The MD/PhD Program would like (belatedly) to congratulate Jennifer “Jenn” Chung, a 5th year student in the program, for her 2018  fellowship award from the National Psoriasis Foundation. The  National Psoriasis Foundation Psoriatic Disease Research Fellowship is designed  provides support to eligible institutions to develop and enhance the opportunities for physicians training for research careers in dermatology, rheumatology, pediatric dermatology, and pediatric rheumatology. The award is primarily awarded to post-graduate trainees, making her achievement even more exceptional.

 

Jenn won the fellowship for her project “Skin Microbiome of Inverse Psoriasis“. From her grant:

Lay Summary: Psoriasis is a common skin disease that can be disfiguring and disabling, but the root cause is still unknown. Inverse psoriasis is a form of the disease that only affects the skin folds of the body, where moisture is high. It causes painful, shiny, red rashes in very sensitive areas like the genitals, groin and underneath the breasts. Past studies have identified particular microbes that live within these skin folds. Collectively, the genes of these microbes are called the skin microbiome. We believe that the skin microbiome at the skin fold sites may have something to do with what causes inverse psoriasis. Currently, there have been no studies on the skin microbiome and inverse psoriasis. Therefore, we plan to be the first to identify and characterize the skin microbiome in people who have inverse psoriasis. In this effort, we hope to better understand psoriasis and ultimately provide substantial improvement to the quality of life for these patients.  

For more information about the project, you can visit: https://www.psoriasis.org/research/skin-microbiome-inverse-psoriasis

Congratulations Jenn!

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