2017 AWARD RECIPIENTS
Award Recipients of the Kuvin Foundation Traveling Fellowship in Health and Science:
Emilie Thompson - Harvard University graduate Class of 2015; worked at the Kuvin Center winter 2017 investigating proteins associated with pairing promoter elements in the Var1 gene of malaria parasites, focussing on constructing plasmids with the appropriate proteins to transfect into the parasites to see how the plasmodium fares without them. Emilie is continuing her education at Columbia University Medical School Class of 2021.
Tiago Feitosa Mota - MSc student from Salvador Bahia Brazil. He is working on a novel diagnostic method for Leishmaniasis developed at the Kuvin Center. Tiago is currently participating in field work in Brazil on how to use the device and how to plan a survey. He is analyzing data derived from wild-caught sand flies collected in Camaçari, Bahia and investigating several bio-ecological parameters; the sand flies' blood and plant-meal sources, the Leishmania infection rates and the sand fly gut microbiome (total bacterial and fungal species inhabiting the gut), using a novel technique called Next Generation Sequencing (NGS).
Nurila Aryntayeva - MSPH student from University of Miami. Nurila graduated from the Kazakh National Medical University in 2014 with MD in General Surgery. This summer she will be working at the Division of Epidemiology in the Ministry of Health, Jerusalem, where she will have the opportunity to experience the practice of public health by investigating an array of topics including infectious diseases in Israel, vaccination, environmental health issues and food sustainability. She is expected to perform literature searches for publication and liaison with other public health professionals and with international organizations as well.
Award Recipients University of Miami MISH (Miami Israel Science & Health) Fellowship with collaboration from the Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem.
Israel Taylor - MD/MPH student from University of Miami. Israel is a first-year MD/MPH student from Miami, FL. She graduated from the University of Florida in 2016 with a Bachelor in Health Science. This summer she will be working at the Jerusalem District Health Office where she will have the opportunity to experience the practice of public health by attending meetings, seminars, field trips, and involvement with an ongoing research project. She is expected to perform literature searches and contribute to the health promotion activities of the department.
Abzal Zhumagaliuly - MSPH student from University of Miami. Abzal is a recipient of the Kazakhstan governmental scholarship “Bolashak.” He graduated from Kazakh National Medical University (KazNMU) in 2012, as a general surgeon and received a one-year internship in cardio surgery and cardiovascular diseases department at Regional Cardiology Center in Uralsk. Summer 2017, Abzal will be working at the Linda Joy Pollin Cardiovascular Institute for Women at Hadassah Hospital focusing on prevention of heart diseases in women in Israel. His primary interest is reducing mortality and morbidity from cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in Central Asia and internationally through behavioral approaches targeting risk and protective determinants of CVD.