Connective tissue is the most abundant and diverse tissue type in the human body, colorfully illustrated here with five different fluorescent proteins.
Image courtesy of Daniela Malide, NIH.
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Author: Natasha Giusti
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Preuss School interns cap off summer in science
Members of the next generation of biomedical researchers and health care professionals spent three weeks training at Sanford Burnham Prebys
On Friday, July 24, 2026, the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute community celebrated the contributions of five high school student interns from the Preuss School. Located on the University of California San Diego campus in La Jolla, the Preuss School educates students striving to be first-generation college graduates.
Participants in the Preuss summer internship program gained valuable hands-on research experience over three weeks. This program is generously funded by Debby and Wain Fishburn.
“For many high school students, biomedical research is something very new to them,” said Yuk-Lap (Kevin) Yip, PhD, associate director of training and education in the NCI-designated Cancer Center at Sanford Burnham Prebys, during the July 24 capstone presentation.
“Over the summer, our five outstanding interns gained hands-on experience as scientists and began to understand why we are so excited about the work we do.”
Graduate student Joshua Minyard introduced the interns and invited them to discuss why they wanted to participate in the program.
“I was looking to test the waters for a potential future career in biomedical research,” said intern Derek Arista.
“I thought this would be a great opportunity to work in a laboratory and deepen my knowledge as I’m considering going into the medical field,” said intern Hailey Villa.
The interns then presented the findings from their three weeks of conducting experiments. In addition to sharing how cancerous tumors in different tissues affected fruit flies, the interns also detailed what they learned about drug discovery research.
“We worked with our mentor Josh Minyard to target a protein called STK4 that is known for allowing leukemia cells to survive,” said intern Eliud Tapia.
The interns tested three different drugs as potential inhibitors of STK4. They found that one of the three was the most successful inhibitor and was effective at lower concentrations.
Katya Marchetti, a graduate student and scientific leader of the 2025 and 2026 Pruess internship programs, provided closing remarks following the interns’ capstone presentation.
“I chose to commit to running this program because eight years ago, almost to the day, I was in these interns’ shoes,” said Marchetti. “I was a high school student participating in the summer research program that completely changed the trajectory of my life.
“You should be incredibly proud of what you’ve accomplished, not just because of the data that you’ve collected, but because of how much you’ve grown. Whether or not you decide to stay in science or pursue something completely different, I hope you know that you are capable of doing hard things, because you just proved it.”
The Preuss summer internship program at Sanford Burnham Prebys has operated since 2009 and is jointly organized by the NCI-designated Cancer Center and Office of Learning and Development. This program’s founding was supported by donors Peggy and Peter Preuss, and Debby and Wain Fishburn.
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Apoptosis is a form of programmed cell death used to eliminate damaged, infected or unnecessary cells. In this image, serum arrested L-1210 leukemia mouse cells engage in spontaneous apoptosis after nutrient depletion and acid hydrolysis.
Image courtesy of Frank Abernathy.
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The genus Drosophila (fruit flies) are among science’s most used animal models, employed by researchers at all stages of the insects’ life. The larval stage depicted covers the first five days after an egg is laid. Three growth phases later, the larva will pupate.
Image courtesy of Chun Han, UC San Francisco.
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A false color scanning electron micrograph depicts the microvasculature of a kidney. Red blood cells are colored blue.
Image courtesy of Ruben Sandoval.
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LEAP scholars share scientific and professional development achievements
Postbaccalaureate training program participants deliver capstone presentations, thank mentors and colleagues
In late June 2026, trainees in the LEAP (Laboratory Experience As Pathway) to a PhD program at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute participated in a capstone presentation event. The scholars shared their research findings following a year of work and mentorship in labs throughout the Institute.
The LEAP program was designed to bridge the gap between college graduation and a PhD program. It provides recent graduates with hands-on biomedical research experience, career development opportunities and mentorship to enhance their applications for—and ability to succeed in—highly competitive biomedical PhD programs.
With generous support from the Prebys Foundation, the LEAP program is offered through a collaborative partnership between the Sanford Burnham Prebys NCI-designated Cancer Center and Office of Learning and Development.
“Today we celebrate five of our LEAP program participants who have gained new skills, demonstrated research successes and grown as scientists throughout their journeys here,” said Kevin Yip, PhD, during his introductory remarks.
Following Yip’s welcoming address, the LEAP program mentors introduced the participants and invited them forward for their capstone presentations.
Yun Ma, a trainee in the Feng and Yip labs, discussed her study of proteins that group together in what are called protein complexes to carry out biological functions.
Ma developed a method for comparing data on RNA and proteins to identify priority genes affecting how protein complexes form. These priority genes may help shed new light on how diseases progress and may inform efforts to design new medications.
Her presentation was titled, “Inferring disease-associated changes in protein complex assembly from multimodal data.”
Kevin Yip, PhD, the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Distinguished Chair and director of the Center for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, provided opening remarks at the event.
Sarina Safavi, a trainee in the Dhar lab, described her work to understand why cardiovascular disease—especially heart failure with preserved ejection fraction—is the leading cause of death among liver disease patients. Safavi developed tools needed to make new liver disease research models to study how the disease affects the heart.
The continuation of this research may lead to the discovery of new drug targets and methods for identifying liver disease patients at greater risk of heart failure to enable earlier treatments.
Her talk was titled, “Mechanistic understanding of MASLD-associated cardiac dysfunction and its reversibility.”
Josue Navarrete, a trainee in the Deshpande and Yip labs, detailed his project focused on small proteins from areas beyond the protein-coding genes that get the most scientific attention. Increasing amounts of evidence supports these microproteins’ biological importance, including in cancer.
Navarette optimized a computational technique for discovering microproteins which enables large-scale studies of thousands of genes. He tested the approach and found microproteins involved in stem cells becoming blood cells and other cells. Studying these microproteins may lead to new diagnostic techniques and potential treatments for blood cancers.
His lecture was titled, “Optimized pipeline enables genome-wide discovery of candidate microproteins in hematopoiesis.” Navarette will be joining the Institute as a doctoral student this fall.
Mahek Shah, a trainee in the Spruck lab, shared her study of a cancer treatment strategy that compels tumor cells to act as if they are infected by a virus. Known as viral mimicry, this therapeutic approach triggers the innate immune system to respond against cancer cells. Shah described drug screening experiments that identified promising novel candidate compounds.
In further tests, these compounds were found to activate viral mimicry, cause an immune response and to be toxic to cancer cells. Continued research may lead to new treatments that can boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy, radiation therapy and targeted therapies.
Her presentation was titled, “Novel compounds targeting histone modifying enzymes induce viral mimicry in breast cancer.”
Isabel Sakowicz, a trainee in the Tharp lab, discussed her research regarding the most common and difficult-to-treat form of ovarian cancer. These tumors can wall themselves off from the immune system with structural collagen proteins that resemble scar tissue.
Yun Ma, a trainee in the Feng and Yip labs, discussed her study of proteins that group together in what are called protein complexes to carry out biological functions.
Sakowicz explored how a potential treatment strategy might reduce levels of a form of collagen known to promote ovarian cancer invasiveness and metastasis. Lowering collagen VI levels may break down the barrier around ovarian cancer cells to make other treatments more effective, including immunotherapies.
Her presentation was titled, “FAK protein loss rewires amino acid metabolism in high-grade serous ovarian cancer.” Sakowicz will be joining the Institute as a doctoral student this fall.
In addition to discussing their respective projects, the trainees credited their mentors, fellow lab members and access to avenues for training and advancing as professionals.
“Beyond my scientific achievements, I have enjoyed many career development opportunities, including attending and presenting at workshops, seminars and conferences,” said Ma.
“Everyone in the lab has contributed to a truly supportive and cooperative environment,” said Safavi. “I would also like to thank the LEAP program coordinators for their efforts and making sure we were set up for success.”
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The small intestine of a mouse on the 15th day of embryonic development.
Image courtesy of John Hatch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH.
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A ring nematode (Mesocriconema sp.). While the nematode C. elegans is a broadly used and useful model organism in research, ring nematodes are plant-parasites that feed on agricultural crops.
Image courtesy of Jonathan Eisenback.
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A thin-melt specimen of hippuric acid, a natural metabolite found in human urine. It acts as a biomarker for dietary polyphenol intake (fruits/vegetables) and gut microbiome activity, with levels rising after consuming tea, wine and fruit.
Image courtesy of Brian Johnston.
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Sanford Burnham Prebys Science Network hosts Community Outreach Symposium showcasing early-career research
Graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from across Sanford Burnham Prebys took center stage at the 2026 Community Outreach Symposium, sharing their research with colleagues and mentors from across the Institute, as well as members of the broader community.
Organized by the Sanford Burnham Prebys Science Network (SBP-SN) and the Office of Learning and Development, the event aims to spark excitement about biomedical research and build trust with the public, while providing trainees with an opportunity to communicate their science to a diverse audience in short 3-minute talks.
The symposium included a Postdoc Pitch Competition, where postdoctoral researchers competed for the opportunity to represent Sanford Burnham Prebys in a mesa-wide competition this fall against peers from Scripps Research, Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of California San Diego.
The event also featured a Science Communication Competition, where seven graduate students presented their research and competed for audience votes. The friendly competition highlighted the importance of effective science communication and public engagement.
Postdoc Pitch speakers:
- Jimmy Massenet, PhD, Puri lab — CTCF: The Pillars That Hold Our Genome
- Julia Schoenfeld, PhD, Cosford lab — One STEP Forward in the Fight Against Alzheimer’s Disease
- Ryan Loughran, PhD, Emerling lab — PIPKs: Sorting Out Your Cell’s Delivery System
- Kokila Shankar, PhD, Sheffler lab — Don’t Stress: Targeting Stress Signaling to Treat Brain Disorders- (First place Judges’ Selection and People’s Choice Award)
- Jessica Proulx, PhD, Adams lab — Game of Genes: A Song of Activation & Silencing – (Second place Judges’ Selection)
Drs. Kokila Shankar and Jessica Proulx will compete in the Torrey Pines Mesa-wide Postdoc Pitch Competition this fall.
Science Communication Competition presenters:
- Anamika Yadav, Sinha lab — The Aging Rollercoaster Inside Us
- Alisha Kirkland, Spruck lab — Cold Breast Tumors Go Viral – (First place People’s Choice)
- Anna Chechenina, Sinha lab — Your Liver Has a Bad Neighborhood: Finding Where Aging Moves In
- Sophie Hao, Dong lab — When Yellow Isn’t Mellow: The Race to Cure Biliary Atresia – (Second place People’s Choice)
- Carolina Cano Macip, Tian lab — Unlocking Nature’s Secrets to Healthy Aging
- Erik Hultenius, Tian lab — Anti-Aging Interventions for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease
- Patrick Hagan, Cosford lab — ATG Attack: Developing New Drugs for Pancreatic Cancer
The symposium also featured a keynote presentation by Sanjeev Ranade, PhD, assistant professor in the Center for Cardiovascular and Muscular Diseases. Ranade shared highlights from his research on congenital heart disease and developmental biology, while also reflecting on the mentors, experiences and scientific communication opportunities that shaped his career.
Drawing on his own career journey, Ranade encouraged trainees to take chances and remain open to unexpected opportunities. He shared how a seemingly small decision to submit an abstract ultimately set in motion a series of events that led to new collaborations, funding opportunities and eventually a faculty position at Sanford Burnham Prebys. Success, he noted, often comes not from following a carefully mapped path, but from being willing to step forward when opportunities arise.
The event concluded with award announcements, followed by a reception hosted by SBP-SN that provided additional opportunities for networking and scientific discussion.
By bringing together members of the Sanford Burnham Prebys community and guests from the broader community, the symposium fostered collaboration, scientific exchange and public engagement while helping early-career researchers strengthen the communication skills needed to share their discoveries beyond the laboratory.
Special thanks to our judges for their time and participation:
- Nan Eastman
Fishman Community Advisory Board Member - Mitchell Furumoto
Associate Director, International Services, Sanford Burnham Prebys - Liz Hincks
Director, Communications, Sanford Burnham Prebys - Eric Meyer
Assistant Director, Fleet Science Center - Jill Roughan, PhD
Founder and President of Sciencia Consulting