For immediate release: January 19, 2007
Contact: Emily Wofford Cobb
Public Relations Manager
775-784-6006
ewofford@unr.edu
RENO, Nev. – Graduate and medical students of the University of Nevada School of Medicine were recognized Tuesday for their excellence in research at the 24th Annual George G. Bierkamper Student Research Convocation. Twenty-six graduate and medical students participated in the convocation which provides an opportunity for students to present original research to a group of their peers and mentors.
This year’s research studies cover a wide expanse of subjects including topics such as responses in gastrointestinal smooth muscles, the measurement of tissue damage in burn wounds, and the distribution of the capsular material of anthrax. Students participating in the Bierkamper Research Convocation were evaluated by a panel of judges made up of School of Medicine faculty. Students compete either in the graduate student category or medical student category and are judged based upon the quality of their research, findings, and presentation.
This year’s graduate student Bierkamper award went to Chengyuan Feng for his research on the “Evidence for a Novel Pathway of Neurotrophic Factor Trafficking Independent of Axonal Transport.” Feng, a third year graduate student, worked with physiology and cell biology professor Christopher von Bartheld, M.D.
Stuart Baird received the medical student Bierkamper award for his presentation entitled, “Effects of Supraphysiological Temperatures on Contractile Force of the Mouse Flexor Digitorum Brevis Muscle.” Baird, a second year medical student, worked with pharmacology professor Gale Craviso, Ph.D.
Feng and Baird will each receive a $250 award as well as recognition for their achievements during School of Medicine commencement ceremonies in May.
The Bierkamper Student Research Convocation recognizes the excellence of the medical school students as well as that of faculty and staff who diligently mentor students throughout their research process. All research presented by students at the convocation is original and conducted in addition to their coursework. Most students spend a year preparing their research for presentation.
The convocation was started as a formal activity of the School of Medicine in 1983; however, the event has born the name of Professor George Gwyne Bierkamper since his death in 1988. The George G. Bierkamper Student Research Convocation embodies the spirit of research and encourages School of Medicine students “not to worship what is known, but to question it.”
As the state’s only public medical school, the University of Nevada School of Medicine has been meeting statewide healthcare, educational, and clinical needs since 1969. The School of Medicine encompasses 16 clinical medical education departments, including Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics/Gynecology, Internal Medicine, and Surgery, as well as ten nationally-recognized departments within basic science including microbiology and biomedical engineering. As the largest multi-specialty healthcare focus within the state, the School of Medicine employs more than 185 doctors who both teach and practice medicine throughout Nevada. The school’s statewide faculty physician practice group has a combined 25 different medical specialties with seven physician practice offices located in the Reno-Sparks area and five physician offices located in Las Vegas.
The University of Nevada School of Medicine utilizes a best-practice approach to medicine and is committed to addressing the health needs of Nevada now and in the future. For more information, please visit www.medicine.nevada.edu .
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