{"id":1507,"date":"2015-02-05T18:17:56","date_gmt":"2015-02-05T22:17:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/ebuckhor\/?page_id=1507"},"modified":"2015-02-05T18:17:56","modified_gmt":"2015-02-05T22:17:56","slug":"working-with-the-worlds-sharpest-minds","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/features\/working-with-the-worlds-sharpest-minds\/","title":{"rendered":"Working With The World\u2019s Sharpest Minds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thrasher-Broidy Fellowship at L.A.\u2019s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center<\/em>
\nBy Maura King Scully<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Cedars-Sinai-0314\"<\/a>
Tas Haught \u201915 and Will Schreiber-Stainthorp \u201915
Photo by John Marinelli<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles is home to the Regenerative Medicine Institute (RMI), which is on the cutting edge of human neural stem cell research that has the potential to treat debilitating neurological disorders such as ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig\u2019s disease. Bringing together some of the world\u2019s sharpest scientific minds, Cedars draws an international cadre of researchers who are specialists in medicine, molecular biology, computational neuroscience, and biomedical materials, to name a few.<\/p>\n

This was most impressive company for Tasmerisk \u201cTas\u201d Haught \u201915 and Will Schreiber-Stainthorp \u201915 to keep this summer, thanks to a one-of-a-kind fellowship established by Elizabeth Thrasher-Broidy \u201980 and her husband, Marc Broidy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Regenerative Medicine Institute at Cedars fills its labs with outstanding graduate and postgraduate students from some of the most outstanding universities in the world. These Trinity fellowship recipients were the first undergraduates ever to participate in the RMI,\u201d says Thrasher-Broidy, a member of Trinity\u2019s Women\u2019s Leadership Council and a former member of the Board of Fellows.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the liberal arts education increasingly becomes more competitive,\u201d she continues, \u201cI thought this would be an excellent way for Trinity to distinguish itself as a liberal arts college of excellence, with an outstanding neuroscience program for undergraduates who are given the opportunity of this fellowship, which is unparalleled at other similar institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Broidy family has long-standing connections to Cedars-Sinai: Marc is on the medical center\u2019s Board of Governors; his father, Steven D. Broidy, is a past board chairman and life trustee; and his grandfather, Samuel \u201cSteve\u201d Broidy, was the founding life chairman of Cedars-Sinai.<\/p>\n

Through the Cedars\/Trinity Thrasher-Broidy Fellowship, Haught and Schreiber-Stainthorp spent 10 weeks working under the direction of research scientists on projects at the forefront of stem cell therapy. They followed the first Thrasher-Broidy fellow, Brian Castelluccio \u201912, who completed his fellowship in summer 2011. \u201cThe RMI at Cedars-Sinai is on the absolute cutting edge of neuroscience research,\u201d explains William \u201cBill\u201d Church, Trinity College associate professor of chemistry and neuroscience, who has been an ardent supporter of the Thrasher-Broidy fellowship on campus and within the Neuroscience Department at Trinity. \u201cDr. Clive Svendsen, director of the RMI, is an internationally known leader in the field of cloning and stem cell research. His lab focuses on the application of human neural stem cells to treat disorders such as Parkinson\u2019s and ALS.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Tas<\/a>
Tas Haught ’15, Colin MacKichan ’15, Elizabeth Thrasher-Broidy ’80, and Will Schreiber-Stainthorp ’15 in Los Angeles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Haught, a QuestBridge Scholar, actually worked in Svendsen\u2019s lab, studying stem cell transplants by taking advantage of the underdeveloped immune systems in neonates. Schreiber-Stainthorp, a Posse Scholar, worked with Joshua Breunig, Ph.D., director of the RMI Confocal Microscopy Core, on a technology for cell-replacement therapies in diseases affecting premature infants. The two were joined during the month of July by fellow neuroscience major Colin MacKichan \u201915, <\/b>who, thanks to Thrasher-Broidy and Broidy, shadowed Cedars-Sinai pediatric neurosurgeon Moise Danielpour, M.D., known for his pioneering work on in-utero brain surgery.<\/p>\n

LIFE LESSONS LEARNED<\/b><\/p>\n

The students raved about their summer experiences. \u201cI really enjoyed it\u2013I learned a lot about different lab techniques, working with tissue cultures and stem cell lines,\u201d says Haught. \u201cI loved the collaboration in my lab. Every Wednesday, there was a meeting where 20 or so researchers would talk about their particular research and problems they encountered. Everyone would give input on how to make things work. It let me see what scientific collaboration looked like and learn from brilliant, brilliant people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haught says she appreciated \u201call of the knowledge and humor that\u00a0Dr. Clive Svendsen imparted on me. I am extremely thankful to have seen how he ran his lab and truly embraced collaboration throughout every department within the Regenerative Medicine Institute.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Elizabeth<\/a>
Elizabeth Thrasher-Broidy \u201980, Joshua Breunig, Ph.D., Will Schreiber-Stainthorp \u201915, Clive Svendsen Ph.D., Tas Haught \u201915, and Moises Danielpour, M.D.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Adds Schreiber-Stainthorp: \u201cI learned a ton of immediately applicable skills: how to create the DNA you want, how to introduce it into organisms and analyze its effects.\u201d He also enjoyed the experience more than he expected. \u201cI would start work at 9:00 a.m. and wouldn\u2019t feel like leaving all day. That\u2019s the first time I had felt that way about a job, which I guess is the best measure of whether you\u2019re doing the right thing. This fellowship opened to me the possibility of having a career in research. Prior to this, I was set on going to medical school and becoming a doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n

He recognizes the invaluable role Breunig played in making his summer a success. \u201cDr. Breunig was incredibly generous with his time and resources, which is especially remarkable given the importance and demands of his work,\u201d he says. \u201cHis mentorship consisted of everything from advice about lab techniques, to discussions on theoretical components of his research, to broader conversations about the decision to pursue research as a career.\u201d<\/p>\n

The summer also spurred Haught to think about new directions. \u201cIt was interesting to see surgeons and scientists each following their own tracks. I\u2019ve been thinking about a combined M.D.\/Ph.D. and talked to people at the lab who had attempted that but then had decided they really wanted one path or the other. It\u2019s nice to get a sense of what it\u2019s really like in the field and see research in a broader context. I learned it\u2019s okay to not know what I want yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although MacKichan\u2019s stint at Cedars-Sinai was much shorter, he found it to be equally illuminating. \u201cI spent three weeks with Dr. Danielpour in his office, where he saw patients. During the fourth week, I had the opportunity to observe surgery,\u201d notes MacKichan, a Kurz Scholar and a Daniel Burhans, Hon. 1831 Scholar. \u201cIt\u2019s mind-blowing how precise it is. Three of the surgeries were reconstructing infants\u2019 skulls,\u201d a procedure necessary when the plates of the skull fuse together before the brain has stopped growing.<\/p>\n

MacKichan says he took two things from the experience: first, that although he\u2019s still interested in medical school, he doesn\u2019t want to be a neurosurgeon but will consider another specialty. \u201cI also learned that medicine is so much more than helping and healing people,\u201d he continues. \u201cI saw how mentally tough you have to be to do this day after day. It\u2019s not a glamorous profession. I walked away so thankful for the experience and for the Trinity connections that made it possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"csoutside\"<\/a>
The Broidy Family Patient Wing at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

He also remains thankful for the guidance he received. \u201cI was humbled and blessed to have had the opportunity to shadow Dr. Danielpour,\u201d MacKichan says. \u201cHis wisdom and insight into my life will continue to direct my decisions as I pursue a career in medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n

For their part, Cedars-Sinai researchers gained favorable impressions of Trinity College. \u201cTas\u2019s enthusiasm and quest for knowledge was invigorating and downright contagious,\u201d scays Virginia Mattis, Ph.D., a researcher in the Svendsen lab. \u201cI was pleasantly surprised with the consistent quality of her knowledge, skills, and independence. Tas worked more at the Ph.D.-candidate level than an undergrad level.\u201d<\/p>\n

Breunig had positive things to say about Schreiber-Stainthorp. \u201cWill integrated himself into the lab seamlessly from the start. He was energized, inquisitive, and extremely capable. He was able to successfully navigate several challenging projects with my oversight and the guidance of my graduate student.\u201d Thanks to \u201cWill and Tas, Elizabeth and Marc, and the other members of the Trinity community with whom I interacted, I came away with a fine impression of Trinity as a tight-knit community devoted to scholarship and exhibiting the best elements of a well-rounded liberal arts education.\u201d<\/p>\n

STRENGTHENING THE SCIENCES<\/b><\/p>\n

\"Colin<\/a>
Colin MacKichan \u201915 with William \u201cBill\u201d Church, Trinity College associate professor of chemistry and neuroscience
Photo by John Marinelli<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Church hopes this experience will have a positive ripple effect on the sciences in general and on neuroscience in particular back on campus. \u201cTrinity science students are treated to something unique: a small liberal arts college that supports the sciences in a big way,\u201d says Church. \u201cThe College itself understands and appreciates these research opportunities as fundamental to students\u2019 education, not icing on the cake.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Church, Haught and Schreiber-Stainthorp have already been busy visiting neuroscience classes, describing their work at Cedars-Sinai and encouraging fellow majors to apply for a fellowship for the summer of 2015. Interested students will then submit an application to Church and complete an interview during the early part of spring semester.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy for Haught and Schreiber-Stainthorp to talk up the fellowship. \u201cHere, science students have incredible opportunities\u2013like this amazing fellowship that\u2019s unique to Trinity,\u201d says Schreiber-Stainthorp.<\/p>\n

Trinity College President Joanne Berger-Sweeney, a neuroscientist by training, said she is pleased that Trinity, in conjunction with Thrasher-Broidy and Broidy, is able to offer the fellowship. \u201cThis represents an enormous opportunity for our neuroscience students, a chance for them to work with world-renowned researchers who are at the forefront of their field,\u201d she said. \u201cWe appreciate all that Elizabeth, Marc, and the people at Cedars-Sinai have done to make this program possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Cedars-Sinai-Elizabeth-and-Marc-1-IMG_9722\"<\/a>
Marc Broidy and Elizabeth Thrasher-Broidy \u201980<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Church says the fellowship came about because Thrasher-Broidy saw an opportunity to make connections between Trinity and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. \u201cIn the process,\u201d he said, \u201cshe is having a huge impact on students in terms of their career development. I think this is a model for further alumni interaction, and it\u2019s a really creative way for alumni to make their mark.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thrasher-Broidy Fellowship at L.A.\u2019s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center By Maura King Scully Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles is home to<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":0,"parent":1464,"menu_order":5,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-full-width.php","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1507"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1507\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2015\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}