Three PhD students receive Dean’s Scholarship

Three students in the Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering have won the Dean’s Scholarship. This award, presented by the UIC College of Medicine, recognizes exceptional research conducted by graduate students pursuing their PhD or MD/PhD degrees in the College of Medicine.

MD/PhD students Jeff Kim and Victoria Marino and PhD student Hamed Massoumi were three of the eight students to receive this achievement this year. All three students are part of the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP).

Kim is working under UIC Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering Professor Yang Dai, in collaboration with Robert Uyetani Collegiate Professor, Associate Department Head, and Director of Graduate Studies Salman Khetani.

His research uses a range of bioinformatics approaches to analyze single-cell RNA sequencing data. More specifically, he and Yang are working to understand how the liver responds to injury and orchestrates recovery in alcohol-associated liver disease and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). He is also working on developing ST-GNN, a graph neural network framework for modeling spatial transcriptomics data over time, which enables researchers to track how cells reorganize and interact across disease stages.

Together, these projects aim to reveal therapeutic targets and develop computational tools to advance liver disease research.

Kim aspires to become an academic physician so he can care for patients directly each day and pursue research that helps patients he may never meet.

“I applied for the Dean’s scholarship because my ultimate goal is to become an academic physician leading my own research lab,” Kim said. “Getting this scholarship shows that I can carry out productive research as I move forward in my career. I’m really grateful for the support that allows me to keep working on problems that matter for patients.”

He hopes to specialize in gastroenterology or dermatology.

He explained that many patients with liver fibrosis or end-stage liver disease often have no treatment option other than a transplant.

“A lot of the time, physicians caring for these patients have to hope and pray a transplant center has a new liver,” he said. “It’s very important for us researchers to find ways to prevent patients from ever reaching this point. Bioinformatics can help us uncover why this happens and identify potential treatment strategies.”

Kim’s background is in engineering, having double-majored in electrical engineering and neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University for his bachelor’s degree, and received his master’s in electrical engineering also from Johns Hopkins.

Dai is also the interim director of the Center for Bioinformatics and Quantitative Biology.

Marino is currently working with Markus Wimmer, a UIC affiliate faculty member of the BME department, and professor in the Orthopedic Surgery department at Rush Medical College and associate chairman of the Rush Department of Orthopedics. Wimmer’s research focuses on the tribology of cartilage and biomechanics.

Marino’s research focuses on developing standardized in vitro tribological models of cartilage degeneration and applying quantitative MRI techniques to measure changes in cartilage structure and composition. This work aims to establish reproducible preclinical platforms for studying degenerative joint conditions such as osteoarthritis.

“My interest in medicine grew from my undergraduate experiences and from family and friends who inspired me,” Marino said. “I’ve always been fascinated by the human body, and my love of math and biology drew me to engineering. Pursuing a PhD in biomedical engineering allows me to apply these skills to real-world health challenges, and joining the MD/PhD program at UIC lets me pursue my goal of becoming a physician-scientist. Ultimately, I want to help people live healthier, happier lives as they age, while preserving their independence.”

She noted that osteoarthritis can limit mobility and worsen other health conditions, ultimately affecting overall outcomes.

“That’s why helping people maintain their independence and autonomy as they age is so important,” she said. “It preserves dignity and allows them to live longer, healthier, and more fulfilling lives.”

Marino added that this scholarship is really important for future grant applications and building an academic profile. It recognizes not just the award itself, but the hard work and dedication required to earn it.

She hopes to pursue a career in orthopedics with a focus on osteoarthritis and musculoskeletal pathology. Her goal is to advance the use of imaging techniques for the early identification and monitoring of cartilage degeneration, helping to guide interventions that preserve joint health and mobility.

“I feel truly blessed and want to give extra thanks to my family and friends for their support,” Marino said. “As well as to my incredible mentor, Dr. Wimmer, and all the other mentors, lab mates, and classmates who have played such an important role in my journey.

She went on to express gratitude for MSTP, which she said has been phenomenal, and the support of friends and family.

Prior to the MSTP, Marino participated in the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Program, receiving her bachelor’s in engineering from Harvey Mudd College after transferring from Palomar College in California. She also worked as a medical scribe in the Emergency Room and Family Practice.

Marino is also grateful for the support from the biomedical engineering Department Head Tom Royston, who serves as a faculty advisor. She thanked BME Associate Professor Dieter Klatt, BME Research Associate Professor and Preclinical Imaging Core Research Resources Center Director Weiguo Li, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Carle Illinois Advanced Imaging Center Co-Director and Clinical Imaging Research for the Stephens Family Clinical Research Institute at Carle Foundation Health Director Bruce Damon.

Massoumi is working with Elmira Jalilian, assistant professor in the UIC Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences.

His research is focused on developing extracellular vesicle (EV)-based therapies for ocular diseases and corneal nerve regeneration. He hopes his research will offer new hope to patients living with vision impairments, chronic pain, and limited treatment options.

“My PhD focuses on therapies for corneal nerve degeneration,” he said. “I have leveraged mesenchymal stem cells and their extracellular vesicles (exosomes) and fine-tuned the approach for practical, site-directed applications.”

He said that his background helped him to better understand the biology of biomedical engineering and integrate engineering and science.

The MSTP is the bridge from engineering to therapeutic applications that Massoumi knew he wanted.

“Scientists can have many good ideas, but unless you explain them, demonstrate they work, and show a plan to execute, those ideas go nowhere,” Massoumi said. “The recognition feels good. The real payoff is applying, which allows you to measure yourself against the field and learn whether your ideas win approval.”

Massoumi hopes to work in the pharmaceutical industry after finishing his degree program.

“I set out to gain the expertise to make a real impact in the pharmaceutical industry,” he said. “I know there is plenty of debate about pharma, but the work we do helps people live longer and live better.”

He has won one of the nine 2022 Chicago Consular Corps awards and has 11 peer-reviewed publications, four of which belong to the research that he started here in the Jalilian Lab.

After receiving his bachelor’s in materials science/ceramic engineering and master’s in tissue engineering in Iran, he received his second master’s in biological engineering at the University of Georgia.

Jalilian’s lab is also collaborating with biomedical engineering Professor Kamran Avanaki, the G. Stephen Irwin Executive Dean of the College of Medicine, University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics CEO, and UIC Distinguished Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Mark Rosenblatt, and Searls-Schenk Professor, Cornea and External Disease Service Co-Director, Co-PI/Co-Director, UIC-NEI K12/Independent Clinician Vision Scientist (ICVS) Development Program, and Ocular Regenerative Medicine Fellowship Director in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Ali Djalilian.

All three students agreed that they’re showing off what they can do on an individual basis, but there is so much more happening under the radar.

“What you use is only the tip of the iceberg; beneath the surface, extensive collaboration is underway,” Massoumi said. “Whether it is lab work, funding, principal investigators, research discussions, or grant writing, the real engine is collaboration. Seeing the full network of relationships shows that a career is built by many forces, not one person.”

In essence, success might appear as one line on a CV, but at the end of the day, it’s about how many other aspects went into the achievement or career that really matter.