The 22nd Annual Medical Student Research Symposium and Presentation of the Dean's Prize in Student Research on January 14 drew a record crowd, with nearly one hundred poster presentations. Interim Dean Sam Hawgood, in his opening remarks, praised the thematic and geographic diversity of the work displayed, and he commended the school's Office of Student Research for their vital role. In particular, he applauded the many hours of work by the mentors involved in the program.

Four students were awarded the Dean's Prize for their innovative investigations:

> Phillip Dumesic, MSII Erk ½ MAP kinases are required for epidermal G2/M progression (ppt)   "Phillip Dumesic's enormous scientific creativity, meticulous experimental execution, phenomenal work ethic and superb team skills place him in that tiny elite of spectacular students who have all the qualities necessary for a wonderfully productive and successful future career in science." – Paul Khavari, MD, PhD   Paul Khavari, MD, PhD               > Rebecca Maine, MSIV Comparison of palatoplasty outcomes in the developed and developing world (ppt)   "Rebecca participated in every phase of the study, including development of the protocol, database, and the statistical methods. She did an outstanding job initiating and completing this difficult project in a foreign country. She has the potential to be one of the superstars of medicine in the future." –George Gregory, MD   George Gregory, MD             > Julia Menshenina, MSI The role of estrogen in the development of sexual dimorphism in mice (ppt)   "Julia was able to troubleshoot the myriad of problems related to transferring the histological sections to electronic format as well as putting the serial slides together in 3-D reconstructions with computer animation.  Her wonderful demeanor, excellent work ethic, inquisitive mind, and superb contribution were outstanding assets to our laboratory." – Laurence Baskin, MD   Dr. Baskin and Julia Menshenina               > Neil Vora, MSIV The effect of breastfeeding on the risk of malaria in a cohort of Ugandan children born to HIV-infected mothers (ppt)   "Neil traveled to Uganda where he helped set up a new study clinic in a rural area and began the process of training our staff and enrolling over 350 study participants. After he returned to UCSF, he did complementary molecular work in our laboratory. He has done an incredible job with his project and has a very bright future in research. " – Grant Dorsey, MD, PhD   Grant Dorsey, MD, PhD