Project Background

Eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (eCRS) is a debilitating and costly inflammatory sinonasal disorder that significantly impacts the quality of life and productivity of those affected. Patients with eCRS experience persistent sinonasal symptoms despite prolonged medical management and are likely to undergo multiple sinus surgeries to control their disease. Accurate diagnostic and prognostic testing options for eCRS remain limited. The ability to identify patients with eCRS and monitor their disease progression and treatment response at the point-of-care would be of tremendous benefit to patients and providers. Your summer research project will be aimed at evaluating the accuracy of a novel, rapid test to diagnose eCRS and clinical significance of a newly discovered prognostic marker for patient outcomes and predicting treatment response. The long-term goal of this project is to improve patient access to an accurate diagnosis of eCRS, and in turn, improve access to personalized medicine in underserved communities, which are often disproportionally affected.

Student Role

• Work with Dr. Pulsipher, graduate students, and research personnel on your project
• Complete necessary on-line trainings to work with human subjects
• Generate, analyze, and interpret data from laboratory experiments
• Attend bi-weekly mentor meetings with Dr. Pulsipher and monthly UROC Innovations and Ghandehari (collaborator) Lab meetings with other colleagues and students
• Collect data and biological specimens with clinicians in clinic and in the operating room

Student Learning Outcomes and Benefits

• Scientific literature interpretation
• Protein and gene studies and data analysis
• Immunohistochemistry – staining human tissues
• How to communicate science to peers, mentors, and clinicians
• Problem solving within a group setting
• Preparing and presenting scientific power point and poster presentations