Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Affiliative Social Interactions Activate Vasopressin-Responsive Neurons In The Mouse Dorsal Raphe, Tirth Patel, Hanna O. Caiola, Olivia Mallari, Benjamin D. Rood

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Social behavior is inextricably linked to human health, shaping both our susceptibility and resilience to disease and stress. Positive interactions as simple as maternal contact or friendships among children and adults can protect against emotional distress and improve treatment outcomes, whereas negative interactions such as abuse, social isolation, or bullying can increase aggression and precipitate mood disorders. Discovering the structure and function of neural circuits underlying social behavior is critical to understanding the link between social interaction and health. The neuropeptide vasopressin has been implicated in the regulation of multiple social interactions including social memory, aggression, mating, pair-bonding, and parental …

Association Between Childhood Obesity And Lack Of Healthy Food Access In Urban Food Deserts, Nicholas Averell, Rushali Desai, Archana Menon, Ayushi Naik, Arpun Shah

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Background

Childhood Obesity: growing epidemic affecting almost 20% of children and adolescents in the United States

● Characterized by BMI greater than 95^th percentile of their age and gender

● Often leads to chronic medical conditions: high blood pressure, Type II Diabetes and heart diseases

● Low socioeconomic status(SES), lack of healthy food access and urban neighborhood

Library’S Editing Service Popular With Rowansom Students, Lisa M. Price

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

WHY:

- Identified need for proofreading and editing assistance

- Librarian with writing and desktop publication experience and interest in clear, grammatically correct writing

RESPONSE:

- Popular , especially with students applying for residency

- Anticipate continuing this service

Seeking Sustainable Solutions To Period Poverty Amongst Homeless Women In Camden County, Nj, Bilal Khan, Alana Smith, Melisa Ibarra-Zavala

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP) – National Ambassadors is an effort for underserved high school, undergraduate, and medical students to collaborate on a research-based community service project to equip future health professionals with tools to heal their communities.

The average woman spends up to 3500 days of their life menstruating. Menstrual health is therefore not just a fundamental human right, but a robust indicator of community well-being. Despite the biological inevitably of menstruation, barriers to practicing adequate menstrual hygiene, or “Period Poverty,” are far common and often ignored in public forums. Period products face a luxury goods sales tax in …

Establishing A Resident-Lead High School Outreach Program To Improve Physician Community Engagement, Dylan Mcdivitt

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

New Jersey’s Cumberland County is home to a vastly diverse population of people, comprised of numerous racial, ethnic, economic, health, and educational backgrounds among its nearly 150,000 residents. Per U.S. Census data, about 15% of the population is below the poverty line, including about 20% of those below the age of 18. With economic hardship often come health problems and disparities, and Cumberland County’s rates of obesity, tobacco use, lung cancer, and drug-induced deaths are all above the national averages.

Notable student survey findings:

• 67 students reported a friend had shared thoughts of depression with them in the last …

Ethnic Differences In Maternal Cytokines And Adipokines And Their Association With Spontaneous Preterm Delivery, Yelizavet D. Lomakova, Xinhua Chen

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Spontaneous preterm delivery (SPTD, birth at <37 weeks’ gestation) is a leading cause of infant mortality in the United States [1]. Infants born prematurely are more likely to suffer from both short and long-term complications including neurodevelopmental delay, visual and hearing impairment, and chronic diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and diabetes in later life [2-4]. African American women have a 2-fold increased risk of preterm delivery compared to Caucasian women [5].The reasons for this disparity are poorly understood. This limits the ability to predict and prevent preterm delivery in the most high-risk populations.