DETROIT– She still has a year of high school to go, but Troy High School student Gayathri Kollipara already knows the day-to- day routine of a brain researcher.

Since March, Kollipara has shadowed Christian Kreipke, Ph.D., assistant professor of anatomy and cell biology in Wayne State University’s School of Medicine, as he works to develop a ground-breaking drug that could prevent the vascular effects of traumatic brain injury. Kollipara, who one day hopes to be a neurosurgeon, observed much of Kreipke’s preclinical work for Clazosentan, a drug that has been successful in animal models in preventing vessel constriction, or vasospasms, which occur when the head is impacted.

“While most of research has focused on edema and diffuse axonal injuries – aspects of the initial impact to the head – vasospasms can contribute to the secondary injuries that can appear weeks or months after the head impact,” Kreipke said. “Clazosentan, which is now beginning clinical trials, was proven to decrease the effects of endothelin, the peptide responsible for vessel constriction after impact.”
Kollipara observed surgery on the animals in which the neurotransmitter endothelin was induced to gauge its effect on vessel constriction. She also assisted in the behavioral studies that determined the effectiveness of the drug.

The experience gave Kollipara, who has previously shadowed pediatricians and internal medicine physicians at Henry Ford Hospital, a different view of her future career. “If you observe in an emergency room, you get to see all the practical uses of medical breakthroughs,” she said. “But here I got to experience the other side of it – the work that leads to treatments and how treatments actually work.”
Kollipara’s pursuit of a career in the medical field stems back to her interest in science in grade school in India and a desire to help people. She came to the U.S. at age six, and as a student at Troy High School she attended several Brain Bee competitions as well as the Northwest Neuroscience Camp, where her growing interest in the human brain led to her goal of becoming a neurosurgeon.

The death of her father to lung cancer her sophomore year further pushed Kollipara’s desire to study medicine. “It’s always been a dream of mine, but the experience with my dad made me understand even more that the medical field is my calling,” she said.

Kreipke, who attributes his own job shadowing experience to pursuing a Ph.D. from the Department of Psychiatry at Wayne State, was happy to take Kollipara under his wing. “I changed majors seven times before I knew what I really wanted to do. I would just take this class or that class, whatever sounded interesting, but until someone showed me what it was like to be in the field, I had no idea what it meant to have that as a career. So to meet someone who really does have some handle on what they want to do, I’m more than willing to give them first-hand experience.”

Although Kollipara has her goals set on being a neurosurgeon, her experience observing drug development will be important to her throughout her career, Kreipke said.“Especially in brain medicine, where the science changes daily, one of the things that makes successful clinicians is having a comprehensive understanding of how science moves from development to treatment,” Kreipke said. “I think that’s why WSU’s School of Medicine in particular really gives precedence to students who have had experiences in both research and clinical experience.”

As Kollipara returns to school to begin her senior year, she will continue to shadow Kreipke a few hours a week. She says her diverse experiences have grounded her with preparedness, perspective and a sense of community that will help her meet the challenges of pre-med, medical school and a career in the field.

“Being in Dr. Kreipke's lab has opened the door to many opportunities for me, including seeing exciting research in action, learning medical terminologies and theories, and has given me a pool of acquaintances of really great doctors and med school students who share the same interests in the same field as me. These benefits will not only help me with my college life, but will also make me be a better person and hopefully a better doctor.”

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Wayne State University is one of the nation’s pre-eminent public research universities in an urban setting, ranking in the top 50 in R & D expenditures of all public universities by the National Science Foundation. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education, and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world. For more information on research at Wayne State University, visit http://www.research.wayne.edu.

For more information, contact Amy Oprean at oprean@wayne.edu.