Alsharif (left) and Perez (right)Two UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center (UCDC) trainees who presented research at the UAB Department of Medicine Trainee Research Symposium (TRS) scored among the top presentations.
Hafia (Saba) Alsharif, a doctoral student in the lab of Sushant Bhatnagar, Ph.D., was awarded the Samuel B. Barker Award for Excellence in Research by a Graduate Student. Katherine Perez, also a trainee in the Bhatnagar Lab, was named a semi-finalist among undergraduate students.
Alsharif presented a research poster titled “Exploring the Metabolic Impact of Brain Angiogenesis Inhibitor 3 (BAI3) on Energy and Glucose Homeostasis.” It was judged best among her colleagues at the symposium.
In addition to a certificate of merit, Alsharif received a Department of Medicine travel award of up to $1,000 to cover travel expenses to attend a single research conference, approved by her mentor, in her field of research.
Perez’s poster presentation entitled “C1ql3/BAI3 Signaling Negatively Regulates Insulin Secretion” was judged as the semi-finalist of undergraduate students at the symposium. She received a certificate of merit for her achievement.
The Bhatnagar Lab primarily studies diabetes with an islet biology and autoimmune focus. Current lab projects include understanding, the role of Tomosyn-2 in insulin secretion and glucose tolerance, the role of C1ql3-BAI3 in regulating insulin secretion and beta cell function, and the use of bioinformatics to identify novel secreted protein regulators.
The laboratory has been supported by funds from K99/R00 NIH Pathway to Independence award, American Diabetes Association, Laboratory-startup funds, UAB DRC Pilot award, and NIH NIDDK R01 grant. The Bhatnagar Lab is proud to support the training of future diabetes professionals.
“Both Saba and Katherine did such a wonderful job representing the lab as well as the UCDC,” said Bhatnagar. “I look forward to continuing to support their growth as the next generation of diabetes researchers.”
The Bhatnagar Lab is funded by the NIH project 5R21DK129968-02 “Identifying secreted protein networks affecting human pancreatic islet function in type 2 diabetes using public omic databases” as well as the NIH project 1R03TR004472-01 “Investigating the Effects of ADGRB3 Signaling on Incretin-Mediated Insulin Secretion from Pancreatic Beta-Cells.”
The lab is housed in the UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center (UCDC). The UCDC is a University-Wide Interdisciplinary Research Center composed of over 200 faculty members from 10 different schools and many departments dedicated to finding curative therapies for diabetes.