Chloe C
- Research Program Mentor

MD/PhD candidate at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/Princeton University

Expertise

Biology, Virology, Medicine, Health, Infectious Disease, Covid-19, Immunology, Anatomy, Addiction, Opioid Epidemic, Neuroscience, Animal Behavior, Psychiatry, any additional topic within health/medicine.

Bio

I am an MD/PhD student in Princeton University's Molecular Biology department studying virology, specifically the virus Cytomegalovirus (CMV). I am involved in several initiatives to increase awareness and education about the Opioid Epidemic, addiction, and the new science and medicine we are learning about addiction and how to treat it. I received my BS in Neurobiology from Georgetown University, where I studied the behavior of bottlenose dolphins in Western Australia. I then worked at Celgene, a biotech company, where I managed clinical trials of cancer drugs and also worked in the translational lab to help improve biomarker assays in support of the clinical trials. I began the dual Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/Princeton University MD/PhD program because I think looking at disease from both the clinical perspective and the lab perspective is fascinating and will help us learn more about how to improve therapies for patients.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

Addiction and the Opioid Epidemic

Have you been hearing about the Opioid Epidemic on the news? Are you interested in learning more about it? The Opioid Epidemic is one of the biggest public health crises in the US, and has a fascinating and complex array of factors (medical, social, economic, geographic, policy) that have led to the current crisis today. Addiction is a medical disease that still carries a heavy stigmatization in society, but did you know it wasn't always like that? The scope and direction of projects under this topic are endless, but some examples include: - An analysis of the factors that led to the current Opioid Epidemic, presented as as a series of blog posts or podcasts that can be used by a public audience to learn more about this health crisis in our society. - A look at the historical perspective of addiction, and the social movements and policy changes throughout the last 100 years that have led to the ways we think about and treat addiction today, as a written piece, or series of blog posts or podcasts. This is especially suited for students also interested in history and/or policy. - A dive into the biology of addiction and its effects on the body, presented in artistic, video, or another format.

Viruses and Covid-19

Has your daily life, like so many recently, undergone significant changes due to Covid-19? The novel Coronavirus is one of the biggest public health crises to face the world in recent history. It has proven to be a complex disease, and scientists and physicians learn more and more about it everyday. We are seeing first-hand its effects on the body as well as its effects on society. The potential for projects on Covid-19 are almost infinite, but some may include: - A journalistic process interviewing and writing about the personal experiences of classmates, generations of family members, or a neighborhood, through remote interviewing methods, to document the effect of this novel crisis on your own community. - How rare is a pandemic? What other viruses or pathogens have caused major epidemics and pandemics in the past? Are you interested in history and learning about how Covid-19 fits into the historical narrative of disease? - Part of the difficulty of treating patients with the coronavirus is that it effects many different parts of the body, and affects many people differently. Science is moving at a rapid rate to try and understand this virus and what it's doing inside the body. Do you want to learn about these effects, and help others learn by translating the scientific and medical information into podcasts, explanatory videos, or other formats?

The Artistic Side of Medicine and Health

Society has learned so much about science and medicine that sometimes it feels like you need years of training to understand anything! But this is not the case. There are many ways to express cool ideas in science and medicine through ways that anyone can connect and identify with. Is there a specific medical disease or field you are interested in? Are you interested in a project where you help translate the scientific and medical information about that topic into art, into writing, or into any other expressive format that might help convey the science behind the disease, what's happening in the body, or the perspective of the patient? Then maybe this would be a good project for you!

Animal Behavior and the Scientific Method

Do you wonder about what goes on inside the brains of animals? How your dog learns something new, especially when you weren't trying to teach it to them? Are you interested in conducting experiments, using the scientific method to test hypotheses? These projects enable at-home science with your best friend, your pet! Research and design experiments that help you understand your cat/dog/bird/pet's behavior, and learn about animals and the scientific research process along the way.