythmia in a combined culture of cardiac and skeletal muscle precursor cells. I also worked with Dr. Kevin Donahue who explores adenovirus-mediated gene delivery in combating cardiac arrhythmias.
This year at the NIH, as a UGSP Scholar, I am training with Dr. Kenton Swartz in the Laboratory of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, studying structure-function relationships of a voltage-gated potassium channel, KvAP, through investigating functional and structural determinants of its interaction with venomous spider toxins. This research sets a precedent for understanding channel-drug interactions and channelopathies in humans.
I aim to pursue physician-scientist training so that my critical and analytical perspective on the questions and conquests in basic science are sharply influenced by my clinical expertise and firm grasp of the fundamentals of human biology. |
