List of 10 items.

• Frieman Lab - University of Maryland, School of Medicine

  Frieman Lab
  University of Maryland
  School of Medicine
  https://www.medschool.umaryland.edu/profiles/frieman-matthew/

   

  My laboratory works on Coronaviruses and Influenza viruses of all kinds. This includes SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1, MERS-CoV, various animal coronaviruses as well as the seasonal Coronaviruses that just cause a common cold. In addition we work on Influenza viruses, both circulating and avian strains. A project could be to assess vaccine efficacy by investigating serum from vaccinated mice to determine if the new vaccines we are working on provide better coverage than the currently used ones. Or investigating the function of a host protein in virus replication from our current tests we are performing now. The projects can be either basic science or translational science, depending on the timing and interest of the student.

• Jiang Lab - Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine

  Jiang Lab
  Johns Hopkins University
  School of Medicine

   

  The Neurobiology Division Summer Internship program, lasting 6 to 8 weeks, offers high school and undergraduate students the opportunity to engage in neurobiological research. Participants will learn foundational concepts in neuroscience and neurodegenerative diseases throughout the program. Students will also gain practical experience by performing hands-on biological lab techniques daily. By the end of the program, students are expected to have a solid understanding of biomedical research and the fundamentals of conducting preclinical trials for human diseases.

   

  Dr. Jiang is a faculty member in the Division of Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine. Her research centers on understanding the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases and developing biomarkers and therapeutics, with a primary focus on Huntington’s disease (HD). With extensive expertise in translational neurobiology, Dr. Jiang is actively engaged in HD drug discovery, including hit screening, lead optimization, and target validation. She has identified and validated novel therapeutic targets, like Sirt1, NLK, and small molecule TrkB agonists. Recently her lab established several immortalized striatal precursor neurons (ISPN) from Huntington’s disease patient iPSCs and screened the kinase inhibitor library and FDA approved compound library In ISPNs.

• Jimenez Lab - Johns Hopkins University, Department of Biology

  Jimenez Lab
  Johns Hopkins University
  Department of Biology
  https://jimenezlab.net/

   

  Mammals have limited regenerative potential. Regeneration is limited to certain cell types like our skin, gut intestinal cells, and blood. Tissue regeneration in mammals is restricted to organs such as the liver. Many cell types and tissues fail to regenerate including the inner ear. Damage to sensitive structures called hair cells in the inner ear is irreversible and results in hearing loss and deafness.

   

  However, in nature, we find a number of organisms with the capacity to regenerate specialized cell types, tissues, organs, and even limbs. These animals can regenerate, so why can’t we?

   

  “Why can some animals regenerate and others cannot?” is a fundamental question in regenerative biology. Our laboratory uses the zebrafish as a model system to answer this question because they are highly regenerative and can regrow amputated fin, lesioned brain, heart, spinal cord, and my favorite cell types called the hair cells. We use the adult zebrafish inner ear as a model system to study this profound question because the inner ear represents a fantastic model to study regeneration at a certain time and place. Our laboratory also uses the mouse as a model system to understand the barriers that actively block regeneration.

   

• Kevrekidis Lab - Johns Hopkins University, Whiting School of Engineering

  Kevrekidis Lab
  Johns Hopkins University
  Whiting School of Engineering

  https://engineering.jhu.edu/faculty/ioannis-kevrekidis/

   

  Kevrekidis’ research interests have always centered around the dynamic behavior of physical, chemical, and biological processes; the types of instabilities they exhibit; the patterns they form; and their computational study. More recently, he has developed an interest in multiscale computations and the modeling of complex systems. Along with several students and collaborators, he developed what he calls the “equation-free” approach to complex systems modeling, explored its capabilities in several areas, and is now working on linking it with modern data mining/machine learning techniques in what could be called an “equation-free and variable-free” approach.

   

  While Kevrekidis collaborates extensively with experimentalists, the thrust of his group is modeling and algorithm development toward the study of complex dynamics. The work is interdisciplinary, with applications ranging from protein folding to electrochemistry and from reaction engineering to network theory. It also features components of high performance computing, and—in recent years—an increased data science and machine learning component.

   

  Kevrekidis’ work has been transforming the way scientists and engineers perform computer-assisted modeling of complex systems – both through new algorithmic techniques, and through targeted applications such as accelerated molecular dynamics, or nonlinear system identification.

• Lipinski Lab - University of Maryland, School of Medicine

  Lipinski Lab
  University of Maryland
  School of Medicine
  https://www.lipinski-lab.org/

   

  Autophagy is a catabolic process mediating the turnover of bulk cytoplasmic constituents including organelles and protein aggregates in a lysosome-dependent manner. It is necessary for cellular homeostasis and protects organisms from a variety of diseases, including neurodegeneration and aging. The Lipinski lab uses a combination of in vivo transgenic mouse models and in vitro cell-based models to investigate the function and mechanisms of autophagy and its perturbation in the CNS.

   

  Our interests include both acute CNS injury due to traumatic brain injury (TBI) and spinal cord injury (SCI) and chronic age-related neurodegenerative disease. We are also investigating a potential role for autophagy in linking the history of TBI to development of neurodegeneration and dementia later in life. Our long-term goal is to define novel target molecules and pathways for safe and effective modulation of autophagy as a treatment against neurodegeneration induced by both acute (trauma) and chronic (neurodegenerative diseases) causes.

   

• Michel Lab - University of Maryland, School of Pharmacy

  Michel Lab
  University of Maryland
  School of Pharmacy
  https://themichellab.com/

   

  The Michel laboratory is interested in the roles of metals in biology and tackles both fundamental and translational research problems. In one area, we focus on the mechanisms of metal mediated DNA and RNA recognition by zinc finger proteins. Current efforts include understanding the role of zinc fingers protein in H2S signaling, determining why certain ‘zinc finger’ proteins involved in pre-mRNA processing contain redox active Fe-S co-factors, and deciphering how exogenous metals target zinc finger proteins involved in inflammation. We take a ‘molecules to proteomics’ approach that combines biochemical, biophysical and cell biological methods with novel bioanalytical and proteomics strategies.

   

  In the translational area, the Michel laboratory has an interest in understanding how iron nanoparticle drugs used to treat iron deficiency anemia are delivered and metabolized. As part of a team of researchers at UMB, we recently completed a clinical trial of iron nanomedicines. For the trial, a novel bioanalytical method that combines LC with ICP-MS to measure iron speciation in human samples was developed. Efforts to apply this approach to other translational bioinorganic problems are underway. In a second area, the Michel laboratory has identified elevated levels of potentially toxic metals in electronic cigarettes (E-cigs). The laboratory is working with a team of researchers at UMB to understand the effects of these metal ions on oral and bronchial cells.

• Overduin Lab - Towson University, Department of Physics, Astronomy and Geosciences

  Overduin Lab

  Towson University

  Department of Physics, Astronomy and Geosciences

  https://wp.towson.edu/joverdui/

  
  

  James Overduin is a theorist in the areas of gravitation, cosmology, astronomy and high-energy physics. He is particularly interested in extensions of General Relativity, attempts to incorporate gravity into the Standard Model of particle physics, and in ways to test those attempts through observation and experiment. He has also worked extensively on cosmic background radiation at all wavelengths, focusing on its implications for cosmic evolution (Olbers' paradox and the intergalactic medium) as well as its potential as a dark-matter detector. Dr. Overduin is also a specialist in dark energy (a.k.a. Einstein's cosmological constant), on which he has co-authored a book with Helge Kragh (The Weight of the Vacuum, Springer Briefs in Physics, 2014). Most recently, he has begun to investigate ways to improve the effectiveness of undergraduate physics education through innovative teaching demonstrations.

  
  

  Fellowship Project: Using telescope observations of the moons of Jupiter to measure the speed of light. The student will work with Dr. Overduin to determine the times when Jupiter's Galilean moons (Ganymede, Callisto, Europa and Io) go in or out of eclipse in Jupiter's shadow during the summer months. These events will be visible in the evenings during May/June and in the early mornings during August/September. We will try to observe the same event at least twice: once in May/June and once in August/September. By comparing the times of these events, the student will be able to measure the speed of light. This experiment was first proposed by Danish astronomer Roemer in the 1600s, but it is not clear whether he ever successfully carried it out. We will try to do it!

  
  

  Due to the positions of the planets during the summer of 2025, this project is best suited to students (parents and other drivers are welcome too!) who can travel to the observatory in the science building at Towson University during evening hours in May/June and during the predawn hours in August/September.

• Sofou Lab - Johns Hopkins University, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

  Sofou Lab
  Johns Hopkins University
  Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
  https://sofoulab.wixsite.com/hopkins/

   

  Our goal is to understand the intermolecular and interfacial interactions of materials, and particularly of self-assembling materials, with the biological milieu, and to combine this knowledge with engineering principles to design successful devices to promote human health. Translational research on testing and optimization of these devices as diagnostics and therapeutics for medical applications is of special significance to our work.

   

  Our research is focused on investigating heterogeneous lipid bilayers with a threefold goal: (I) to contribute to the fundamental understanding of the molecular and supramolecular interactions in heterogeneous lipid membranes, of how these interactions affect collective properties of heterogeneous bilayers, and of how these interactions result in assembling materials with interesting properties, (II) to engineer devices/strategies based on these materials that can be tuned to perform specific tasks, and (III) to translate and optimize these devices in the form of lipid-based nanoparticles as carriers of diagnostics and therapeutics for medical applications with special focus on cancer.

   

• Spangler Lab - University of Maryland, School of Medicine

  Spangler Lab
  University of Maryland
  School of Medicine
  https://www.spanglerlab.org/

   

  Protein engineering affords researchers the unprecedented capacity to create new molecules with novel and therapeutically useful activities. Researchers have traditionally taken an unbiased approach to protein engineering, but as our knowledge of protein structure-function relationships advances, we have the exciting opportunity to apply molecular principles to guide engineering. Leveraging cutting-edge tools and exclusive expertise in structural biology and molecular design, the Spangler Lab implements a unique structure-based engineering approach to elucidate the determinants of protein activity and inform drug development. 

• Tsapatsis Lab - Johns Hopkins University, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering & Institute for NanoBioTechnology

  Tsapatsis Lab
  Johns Hopkins University

  Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering & Institute for NanoBioTechnology

  https://tsapatsislab.wse.jhu.edu/

   

  Microelectronic device fabrication relies on lithography to transfer integrated circuit (IC) patterns to the surface of a semiconductor. Lithography uses a thin sacrificial layer, called a resist, which upon exposure to light, undergoes chemical reactions that render the exposed areas more or less susceptible to etching or dissolution, enabling nanometer scale patterns to be created. Driven by the demand to make denser ICs, the development of new resist materials that can allow chip manufacturers to create patterns with molecular accuracy is under way. Semiconductor manufacturing also has significant environmental impacts, which are projected to grow in response to the increasing demand for computing and communication technologies. Therefore, in parallel to meeting the demands of stringent technological constraints, there are increasing requirements for new resists to be manufactured by eco-friendly processes that reduce waste and global warming potential. In our lab we are developing new types of resists to meet both challenges of high performance and minimal environmental impact.