Training Programs

Discover some of the available training sessions out of the Blood, Heart, Lung and Immunology Research Center at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals. Additional training for laboratory personnel and junior faculty will begin in June 2024. Please look out for announcements available to all members.

Heart, Lung and Blood (HLB) Summer Research Program

Overview

The Heart, Lung and Blood Summer Research Program is designed to engage 12 diverse undergraduates and eight medical students in state-of-the art biomedical research in cardiovascular, pulmonary, hematological and sleep disorders research.

Students who belong to groups underrepresented in biomedical sciences are eligible to apply. In general, this includes students from underrepresented backgrounds such as African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Latino, Puerto Rican, Pacific Islanders, students from disadvantaged backgrounds, or those with disabilities as defined by the NIH. Please note that you must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident to participate.

Participants will enjoy weekly seminars that highlight research in these disciplines, as well as activities that encourage interaction among all students engaged in summer research.

The program will culminate in a poster session required for all undergraduates and non-CWRU medical students. CWRU medical students will present their work in the subsequent School of Medicine Student Research Day (formerly Lepow Day) event.

Research Mentors

After acceptance, participants will be matched with a faculty member whose research is of interest to the student. Only faculty of Case Western Reserve University may serve as research mentors. See list of possible mentors below.

Mentor

Research Interest

W. Henry Boom, MD

Identifying molecules of M. tuberculosis that interfere with MHC-II antigen processing.

Matthias Buck, PhD

Protein-Protein Interactions in Cell Signaling of small GTPases, Plexin and Eph receptors.

Cheryl Cameron, PhD Understanding the complex interplay between the host and virus, using objective computational approaches to identify mechanisms of disease pathogenesis and novel targets for immunomodulatory therapeutic interventions to improve the outcome in infected individuals.
Mark Cameron, PhD Using genomic technologies and bioinformatic methods to identify biomarkers (immune correlates) of infectious diseases, such as HIV, and chronic inflammatory conditions, such as psoriasis. 

Sudha Chakrapani, PhD

Understanding the role of structure and dynamics in the functioning of ion channels.

Amar Desai, PhD Identifying mechanisms driving the regenerative capacity of HSCs during HST, in order to develop novel therapeutics capable of reducing morbidity, mortality, and expense of human HST, making the procedure safer, faster, and more affordable.

Thomas Dick, PhD

Control of Respiration and Sympathetic Activity.

Mitchell Drumm, PhD

Understanding how variants in the genome influence the course of disease for CF patients and how the CF genome adapts to the disease.

George Dubyak, PhD

Signal transduction by extracellular nucleotides and inflammasomes in innate immunity and inflammation.

Yolanda Fortenberry, PhD

Developing RNA-based therapeutic molecules for treating individuals with blood-related diseases.

Stanton Gerson, MD

Mesenchymal stem cells as a therapeutic infusion for blood stem cell transplantation and for the correction of genetic disorders.

Craig Hodges, PhD

The loss of CFTR leads to the intestinal dysfunction and reduced growth phenotypes associated with CF.

Thomas Kelley, PhD

Identifying a mechanistic link between the loss of CFTR function and altered cell-signaling control in CF airway epithelial cells.

Stephanie Langel, PhD Understanding mucosal immune protection against infectious diseases, particularly in women and children.

Alan Levine, PhD

Host Defense: Toggling between immune tolerance and immune protection.

Stephen Lewis, PhD

Molecular mechanisms underlying impaired biologic pathways such as respiratory control and pharmacologic interventions.

Christopher Longenecker, MD

Cardiovascular Medicine focusing on the role of chronic immune activation and inflammation in mediating cardiometabolic risk.

Peter MacFarlane, PhD

Understanding how the neurobiology of breathing is modified by early life experiences, particularly related to clinical scenarios commonly experienced by preterm infants.

Andrei Maiseyeu, PhD

Developing nanotechnology tools to better understand cardiometabolic diseases such as atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Shigemi Matsuyama, DVM, PhD

Cancer Cell Biology; Cell Death Regulation; Cell Penetrating Peptide.

Timothy Mead, PhD Understanding how changes in the extracellular matrix results in dysfunctional heart development and resulting congenital heart defects. 

Monica Montano, PhD

Targeting angiogenesis in hormone dependent cancers. 

Tingwei Mu, PhD

Proteostasis of membrane proteins in health and disease.

Lalitha Nayak, MD

The anti-thrombotic effects of bortezomib are determined by KLF2, part of a family of Kruppel-like factors—master regulators of vascular health.

Marvin Nieman, PhD

Role of the interaction between protease activated receptors 1 and 4 (PAR1 and PAR4) in the activation of platelets by alpha-thrombin and the subsequent signaling of G-proteins by second messenger signaling molecules.

Patrick Osei-Owusu, PhD FAHA The integration and regulation of cell signaling mechanisms that facilitate the physiological and pathophysiological effects of various hormones, neurotransmitters and mechanical stimuli in the cardiovascular and renal systems. 
Rajesh Ramachandran, PhD Molecular mechanisms of membrane remodeling, fission and fusion in endocytosis and mitochondrial dynamics.

Kenneth E. Remy, MD, MHSc, MSCI, FCCM

Understanding heme-based trafficking and signaling in immune dysregulation in context of diseases of intravascular hemolysis (COVID, sepsis, malaria, sickle cell disease, thalassemia) and after red blood cell transfusion; and real time immunophenotyping of pro and hypoinflammatory states to identify timing for immunoadjuvant therapies.

Jonathan Stamler, MD

Developing new drugs for treatment of heart, lung and blood disorders and complications of blood transfusion.

Julian Stelzer, PhD

Understanding the molecular mechanisms that govern the regulation of contractile function in the cardiac sarcomere.

Masashi Tabuchi, PhD

Understanding how the brain uses specific coding mechanisms to regulate persistent internal drives of sleep/waking activity and nutrition-specific hunger/satiety.

Focco Van den Akker, PhD

The molecular intricacies of enzyme mechanism and receptor activation and using that knowledge to develop inhibitors and activators for pharmaceutical purposes.

Zhenghe (John) Wang, PhD

Defining mechanisms of oncogenesis at the molecular, regulatory and phenotypic levels and translating these discoveries to new cancer therapies.

Lan Zhou, MD PhD

Understanding how fucosylation affects Notch-dependent regulation of hematopoietic stem cell proliferation, early myeloid lineage specification and hematopoietic stem cell niche maintenance.

Stipend

$1750 per month, minimum two months ($3500). Students who participate for longer periods will have additional pro-rated stipend support. We will provide up to $500 in travel expenses from your home to Cleveland (and back!). Some support toward dormitory housing (approximate housing cost before support: $1700) may be available.

Application

To be considered for the program, you must complete the online application, submit 2-3 letters of recommendation, and supply unofficial transcript from your undergraduate institution. Please note that an official transcript will be required if accepted into the program.

How to Apply

To start your application to the Heart, Lung and Blood (HLB) Summer Research Program, first create your account through the online application portal. Once logged in the School of Medicine application, take the following steps:

  • Navigate to the Program Details section
  • Select the Degree Type: Special Programs, then select Program: Heart, Lung and Blood Summer Research, and the term to proceed.  

Letters of Recommendation

The recommendation process will also occur online. Please be sure to have the emails of your recommenders available. Once you add your recommenders, they will be notified to submit their recommendation online. 

Transcripts

Unofficial transcripts from your undergraduate institution that you currently or have attended should be uploaded in the transcript section of the online application. Medical student applicants should substitute a letter from your medical school confirming status as a current student in good standing in lieu of transcripts.  You will be required to submit official transcripts if you are accepted to CWRU HLB.  Medical student status letters can be emailed to Malana Bey at mcb19@case.edu or mailed to:

Office of Graduate Education
School of Medicine Room TG1
Case Western Reserve University
10900 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44106

Contact

Monica Montano, PhD
Director
Phone: 216.368.3378
Email: monica.montano@case.edu

Malana Bey
HLB Program Administrator
Phone: 216.368.5655
Email: malana.bey@case.edu