HuBMAP awards inaugural JumpStart grants and summer internships to talented young researchers

HuBMAP awards inaugural JumpStart grants and summer internships to talented young researchers

April 15, 2021

HuBMAP has determined the recipients of its first-ever JumpStart awards and summer internship program, with 3 young researchers being selected to receive JumpStart grants and 8 undergraduate students being chosen to participate as interns this summer.

JumpStart

The HuBMAP JumpStart program provides junior investigators the opportunity to undertake independent, scientific research projects within their existing labs. These researchers are already working within HuBMAP-supported labs, and these grants will help advance their career and develop their independence in the workplace. Their projects align with the overall goals of HuBMAP, but take a new direction from their existing work with their lab's Principal Investigator.

The JumpStart award recipients are:

Hang Hu, Laskin Lab, Purdue University: Self-supervised Mass Spectrometry Imaging Clustering with Convolutional Neural Network and Contrastive Learning

Hang is a 4th year Ph.D. candidate in Dr. Julia Laskin's research group at Purdue University. He investigates nano-DESI mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) and participates in the Computational Interdisciplinary Graduate Program. He is interested in the application of machine learning, computer vision and lab automation for MSI.

Angela Kruse, Mass Spectrometry Research Center, Vanderbilt University: 3-D Multimodal Analysis of Eye and Pancreas Blocks Using Light Sheet Microscopy and Imaging Mass Spectrometry.

Angela is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Mass Spectrometry Research Center at Vanderbilt University. Her current research goal is to better understand the molecular environment of human retinal, lens, and pancreatic tissues using a combination of imaging mass spectrometry, proteomics, biochemistry, and bioinformatics.

Yang Liu, Rong Fan Lab, Yale University: Spatial multi-omics profiling of human kidney tissue using DBiT-seq.

Dr. Yang Liu is a third year Postdoc working at Dr. Rong Fan’s lab, interested in building novel tools for spatial omics sequencing. He developed a high spatial resolution multi-omics sequencing technique, named DBiT-seq, which can achieve near single cell spatial resolution (10 µm) sequencing of RNA and protein on the same tissue section. His ongoing work includes developing DBiT-seq V2.0, building 3D human healthy heart Atlas and studying development of human tumor tissues.

Underrepresented Student Internships

The HuBMAP Underrepresented Student Internship Program provides the opportunity for undergraduate students to receive mentorship and training from HuBMAP components in summer 2021, in a virtual setting. This year, 8 students will work in 6 labs and they will have the chance to interact with one another throughout the summer.

Meet this year's interns:

• Roselkis Morla Adames, Class of 2021, a Computer Science major at SUNY Oneonta, working with Nils Gehlenborg's Lab at Harvard Medical School
• Stephanie Bobadilla-Regalado, Class of 2021, a Biochemistry major at Regis University, working with Brian Gregory's lab at University of Pennsylvania
• Kate da Silva, Class of 2022, a Biochemistry major at California State University, Fullerton, working with Junhyong Kim's lab at University of Pennsylvania
• Ogechukwu Etuazim, Class of 2021, a Biology major at Georgia State University, working with Kate O'Neill's lab at University of Pennsylvania
• Injyll Gates, Class of 2022, a Health Education major at Howard University, working with Garry Nolan's lab at Stanford University
• Tatiana Gonzalez, Class of 2021, a Biology major at California State Polytechnic University Pomona working with Brian Gregory's lab at University of Pennsylvania
• Lester Casey Henson, Class of 2021, a Kinesiology major at San Francisco State University working with Penn Image Computing & Science Lab
• Oluwafolajinmi Olugbodi, Class of 2023, a Computer Engineering major at Lehigh University, working with Junhyong Kim's lab at University of Pennsylvania

You can check on the progress of our JumpStart recipients and our interns on the JumpStart program website and the Internship program website. Thank you to the talented researchers who applied to these competitive programs, and the HuBMAP members who assisted with awardee selection. And congratulations again to our award recipients!