Braeden Heath

Since I was a little girl, I have always had a passion for science and studying the human body. Growing up listening to my mom, who has been a pharmacist for a little over 20 years now, talk about the research and experiences that she was exposed to, sparked excitement and motivation within me to one day do the same. I've always known that I have a calling to study medicine and serve my community, and this passion only grew while furthering my education in high school and college. Throughout high school, I flourished in every science and math class I took, finishing those four years with a 4.33 GPA, the AP Scholar Award, the Williamson County Honors Diploma, and the Work Ethic Diploma. After high school, I was blessed and overjoyed to get to further my education at Auburn University, majoring in Biomedical Sciences on the Pre-Medicine track with a Minor in Honors Public Health. While at Auburn, I have immersed myself in several on-campus organizations such as the Honors College, Auburn Dance Marathon, Campus Kitchens, Alpha Gamma Delta, The Pre-Medical Association, and Alpha Epsilon Delta. These organizations, along with volunteering for IMPACT and the Chambers County Community Health & Wellness Center, have allowed me to serve my community and give back to the place that has given so much to me. Specifically, the health and wellness center has forced me to step outside my comfort zone and develop community outreach skills, while focusing on providing solutions to fulfill disparities within the community. During the summer of 2023, I was given the opportunity to shadow an exceptional Interventional Cardiologist, Dr. Getu Assefa, where I got to watch several procedures such as the placement of stents, and witnessed a few cardioversions as well. This shadowing experience sparked my interest further in cardiology and pushed me in the direction of participating in research. In January 2024, I began assisting Dr. Mehrnaz Abbasi in her research, studying the impacts and interactions between genetics and the human diet with obesity-associated metabolic disorders. She focuses specifically on inflammation, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular disease using genetic epidemiology. By participating in this research, I'm able to broaden my knowledge of nanomedicine and metabolic disorders as a whole while being exposed to the field of research. In the summer of 2024, I participated in a study abroad in Milan, Italy, where got to shadow nearly every specialty of medicine, studying under fantastic surgeons and physicians. This opportunity offered me a chance to uncover my interests and areas of medicine that I enjoy most. Each of the experiences mentioned above and those that are still to come have shaped me into the student and woman I am today, and I believe these will continue to propel me into my future career. I am beyond excited to continue working towards my goals, and I feel that my academic work ethic in conjunction with community service and research will help me to reach my long-term goal of becoming a pediatric cardiologist.

Article: Advances in metformin-delivery systems for diabetes and obesity management

Abbasi M, Heath B, McGinness L. Advances in metformin-delivery systems for diabetes and obesity management. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2024;26(9): 3513‐3529. doi:10.1111/dom.15759