Graduate and Medical Student Research Day 2024

Innovation and Collaboration 

Innovation and collaboration set the stage for the second annual School of Medicine Graduate and Medical Student Research Day to be held on Oct. 22, at the Tinkham Veale University Center. The combined day of research exploration brings graduate and medical students together to showcase research accomplishments and facilitate cross-program collaboration. 

All faculty, staff and students are encouraged to attend the School of Medicine Graduate and Medical Student Research Day to celebrate and engage the School's history and culture of innovation and discovery. 

The events throughout the day will facilitate the exchange of ideas between students and faculty while highlighting the outstanding research being conducted in the School of Medicine. 

Keynote Lecture 

"Membrane trafficking in platelets both exo- and endocytosis, matters for hemostasis and beyond"

Presented by Sidney Whiteheart, PhD, FAHA, professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine

Whiteheart earned his PhD at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine under the mentorship of Dr. Gerald W. Hart, in the field of glycosylation and glycosyltransferases. As a post-doctoral fellow with Dr. James E. Rothman, he was involved in the discovery of SNARE proteins that mediate membrane fusion events. This led to the formulation of the “SNARE Hypothesis” to explain intracellular trafficking.

At the University of Kentucky (UK), he is a full professor with tenure. In 2010, he was awarded a UK University Research Professorship, in 2013 the Kirwan Prize and in 2019 an endowed professorship. In the past 30+ years, his group has been a key contributor to dissecting the molecular mechanisms of platelet secretion. The team has been a leader in assigning SNAREs and SNARE regulators to specific platelet secretion events and in probing the roles of platelet exo- and endocytosis in hemostasis, innate immune responses and vascular integrity maintenance. This work has resulted in more than 150 publications. Whiteheart is strongly committed to training and mentoring graduate students, post-doctoral fellows and undergraduates; more than 60% have been women or underserved minorities. He was selected by trainees for the UK Alumni Association Great Teacher Award (2006), as a Women in Medical Sciences Mentor Award nominee (2019) and the UK Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences Mentor Awardee (2023). He is the Director of the MD/Ph.D. training program at UK.

Abstract:

"Membrane trafficking in platelets both exo- and endocytosis, matters for hemostasis and beyond"

Platelets, as vascular sentries, are capable of bidirectional interactions with their microenvironment through basic cellular processes whose significance is largely underexplored. Despite significant advances in understanding the signaling from vascular damage detection, our view of how activated platelets execute the steps needed for vascular homeostasis is limited. Over the years, we have probed the mechanisms of platelet secretion using genetically altered models, defining many of the proteins and steps involved in platelet granule cargo release. Our work on platelet endocytosis led to the discovery that platelets can take up pathogens, e.g., viruses, and can be activated. Using this collection of genetically modified animals, we have expanded our studies of how platelets contribute to vascular integrity and health. In this presentation, I will review some of our basic mechanistic discoveries about platelet exocytosis and discuss the roles of a few new proteins that we have shown are contributors (i.e., Sec10/EXOC5, α synuclein, Cysteine String Protein α/DnaJC5). Also, I will discuss how platelet secretion and endocytosis affect hemostasis, aortic aneurysm formation, and surface wound healing. These examples illustrate the myriad roles that platelets play and how their bidirectional interactions with their microenvironment maintain vascular health.

Schedule Details