67 Research Reflection by Adriana Payan-Medina

Faculty Mentor: Ramkiran Gouripeddi (Biomedical Informatics, University of Utah)

Through my undergraduate chemical engineering degree, I have prioritized the development of research skills that will position me to formulate hypotheses and evaluate the relationships between changes in exposomic conditions and human health. This has allowed me to contribute to the toxicology field as a co-author in Environmental Research with a first authorship in preparation (see proposed research summary) and as a scientific presenter at 11 regional, national, and international conferences. I’ve become immersed in research through the University of Utah Summer Program for Undergraduate Research, the UCLA Bruins-in-Genomics NSF REU, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard Summer Research Program. Due to my research accomplishments in these roles, I was recognized as a 2021 NIH Research Fellow and a 2022 Barry Goldwater scholar. Through my Ph.D. in bioengineering, I aspire to advance medicine by developing improved culture models for environmental toxicology studies. I ultimately aspire to become a professor and hope to use my platform to inspire racial-ethnic minorities, women, and rural students to pursue education in engineering by fostering an inclusive and supportive academic environment.