We are so proud to learn that Dr. Maria Mihaylova, an alumna of our undergraduate program, was recently named one of the 2022 class of Pew Scholars! Dr. Mihaylova earned her B.S. in Molecular Genetics in 2005 and then went to the University of California - San Diego and the Salk Institute of Biological Sciences to pursue a Ph.D. degree. After a postdoctoral fellowship at the Whitehead institute, Dr. Mihaylova returned to OSU has a faculty member in the Department of Biological Chemistry and Pharmacology, where her lab works to understand how metabolic deregulation can predispose to or accelerate age-associated diseases, including cancer. In June, she was named as a a member of the newest class of the Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences, recognized as one of 22 early-career scientists who will receive four years of funding to explore some of the most pressing questions in health and medicine.

During her undergraduate years, Dr. Mihaylova completed a research thesis with Dr. Long Sheng Chang at Nationwide Children's, and was a Biological Sciences Scholar and a member of Helix Tri Beta. She says the Molecular Genetics program provided a "great foundation. It is a wonderful program and a key factor for me deciding to go to graduate school! "

Congratulations to Dr. Mihaylova for this well-deserved honor!