Skip to main content

Presenting on Serological Screening for Inapparent Flavivirus Infection at the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Conference





Mariam Goreish is a senior majoring in Biology and Global Development Studies. She was awarded a Fall 2019 Conference Grant which she used to attend the American Society and Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

When I started working in the Collins Lab at Emory Hope Clinic, I was looking forward to participating in research through its different stages, from interacting with human subjects in the clinic to analyzing data on my computer. I worked alongside a public health student to recruit and consent a cohort of ~50 international travelers into our study, conducting questionnaires to provide insight on the nature of their trips and obtaining blood samples pre- and post-travel. In the lab, I started testing sera by antigen capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for Immunoglobulin G  (IgG) against Zika and dengue virus pre- and post-travel. The prevalence of IgG, which was quantified by measuring the absorbance of color change due to antibody binding, suggests potential infection. As I became more independent in the lab, I began designing more specific neutralization experiments to clarify ELISA results. 

I spent mornings in the travel clinic enrolling patients into our study and afternoons in the lab running serological tests on the samples. Consequently, conducting translational research has helped me develop a deep appreciation for the meticulous work that went into making the scientific discoveries that have shaped modern medicine. Besides consenting patients and performing experiments, I was responsible for entering serostatus information into a database that I shared with the PI and a public health student who was responsible for epidemiological analysis. Likewise, I interacted with scientists who gave me constructive feedback on experimental design in the lab. Research is collaborative; it requires everyone to do their part. I had to present my findings at biweekly lab meetings and keep everyone updated on my progress. Working on a project that allowed me to take on multiple roles taught me how to effectively communicate with my team. 


In culmination, I presented my research project entitled “Serological Screening for Inapparent Flavivirus Infection in U.S. Travelers” at the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) meeting in National Harbor, Maryland. Presenting my poster at an international conference allowed me to engage in meaningful conversations about current research and its implications for human health with established physicians and scientists, an experience for which I am grateful. 

Visit the Undergraduate Research Programs website to learn more about applying for conference Grants. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Why Research Wednesday: Aamna's Story

Aamna Soniwala is a sophomore majoring in Human Health (on the pre-dental track) with a minor in Sociology. URP's Research Ambassador Arielle Segal had the pleasure of interviewing Aamna about her research experiences. Here it is:  What research do you do on campus? How long have you been doing it? “I work under Dr. K.M. Venkat Narayan with Dr. Jithin Varghese in the Hubert Department of Global Health at Rollins – specifically within the Emory Global Diabetes Research Center. I started during my second semester of my first year, researching global health equity in diabetes precision medicine.” How did you get started in your research? “I took HLTH 210 last spring, and Dr. Narayan was one of our asynchronous guest lecturers. I felt that I resonated with his values and research, so I reached out to him and started working with a post-doctoral fellow, Dr. Varghese.” How has research impacted your undergraduate career? “Research has allowed me to grow as a critical thinker and problem

A Whole New World of Research

Monica Vemulapalli is a junior majoring in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology. She was awarded a Spring 2019 Conference Grant which she used to attend the Experimental Biology Conference . When I found out that my first ever research conference was going to be in my hometown of Orlando, Florida, I was excited! I knew that having an unfamiliar event happen at a very familiar place would make me less anxious. However, the conference turned out to be less stressful and more interesting than I ever thought. I attended  Experimental Biology (EB)  and   presented  my very first research poster , a memory that I will definitely cherish forever.

Why Research Wednesday: Katelyn King

  Katelyn King is a senior at Emory’s College of Arts and Sciences, majoring in Biology and minoring in Global Health, Culture & Society. Her research area is on c ancer biology, and she investigates the effects of knocking out anti-apoptotic genes on drug efficacy in multiple myeloma.   Her collegiate research journey started the summer after her first year. She was accepted into the NIH-NIDDK Short-Term Research Experience for Underrepresented Persons (STEP-UP) program and was tasked with finding a mentor. She reached out to Oxford Professor Dr. Taliaferro-Smith because SHE was interested in her triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) research. After a brief informational interview, Dr. Taliaferro-Smith invited Katelyn to join her lab! During the 10-week program, SHE studied the effects of genetic modifications in TNBC. She offered to continue her position on the project throughout the academic year as an Oxford Research Scholar. She has since had the opportunity to conduct rese