Divleen Kaur Singh, an undergraduate in the Scholars for Medicine dual degree program, has been named the URECA researcher of the month for December. Singh is a biology major with an interdisciplinary specialization and is set to graduate summa cum laude in December 2024.
Since Fall 2023, Singh has been contributing to the Stem Cell Engineering Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) team. She focuses on tissue engineering and designing pre-vascularized skin constructs aimed at improving wound healing and skin regeneration. Her mentors include Miriam Rafailovich from the Department of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Marcia Simon from the Department of Oral Biology and Pathology, and Gurtej Singh from the Department of Surgery.
Singh's summer research was supported by the 2024 URECA Summer program. This led to her presenting “Exploring the In Vivo Integration and Functionality of Engineered Vascularized Skin Constructs within Murine Models” at a conference in San Diego, California. Her work earned her a “Best Abstract Presentation” award. Additionally, she received a URECA mini-grant to aid her conference presentation efforts. Earlier this year, she presented another project titled “Bandaging Your Super Active Mice” at Stony Brook's VIP-URECA Celebration Showcase.
Her research experiences are being utilized for her WISE Honors Program thesis. Singh is also involved in another project with Gurtej Singh and Nicos Labropoulos from the Department of Surgery focused on developing an arterial and venous thrombosis murine model.
Reflecting on her research experience, Singh said: “When you’re able to share the impact of your research with others and help them understand what you do, you can connect with them and explain the potential of your research.”
In addition to her current projects, Singh participated in iGEM/International Genetically Engineered Machines during her first year at Stony Brook under Peter Gergen’s mentorship. In Summer 2022, as a wet lab team leader, she worked on a synthetic biology project investigating Protein S deficiency which won a gold medal at the 2022 iGEM Jamboree competition in Paris.
For over two years now, she has also been active in various other roles including participating in neurocognitive testing through the Department of Emergency Medicine’s Academic Associate program. Moreover, she served on several councils and clubs such as Student Leadership Council for WISE and University Red Cross Club.