HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Marshall University’s Gastrointestinal Disease Research Group, part of Appalachian Center for Cellular transport in Obesity Related Disorders (ACCORD), attended the American Gastroenterological Association’s Digestive Disease Week (DDW) in San Diego, California, last month. DDW is the world’s leading educational forum for academicians, clinicians, researchers and students working in gastroenterology, hepatology and related fields.

Only a small number of submitted research is chosen for presentation of any kind at each DDW conference. This year, Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine had three medical students, two postdoctoral researchers and four assistant professors selected. Poster presentations included Soudamani Singh, Ph.D., assistant professor, Balasubramanian Palaniappan, Ph.D., assistant professor, and Niraj Nepal, Ph.D., post-doctoral researcher.

Oral presentations were given by Jennifer Hanes, Ph.D., assistant professor, Alip Borthakur, Ph.D., assistant professor, Raja Singh Paulraj, Ph.D., post-doctoral researcher, and Vijaya Lakshmi Sundaram, M.D./Ph.D. candidate, Shanmuga Sundaram, M.D./Ph.D. candidate, and Maafi Islam, Ph.D. candidate. Islam received the Student Abstract of the Year award for her abstract titled, “Mechanism of Inhibition of Ma-Bile Acid Co-transporter (ASBT) in SAMP1 Mouse Model of Inflammatory Bowel Disease.”

“It is very competitive to have poster presentations and especially oral presentations at DDW,” said Umpathy Sundaram, M.D., head of the Gastrointestinal Disease Research Group and vice dean for research and graduate education. “Having nine presentations this year speaks to the amazingly talented graduate and medical students, post-doctoral trainees and young faculty at Marshall.”

ACCORD is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number P20GM121299-01A1. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

Photos: A few of the presenters at the DDW conference: (top, left to right) Drs. Balasubramanian Palaniappan and Umpathy Sundaram; (bottom left) Maafi Islam, Ph.D. candidate; (bottom right) Shanmuga Sundaram, M.D./Ph.D. candidate

Date Posted: Thursday, June 23, 2022