Shayna Bradford, PhD, a post-doctoral research scholar in the Division of Nephrology at Washington University, is the recipient of an NIH/NIDDK Loan Repayment Award.
The award is part of the Extramural Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities Research (LRP-HDR) that repay up to $50,000 of eligible educational debt for up to two years in exchange for the conduction of research that is focused on improving (kidney) health disparities.
“I’ve always viewed my educational loans as a dual investment in myself and in my community,” says Dr. Bradford. “I entered the biomedical research enterprise purely to gain training in developing a research program that addresses health disparities at the molecular and cellular levels. The award has accelerated access to my future as a scientist by limiting this burden and barrier.”
The LRP support by NIH/NIDDK will allow Bradford to pursue ideas that contribute to understanding and improving disparities in kidney health. She is currently investigating the molecular mechanisms of renal regeneration after acute kidney injury, which often leads to chronic kidney disease and disproportionately affects African Americans.
“I am grateful and exceptionally thrilled about this opportunity. I am eager to uncover what I’ll discover during the tenure of my award, as well as to interface with the network of other LRP-HDR scholars,” says Bradford.
Read more about Dr. Shayna Bradford and her research here.