Mission
The mission of LIKER is to provide education and research experiences in nephrology and interdisciplinary collaborative areas for Stony Brook University undergraduates from diverse backgrounds. The program also provides career development and networking opportunities for our trainees to pursue higher education and to emerge successful in their future endeavors. We strive to achieve this mission by: providing a robust education and research infrastructure and mentorship; integrating with other established training programs; providing an inclusive and equitable environment; and following-up with graduated trainees to continuously improve, grow and strengthen LIKER. We have trained ~50 trainees (past and current) in the last 5 years under the mentorship of >10 mentors leading NIH-funded kidney disease research within our division.
We are striving to complement and enhance LIKER by applying for NIH-training grant funding to establish LINKERS (Long Island National Kidney Education and Research Summer) to recruit undergraduate students at National level from diverse backgrounds to undertake education, research and career development and networking training during Summer.
Program Directors: Dr. Shipra Agrawal and Dr. Sian Piret
We serve and lead the LIKER program as NIDDK-funded independent investigators in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, with a track-record of leadership, administrative, teaching and mentoring experience. With the support of the Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, all the participating Faculty Mentors, and trainees, we provide administrative and executive leadership for the success of the program, organize the annual symposium and create, analyze and interpret the database and surveys for the past and current trainees. We also collaborate with the Center for Inclusive Education and Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URECA) at Stony Brook University to enable career development and networking opportunities for the trainees.
Trainees
Our trainees include undergraduates at Stony Brook University majoring in a wide spectrum of subjects such as Biology, Biochemistry, Applied Mathematics and Statistics and they undertake laboratory and clinical research training within our division. Many of them graduate with an Honors Thesis focused on a particular area of research within our labs. Students receive training in research techniques, responsible conduct of research, data analysis, presentation skills, career development and networking, etc. To learn more about our current and past trainees, visit our “Trainees” page.
Trainee Follow-up
We maintain contact and network with our past trainees, and we invest our time and effort in maintaining a database for all our trainees and follow up with surveys to continuously grow and improve LIKER. Our graduated past trainees have gone on to undertake further education including MS, MD, MD-PhD (MSTP) and MD/MPH qualifications at premier institutions.
Awards and Publications
Our trainees join the LIKER program with curiosity and emerge as high achievers! Many of our trainees contribute to published research, and are listed as coauthors on high impact peer-reviewed publications. In addition, they have received recognition as American Society of Nephrology (ASN) Kidney Stars, and awards from Stony Brook undergraduate programs, such as URECA, SOAR and INDUCER to pursue full-time research during the summers, as well as travel grants to attend national conferences. They are also recognized at institutional and national level, through oral and poster presentations, such as at the annual ASN Kidney Week conferences. For recent news, awards and publications click here.
Mentors
Our Faculty Mentors are undertaking cutting-edge NIH- and foundation- funded basic, translational and clinical research encompassing various aspects of kidney physiology and disease, including but not limited to chronic kidney disease (CKD) encompassing diabetic kidney disease (DKD) and primary glomerulopathies, acute kidney injury (AKI), and polycystic kidney disease (PKD). They also have collaborative links with PIs in the Departments of Pharmacology, Biomedical Engineering and Biomedical Informatics to enable collaborative interdisciplinary research. They receive funding from multiple federal and foundation bodies, including the National Institutes of Health, American Society of Nephrology, American Heart Association, and Veterans Affairs. Learn more about our nephrology team of Faculty Mentors.
Annual Symposium
Our annual symposium is held towards the end of the year, and features research presentations from our trainees, educational sessions, and career development sessions – and of course food! These are well-attended by scientists, clinicians, principal investigators, industry sponsors, administrative personnel, and Division and Stony Brook University leadership. Click here to view 2024 LIKER symposium video and photos.
