April 11, 2017 — UF College of Medicine biomedical sciences PhD students are making discoveries that impact diseases ranging from Type 1 diabetes to Parkinson’s disease. Seven of these students presented their research as part of the 42nd Annual Medical Guild Graduate Research Competition. The event was one of many College of Medicine activities held during the week of April 3, including Graduate Student Appreciation Week and Celebration of Diversity Week.

The seven students were nominated from the seven concentrations that comprise the graduate program in biomedical sciences – cancer biology, biochemistry and molecular biology, genetics, immunology and microbiology, molecular cell biology, neuroscience, and physiology and pharmacology. Thomas Rowe, PhD, program director and associate dean for graduate education, kicked off the competition describing this long-standing event as an opportunity for advanced students to present the scope of their research and be recognized for their contributions to the basic sciences at UF.

This year’s winner, Brittney Newby, is a MD-PhD student in the immunology and microbiology concentration. Her research focuses on the role of Type 1 interferons (T1-IFN), important immunomodulatory proteins in Type 1 diabetes.

“It’s a very humbling experience to be in this competition with so many great researchers and presenters. It’s a nice capstone to finishing my PhD, and I’m so excited and very grateful,” she said. This is Newby’s second award from the UF Medical Guild. She received the Advancement to Candidacy Award in 2015.

A panel of faculty judges assessed the students on their presentation in addition to their overall research accomplishments, including publications, presentations, awards and academic performance. There was one gold award, two silver awards and four bronze monetary awards on behalf of the UF Medical Guild.

“The science gets bigger and better every year,” said Diane Yang, incoming president of the UF Medical Guild. “We expect new and different because you don’t get good treatments medically if you don’t have good science in the background.”

The guild was founded in 1959 and comprises UF College of Medicine faculty and spouses. In addition to these awards, the guild also supports health care programs and facilities at UF Health through grants and donations.

The event also recognized the winners of the Council of Academic Chairs Scholarship, the Advancement to Candidacy and the newly created Education Initiative Award. Two faculty members also received the 2016-2017 Doctoral Mentoring Award.