Medical students recognized for excellence in summer research

Winners of the Clyde G. Huggins Award for Summer Research, from left, are Megan Hwang, James Pittman, Hridhay Sheth and Kamryn Carroll. 

The Whiddon College of Medicine recently announced the top oral and poster presentations from the 51st Annual Medical Student Summer Research Day. These exceptional students have demonstrated outstanding dedication, creativity and excellence in the research projects they worked on as part of the Medical Student Summer Research Program. 

Winners of the Clyde G. Huggins Award for Summer Research, all second-year medical students, each received a plaque and a $100 prize. The award honors the memory of Clyde G. “Sid” Huggins, who served as the first dean of students at the Whiddon College of Medicine.

This year’s oral presentation winner is:

• Kamryn Carroll: “Trained Immunity provides protection against pseudomonas aeruginosa keratitis”
  Sponsored by: Robert Barrington, Ph.D., Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Kamryn Carroll with Robert Barrington, Ph.D.

The focus of Carroll’s research was the innate immune system and its role in protecting against bacterial keratitis, a serious infection of the cornea.

“Our goal was to use the concept of trained immunity to increase the effectiveness of the innate immune system in the face of infection,” she said. “Overall, our findings pointed to trained immunity as a potential therapeutic strategy to reduce the occurrence and severity of pseudomonas keratitis.” 

Carroll said she had a very positive experience in the summer research program. She is grateful for the mentorship she received from Barrington and the lab members who trained her. 

“I learned so much about the research process as a whole and learned new lab techniques,” she said. “This experience helped me to grow in many areas, and the skills I learned will continue to benefit me throughout medical school and beyond.” 

Winners in the poster presentation category are:

1. Hridhay Sheth: “The impact of the SmartBX system on prostate cancer detection”
   Sponsored by: Jatinder Kumar, M.D., Department of Urology
2. James Pittman: “Investigating the role of WNK1 in modulating the cancer cell and CAF interaction”
   Sponsored by: Debanjan Chakroborty, Ph.D., Department of Pathology
3. Megan Hwang: “Genotypic characterization of mutations in antiviral resistant HSV-2 genital lesion”
   Sponsored by: Robert Barrington, Ph.D., Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Hridhay Sheth with Jatinder Kumar, M.D.

Sheth evaluated the SmartBx biopsy management system, its impact on prostate cancer detection, and its accuracy in detecting cancer. His project was a retrospective analysis involving more than 500 prostate cancer biopsy patients at University Hospital, spanning from 2019 to 2024. 

“Our findings were quite exciting,” he said. “We discovered that the SmartBx system significantly increases the detection of clinically significant cancers and shows greater accuracy in predicting the presence of prostate cancer compared to the standard collection system.”

His experience in the program was “both enriching and transformative,” he said. “It gave me the chance to dive into clinical research and work closely with Dr. Kumar, which was incredibly rewarding.” 

Sheth said he looks forward to sharing the research findings at future urology conferences. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to contribute to such work in prostate cancer detection,” he said, “and this recognition motivates me to continue researching.”

James Pittman with Debanjan Chakroborty, Ph.D.

Pittman’s project investigated the role of WNK1 protein in breast cancer progression. 

He said working in Chakroborty's lab over the summer was a great experience. “Not only did I learn new experimental techniques,” Pittman said, “but I also learned to improve my scientific writing and presenting.” 

“I am so grateful to have received this award. I am also appreciative of my mentors who helped me with this project,” he added. 

Hwang’s research aimed to genotype a strain of herpes simplex virus 2 that is resistant to antiviral medication. The team found novel mutations in the viral DNA polymerase gene that might contribute to the resistance. 

Megan Hwang with Robert Barrington, Ph.D.

“My experience in the Medical Student Summer Research Program was incredibly fulfilling,” she said. “I was able to learn numerous laboratory techniques with the help of my mentors. Furthermore, I was able to learn to think like a researcher instead of a medical student, which in turn will allow me to become a better physician one day.” 

Hwang said she is humbled to have received an award for her poster: “My classmates had phenomenal projects and presentations, so it is surreal to me that mine was chosen.”