Medical Student Training in Aging Research (MSTAR)
Students enrolled in the MSTAR program benefit from an enriching experience in aging-related research and geriatrics with the mentorship of top experts in the field.
Participation in the program has led many physicians-in-training to pursue academic careers in aging, ranging from basic science to clinical and health sciences research. The long-term goal of the program is to increase the number of established physician investigators and clinicians who pursue research in high-priority areas related to aging.
This 8-week, multi-site program is open to first-year medical students interested in aging research and in good academic standing. Sites included in the program are:
- UT Health Houston
- UT Health San Antonio
- UTMB Health
- UT Southwestern
Application Information
- Apply Here (deadline February 21, 2025 @ 5pm CST)
- Download Application Template
Program Information
Stipend: $4,704 total for 8 weeks ($2,352/month)
Project PI: Elena Volpi, MD, PhD, FGSA
Requirements
Candidates: 1st-year medical students interested in aging research
Duration: Intensive 8 weeks over Summer and following Winter breaks
Application Deadline: February 21, 2025 at 5pm CST
Trainees gain:
- an individualized research experience under a sponsoring mentor
- a structured didactic experience that is directly linked to student research projects
- opportunities to interact with potential role models and peers efforts to build a sense of identity and membership for participants
- a positive and rewarding experience in aging research
- a chance to obtain research credits for their participation
Expectations: During the summer and winter experience, trainees are expected to spend the majority of their time at UT Health San Antonio on their research project, attend weekly meetings, where didactic applications and career issues are discussed, and attend local geriatrics seminars. They also attend kickoff and capstone group sessions.
Faculty Mentors
| Name | Rank | Research Interest |
| Lizhen Chen, PhD | Associate Professor | Neuronal aging, neurodegeneration, nerve repair, cancer progression |
| Robert Clark, MD | Professor | Inflammation, Parkinson’s disease, translational science |
| Tiffany Cortes, MD | Assistant Professor | Diabetes, Obesity, Frailty |
| Gabriel de Erausquin, MD, PhD, MSc | Professor | Brain Development, Modulation and Repair |
| Ralph A. DeFronzo, MD | Professor | Diabetes, Metabolism, Nephrology |
| David Gius, MD, PhD | Professor | Mitochondria’s role in aging and cancer |
| Xianlin Han,PhD | Professor | Alzheimer’s disease, lipid metabolism, aging |
| Reuben S. Harris, PhD | Professor | Mechanisms of mutation in immunity, ageing, and cancer |
| Tim Huang, PhD | Professor | Cancer epigenetics |
| Yuji Ikeno, MD, PhD | Professor | Oxidative stress, cancer, metabolic disorders, aging |
| Dean Kellogg, Jr, MD, PhD | Professor | Translation of age-modulating agents, cardiovascular physiology |
| Lisa Smith Kilpela, PhD | Assistant Professor | Nutrition pathology, health disparities in aging, mental health |
| Kevin Koronowski, PhD | Assistant Professor | Circadian rhythms, metabolic disease, aging |
| Masahiro Morita, PhD | Associate Professor | Metabolic syndrome, cancer metabolism |
| Madesh Muniswamy, PhD | Professor | Mitochondria, ion channels, cardiovascular, sepsis, metabolic syndrome |
| James Nelson, PhD | Professor | Sex Differences in Aging, Geroprotective interventions, Calorie restriction |
| Luke Norton, PhD | Associate Professor | Liver and adipose tissue function in type 2 diabetes |
| Juan Pablo Palavicini, PhD | Assistant Professor | Alzheimer’s disease, biology of aging, lipid metabolism, diabetes |
| Shreya Rao, MD, MPH | Assistant Professor | Cardiovascular aging and health disparities |
| Blake Rasmussen, PhD | Professor | Biology of aging, sarcopenia, exercise interventions |
| Marcos Restrepo, MD, PhD | Professor | Pneumonia in older adults, Immune Mechanisms of COVID |
| Kelly Reveles, PharmD, PhD | Associate Professor | Microbiome, frailty, infectious diseases |
| Corinna Ross, PhD | Professor | Translational geroscience, nonhuman primate modeling |
| Adam Salmon, PhD | Professor | Biology of aging, metabolism, gerotherapeutic interventions |
| Sandra Sanchez-Reilly, MD | Professor | Geriatric Pain; palliative Care; end of life |
| Claudia Satizabal, PhD | Associate Professor | Health disparities in Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular disease |
| Sudha Seshadri, MD | Professor | Brain Aging, Stroke, Dementia, Alzheimer’s and related diseases, Vascular cognitive impairment |
| Yuguang (Roger) Shi, PhD | Professor | Mitochondrial dysfunction in age-related diseases |
| Randy Strong, PhD | Professor | Pharmacology of Aging/Parkinson disease |
| Patrick Sung, DPhil | Professor | DNA repair, R-loop biology |
| Elena Volpi, MD, PhD | Professor | Sarcopenia, functional recovery, diabetes |
| Lu Wang, PhD | Assistant Professor | Epigenetics, aging, metabolic disorder, cancer |
| Rebeca Wong, PhD | Professor | Aging and health disparities |
| Mengwei Zang, MD, PhD | Professor | Aging, chronic liver disease, and Diabetes |
| Shangang Zhao, PhD | Assistant Professor | Metabolism, diabetes, aging |
| Lei Zheng, MD, PhD | Professor | Pancreatic cancer biology, translational immunology, cancer immunotherapy and the tumor microenvironment |
| Daohong Zhou, MD | Professor | Discovering and developing novel drugs against senescence and cancer |