From bench to bedside Researchers collaborate at IBRS 2010
Posted: January 28, 2011More than 80 students, faculty, professionals, and guests gathered October 9 in the Connell Information Technologies Center on ATSU’s Missouri campus for the second annual Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Symposium (IBRS) sponsored by ATSU’s Still Research Institute (SRI).
IBRS 2010 gave local researchers the opportunity to present current research activity involving students and provided a foundation for promoting collaborative biomedical research between the ATSU and Truman State University campuses. The annual event consists of both research presentations and a keynote address. In total, 37 different research projects were presented.
Brian Degenhardt, D.O., SRI director, said he was impressed with IBRS 2010.
“The scientists did an excellent job presenting their cutting-edge research in a manner that was easily understandable,” he said. “All of the research presented has the potential to answer questions that will affect the future of healthcare.”
William D. Pace, M.D., delivered this year’s keynote address. Dr. Pace is professor of family medicine and Green-Edelman chair for practice-based research at the University of Colorado. He also is director of the American Academy of Family Physicians’ National Research Network and director of a consortium of practice-based research networks within the University of Colorado.
“Attendees seemed engaged and willing to explore a fairly full spectrum of research activities from the molecular to the practice levels,” Dr. Pace said. “The collaborative effort to reach across universities was quite apparent, as was the interest in reaching across the two campuses of ATSU.”
Neil Sargentini, Ph.D., chair of Microbiology and Immunology at ATSU-KCOM and a member of the IBRS committee, hopes the event will grow in the future.
“We are tapping into only a small fraction of students involved in biomedical research, so we still have lots of potential to grow,” Dr. Sargentini said. “At this symposium, Dr. Degenhardt outlined a new research program to facilitate the development of clinical researchers starting with Truman undergraduate students and beginning medical students. This program can be expected to significantly increase the number of student presentations at the IBRS in the near future.”