Molecular biophysics student receives HHMI’s Gilliam Fellowship
By Deborah Wormser
Claudio Morales-Perez, a fourth-year graduate student in molecular biophysics at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has been selected for the Gilliam Fellowship for Advanced Study Program of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).
He will receive up to $43,000 annually to support his graduate studies. Gilliam Fellowships are awarded to outstanding Ph.D. students in the life sciences who are committed to increasing diversity among scientists. This year, 30 students were selected for the program. In addition to financial support for up to three years, fellows also attend meetings with HHMI scientists and receive professional development mentoring as they launch their academic careers.
Mr. Morales-Perez, a native of Naranjito, Puerto Rico, works in the laboratory of Dr. Ryan Hibbs, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and of Biophysics.
“It is an honor to be selected for this prestigious fellowship. I am beyond excited,” Mr. Morales-Perez said. “I want to thank Dr. Hibbs for allowing me the honor of being his first graduate student, and for motivating me every day to improve my research skills so that I can become an independent scientist.”
Mr. Morales-Perez also singled out Dr. Nancy Street, Associate Dean of the UT Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; Physiology Professor and HHMI Investigator Dr. Youxing Jiang; and Dr. Yuh Min Chook, Professor of Pharmacology and Biophysics, for their support. He also thanked Hibbs lab colleagues Richard M. Walsh Jr. and Anant Gharpure, both graduate students, and Dr. Colleen Noviello, research scientist, for their help and feedback.
Mr. Morales-Perez, who studied molecular biology at the University of Puerto Rico, said being born with a congenital heart problem drove him to want to know and understand his prognosis. As a child, he constantly asked questions such as, “How does this condition affect me?” and “How can I be treated?” A doctor who took the time to explain every aspect of the condition inspired him to go into research.
“I wanted to learn more about how the human body works, and I wanted to help people like me who are born with a congenital disease,” he said.
Mr. Morales-Perez’s HHMI Gilliam Fellowship project seeks to understand the molecular workings of the most abundant subtype of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor in the brain. That receptor is associated with neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders, as well as with nicotine addiction. The main goal of his project is to obtain an atomic-resolution structure of the receptor. Such an architectural “blueprint” could become a powerful tool in the development of new therapies for diseases, disorders, and addictions related to the receptor, he said.
Mr. Morales-Perez said he was proud to receive a Gilliam Fellowship because he believes that diversity is very important in science. While at UT Southwestern, he has worked with Dr. Street to recruit more graduate students from Puerto Rico. “There are a lot of good students in Puerto Rico, but most of them do not know about opportunities outside of the island,” Mr. Morales-Perez said.
He is also a member of the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science. “Our goal is to increase diversity at UT Southwestern and help disadvantaged communities in Dallas through the summer undergraduate research (SURF) and the summer high school research (STARS) programs, as well as by helping schools with their science fairs and other mentoring activities,” he said.
Mr. Morales-Perez is the second HHMI Gilliam Fellowship recipient at UT Southwestern. Mariam El-Ashmawy, a student in the Medical Scientist Training Program that confers both M.D. and Ph.D. degrees, was a 2010 Gilliam Fellow.
The HHMI established the Gilliam Fellowships in 2004 in honor of the late James H. Gilliam, Jr., a charter Trustee of the Institute who spent his life nurturing excellence and diversity in science and education.
Dr. Chook is a Eugene McDermott Scholar in Medical Research.
Dr. Jiang is a W.W. Caruth, Jr. Scholar in Biomedical Research.
