By Dr. Isabel Warner
From September 18th to 19th the MOST Policy Initiative team visited St. Louis to connect with partners and legislators in the region. Fellows held a meet and greet at the Central St. Louis Public Library, where they were able to connect with prospective Fellows, mental health professionals, and library staff. The team discussed their work on the Impact of Economic Opportunity Zones, and began identifying areas for collaboration.
Afterward, Fellows headed to the St. Louis Science Center for the St. Louis Academy of Science’s Open House event. They were treated to a phenomenal panel of speakers including representatives from scientific industry, public health, and community colleges. The team was able to introduce prospective applicants and partners to new Fellows Drs. Jennifer Bean and Vikram Lakhanpal, and our new Executive Director Dr. Allison Davis.
The following day, MOST hosted an event at the Missouri Foundation for Health’s central location, where researchers presented their work to community members and legislators. Dr. Seethu Seetharaman opened the program, discussing his team’s work in creating an algorithm that can identify pharmacies and retailers that are engaging in suspicious opioid transactions.
Members of Washington University’s ProSPER (Promoting Science Policy, Education, and Research) presented next. Dary Harris discussed her work creating peptides for use in vaccines against neurodegenerative diseases, which led to a robust discussion about the average time to market for vaccines (10-20 years), and the implications of a protective mechanism for diseases like Alzheimer’s, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), and even general ageing.
Kyra Raines, another ProSPER member, presented her work on bacterial cell walls and their importance for surviving antibiotic treatment. Her research identified that more acidic environments impact susceptibility to antibiotics, and possible mechanisms to restore the efficacy of these treatments.
Finally, Dr. Brent Hickman closed the day with a discussion of his research on the relationships between student motivation, productivity, and education outcomes in math. His work prompted a fantastic conversation about ways that schools can accommodate, whether this information can be accessible to educators, and how to expand this research to help inform education policy decisions.
After the event, Fellows made their way to the St. Louis Courthouse and the world-famous Arch National Monument, and took a trip to the top!