Haifa "Saba" Alsharif, a fifth-year graduate student in Dr. Sushant Bhatnagar's Lab, was awarded a UAB Graduate Biomedical Sciences (GBS) award for mentorship at the 2024 symposium.

The award recognizes a GBS student who has demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in mentorship and/or teaching.

“Saba has mentored many undergraduate and graduate students that have come through the lab,” said Bhatnagar. “She shows exceptional care for developing student trainees and helping them reach their full research potential. We’re grateful for her dedication to mentorship.”

The 2024 GBS symposium took place on August 9 at the Haven Event Center. The symposium provides graduate students an opportunity to present their research in front of other students as well as faculty, postdoc, and guest speaker judges.

The primary goal of the symposium is to help students develop their presentation skills. It is also an opportunity to share research projects, collaborate across UAB units, and award outstanding graduate students.

The focus of the Bhatnagar Lab is on Type 2 diabetes and obesity research. Members are interested in identifying key proteins responsible for regulating blood glucose and energy homeostasis as well as other molecular mechanisms that might play a role in the treatment and management of Type 2 diabetes.