Highlights from Past INRO Programs
Over the past several years, students from across the continental United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico applied to participate in the Intramural NIAID Research Opportunities (INRO) program. Up to 20 outstanding undergraduate and graduate students were chosen to participate in INRO each year based on their overall academic excellence and record, their interest in National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) research and its mission, and their desire to come to NIAID to conduct research. While diverse in background, all of the students had a powerful yearning for a greater understanding of science and a strong dedication and commitment to biomedical research in immunology, allergy, and infectious diseases.
- INRO Success Stories
- Agenda Highlights From INRO 2007
- Universities Represented by INRO Participants
INRO Success Stories
Imran Babar (INRO 2005)
As an undergraduate at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, Imran Babar became fascinated with basic cell and molecular biology. On the advice of a professor, he applied to INRO and was accepted in 2004. "The program [INRO] sounded like an exciting opportunity to learn about NIAID research and meet peers interested in the same research."
During INRO, Imran met and interviewed with several NIAID investigators. Dr. Stephen F. Porcella, chief of the Laboratory of Human Bacterial Pathogenesis at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in Hamilton, Montana, sparked his interest. "I wanted to learn microarray analysis, and researchers at the RML were doing a lot of it." He added, "Dr. Porcella seemed like he would be a fabulous mentor."
According to Imran, the summer internship experience more than met his expectations. Under Dr. Porcella's mentorship, he learned how to set up an effective control, gained a wealth of experience with microarray analysis, received advice regarding graduate school, and was able to coauthor a publication in a respected peer-reviewed journal—a rare feat for summer interns.
Imran's research experience motivated him to apply to some of the nation's top graduate schools. In the fall of 2006, Imran entered the Ph.D. program in the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University.
Following in his footsteps, Imran's sister Amenah, participated in a postbaccalaureate research training position at RML the following year, 2005. And, keeping it all in the family, Abdullah, Imran's half brother, has signed on to participate in a postbaccalaureate research training position in the Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research in Bethesda.
Mila Ortigoza (INRO 2004)
After she completed her undergraduate work in biochemistry, Mila Ortigoza knew that she wanted to take a year off to do biomedical research before entering medical school. She hoped that by attending INRO, she would learn whether NIAID was the place for her to spend her next year.
When Mila came to INRO in February 2004, she was considering the combined M.D./Ph.D. degree but was uncertain that the Ph.D. was a necessary component of her training. After attending INRO, Mila says, “I was thrilled to learn that the research component was definitely something I could incorporate with my medical career and have them work together. INRO solidified for me that research is an important component of medicine and that medicine wouldn't exist without it.”
At INRO, Mila listened to many scientific lectures and had the opportunity to interview with several researchers, including Edward A. Berger, Ph.D., Chief, Laboratory of Viral Diseases. She talked with Dr. Berger about the research in his lab and what she might do if she signed on for a research traineeship. After talking with Dr. Berger, Mila says, “I had no doubt that I wanted to take a year off and learn more about independent research at NIH.”
As Mila signed on for her first year as a postbaccalaureate research trainee, she had several goals. She wanted to “learn how to independently create the flow of the research project and how to think critically.” Those goals, says Mila, were more than fulfilled.
Today, Mila is pursuing her M.D./Ph.D. at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York through the Medical Scientists Training Program (MSTP), an NIH-funded program. She hopes to practice medicine and eventually to have her clinical experiences influence the research she ultimately would like to do in virology.
Juliana Lewis (INRO 2003)
Juliana Lewis attended INRO on the advice of her mentor at Northeastern University in Boston. She had just completed her first laboratory experience as an undergraduate and was sparked with a newly found interest in biomedical research. Her mentor thought that INRO might help Juliana decide whether she wanted to move forward with her original goal of attending medical school or perhaps take another path.
During INRO, Juliana listened to scientific lectures and spoke with current postbaccalaureate and postdoctoral trainees about their experiences at NIAID. “At INRO, I learned about the science behind the medicine,” Juliana explained. “I realized that there are additional paths that will lead me toward my career goal of helping mankind lead a longer, healthier, and more fulfilling life. Biomedical research happened to be a side of medicine that sparked my interest on a deeper level than hands-on patient care.”
In the summer of 2003, Juliana began a summer internship position with the Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology at NIAID. The following October, she started her postbaccalaureate position at the same laboratory. Intending to stay for 1 year, Juliana signed on to continue her research as a postbaccalaureate trainee for an additional 2 years.
Juliana is now pursuing her doctoral degree in immunology at Tufts University in Boston. She speaks openly about her change from her original desire to attend medical school to her current path, that of obtaining a Ph.D. “It’s an exciting milestone in my life.”
Donald Cheatem (INRO 2003)
As a graduate student at the University of Illinois-Chicago, Donald applied to INRO to gain a better understanding of research opportunities available. He knew that he wanted to pursue his interest in immunology, obtain a medical degree, and conduct research at a teaching hospital. He also knew that NIAID was at the forefront of research in immunology and would be a wonderful place for him to feed his desire for discovery through research. INRO offered the chance to see exactly what opportunities might be available to him.
"INRO superceded my goals," Donald commented after the program. "The presentations gave me more insight into the different areas of immunology and further solidified my goals. The research described was very cutting edge and groundbreaking."
Donald spent the summer of 2003 honing his research techniques and gaining a broader understanding of research protocols through NIAID's summer internship program.
Donald continues his educational training at the University of Illinois, currently in the M.D./Ph.D. program. Upon receiving his degree, he will consider a postdoctoral training position or perhaps the year-off medical school position. Today, Donald is thankful for INRO. The program helped him to see how he can meet his goals and fulfill his dream—that of bridging the gap between basic research and clinical research.
Agenda Highlights From INRO 2007
- Detailed descriptions of the many educational and research opportunities available at NIAID and at the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Scientific lectures by world-renowned researchers, including
- Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH—NIAID: A Unique Mandate
- Kathryn C. Zoon, Ph.D., Director, DIR, NIAID, NIH—Overview of the NIAID DIR Research Programs
- Ronald Germain, M.D., Ph.D., Laboratory of Immunology, NIAID, NIH—Understanding the Immune System: From Molecules to Models to Movies
- Stephen F. Porcella, Ph.D., Research Technologies Branch, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, DIR, NIAID, NIH—Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, NIH: How It Came to Be, Current Research and Future Plans
- Robert Hohman, Ph. D., Research Technologies Branch, DIR, NIAID, NIH—Introductions to the Research Technologies Branch
- Sanjay A. Desai, M.D., Ph.D, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, DIR, NIAID, NIH—How Malaria Parasites Get Nutrients From Our Bloodstream: Mechanism and a Target for Drug Development
- Thomas C. Quinn, Ph.D., Laboratory of Immunoregulation, DIR, NIAID, NIH—HIV in Africa: New Avenues in Treatment and Prevention
- Opportunities to talk informally with NIAID researchers
- Tours of the Research Technologies Branch and first-hand opportunities to see researchers at work
- A bus tour of Washington, DC
Universities Represented by INRO Participants
Students applied from across the United States and its territories. Following is a list of universities represented among INRO participants:
American University, Washington, DC
Arizona State University West, Phoenix, AZ
Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ
Bethune-Cookman College, Daytona Beach, FL
Boston University, Boston, MA
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
California State University, Long Beach, CA
California State University, San Marcos, CA
Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH
City College of New York, CUNY-CCNY, New York, NY
Claflin University, Orangeburg, SC
Coppin State University, Baltimore, MD
Cornell College, Ithaca, NY
Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA
Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI
Hampton University, Hampton, VA
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
Howard University, Washington, DC
Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Hato Rey, PR
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Marymount University, Arlington, VA
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN
Mercer University, Atlanta, GA
Mount Saint Mary's College, Los Angeles, CA
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM
Northeastern University, Boston, MA
Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA
Penn State University, University Park, PA
Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico, Ponce, PR
Rutgers the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ
Sacramento City College, Sacramento, CA
Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO
Saint Paul's College, Lawrenceville, VA
Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
State University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA
Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX
Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA
Tougaloo College, Tougaloo, MS
Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL
Universidad Central del Caribe, Bayamon, PR
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AK
University of California/Davis, Davis, CA
University of California/Irvine, Irvine, CA
University of California/Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO
University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
University of Illinois, Chicago, IL
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA
University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
University of Norte Dame, Notre Dame, IN
University of Puerto Rico/Arecibo, Arecibo, PR
University of Puerto Rico/Cayey, Cayey, PR
University of Puerto Rico/Mayagüez, Mayagüez, PR
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy, Austin, TX
University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Houston, TX
University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, VI
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA
University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison, WI
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC
Washington University, Saint Louis, MO
Wesleyan College, Macon, GA
Yale University, New Haven, CT
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This program offered by the: Office of Training and Diversity, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health