The 2021 Institute for Precision Health fellowship recipients are as follows:

Berry Family Foundation Graduate Fellowships

The are awarded each year to graduate students for 12 months to investigate issues that align with the mission of IPH.��

• Bradley Keegan, graduate student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and member of ’s lab. The fellowship will support his work to explore the underlying mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders and establish Aha1, or Activator of Hsp90 ATPase Homolog 1, as a therapeutic target.
• Lindy Sherman, graduate student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and member of the lab. The fellowship will support her research on N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands for nanoparticle based biological assays, which is crucial for the utilization of NHC-based nanoparticle systems in biomedical applications.

Institute for Precision Health Fellowship

The Institute for Precision Health Fellowship is awarded to a graduate student for 12 months pursuing research of high interest.

• Alex Boomgarden, graduate student in the Department of Biological Sciences and member of ’s lab. The fellowship will support the exploration of microvesicle (MV) biology and identification of new regulators for extracellular MV biogenesis, which carries potential as a versatile platform in precision medicine.

The Leiva Graduate Fellowship in Precision Medicine

�ճ���� awards summer funding to one outstanding Notre Dame student showing promise in the area of precision health medicine research, acknowledging academic achievement, financial need, character and qualities of leadership.

• Loan Duong, graduate student in the Integrated Biomedical Sciences program and member of the Lab. The fellowship will support research into the development of an informed chimeric antigen receptor-engineered natural killer therapy to treat advanced prostate cancer.

The O’Brien Family Endowment for Excellence Fellowship

�ճ���� awards summer funding to one Notre Dame graduate student researching the development of biomedical tools and techniques.��

• Iker Soto Satarriaga, graduate student in the Integrated Biomedical Sciences program and member of ’s lab. The fellowship will support research on the exploration and design of an experimental platform for the study of Alpha-synuclein misfolding, which plays a role in Parkinson’s disease.

"The Institute for Precision Health is once again grateful for the generosity of the families and organizations who support these fellowships for Notre Dame’s dynamic graduate students who are executing research related to improving medicine and combating disease," said , IPH faculty director and the Arthur J. Schmitt Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and professor of chemistry and biochemistry. "Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the great importance of health care workers and researchers is all the more evident. These students are the future of scientific research and medicine, and the institute is eager to witness the lasting impacts of their outstanding work."

For more information on the fellowships and other IPH research opportunities, visit .��

Contact: Corrine Hornbeck, administrative assistant, Advanced Diagnostics and Therapeutics, chornbec@nd.edu, 574-631-7385; 

Originally published by James Gilman at on June 24.

“Once again, CEST is grateful to support student research at the forefront of many global challenges,” said , professor of civil and environmental engineering and earth sciences (CEEES) and director of CEST. “After a tumultuous year, I am especially looking forward to seeing how the students will utilize our center’s equipment and their new research funding to improve our world through their timely and topical work, including energy, environmental science and global health-related research areas.” 

The 2021 CEST Predoctoral Research Fellows are:

• Bumjun Park, doctoral student in chemical and biomolecular engineering, to research vertically aligned 3D lithium metal anode host configurations with advisor , assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering.
• Peng He, doctoral student in chemical and biomolecular engineering, to study poly(tetrahydrofuran)-based single-ion conducting polymer electrolytes for rechargeable batteries with .
• Justin Greaves, doctoral student in CEEES, to research virus-particle association in sewage with advisor, associate professor of CEEES and Wanzek Collegiate Chair.
• Michael Dugas, doctoral student in chemical and biomolecular engineering, to research the fabrication of organic solvent-stable copolymer membranes for energy-efficient and environmentally responsible pharmaceutical separations with advisor , associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering.
• Tsuyoshi Kohlgruber, doctoral student in CEEES, to study U60-mineral surface interactions with advisor, Henry Massman Professor of CEEES, professor of chemistry and biochemistry and director of ND Energy.
• Mengfei Li, doctoral student in CEEES, to study mechanical properties of biofilms for strategic biofilm control with advisor , professor of CEEES.
• Whitney Conard, doctoral student in biological sciences, to research per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the Lake Michigan food web with advisor , professor of biological sciences.
• Jeffrey Dubose, doctoral student in chemistry and biochemistry, to study the stabilization of the surface of perovskite nanoplatelets for photocatalysis with advisor , Rev. John A. Zahm Professor of Science.
• Ceara Talbot, doctoral student in biological sciences, to research lateral carbon transport in ecosystems with advisor , associate professor of biological sciences and associate director of research at the Environmental Research Center (UNDERC).

The selected applicants for the CEST Predoctoral Research Fellowship program are typically announced at the end of the spring semester. More information about fellowship eligibility and application review criteria is available at .��

The Center for Environmental Science and Technology fosters interdisciplinary environmental research and education by providing cutting-edge analytical technologies needed to address national and international problems. CEST supports interdisciplinary environmental education, research and stewardship through a variety of education and outreach activities.��

More information about the center is available at .��

Contact: Joanne D. Fahey, director of research communications, fahey.17@nd.edu,  574.631.9762

Originally published by James Gilman at on June 10, 2021.