School of Medicine

Med student receives fellowship to study brain damage

Washington University medical student Jin Vivian Lee (center, in purple) has received a summer fellowship to research brain damage, from the Alpha Omega Alpha National Honor Medical Society. Shown with her are (from left) Morton E. Smith, MD, Gregory Zipfel, MD, and postdoctoral research associate Deepti Diwan. (Picture: Matt Miller)

Alpha Omega Alpha National Honor Medical Society honors Lee

From the WashU School of Medicine News

Jin Vivian Lee, a second-year medical student at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, is one of 60 recipients of a $5,000 summer research fellowship from the Alpha Omega Alpha National Honor Medical Society.

The Carolyn L. Kuckein Student Research Fellowship Award supports Lee’s research on hemorrhages in the brain caused by ruptured aneurysms and complications that may occur in the days or weeks afterward. The specific condition, known as delayed cerebral ischemia, results in insufficient oxygen to the brain and often causes severe disability or death.

Lee has been working in the lab of Gregory J. Zipfel, MD, a Washington University professor of neurosurgery and neurology. She is researching molecular pathways that have led to reduced brain injury in mice and may help in the development of drug therapies.

“Vivian is an asset to our research team,” said Zipfel, co-director of the Stroke and Cerebrovascular Center and director of the neurosurgery residence program. “She is a hard worker, detail-oriented and enthusiastic about helping patients who have suffered strokes and life-threatening brain injuries.”

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