In this episode, Jonathan Kirk (Loyola University Chicago) and Lisandra de Castro Bras (East Carolina University) talk with Ninette Shenouda, an ambitious and savvy researcher at the University of Delaware. While finishing her PhD at McMaster University, Ninette co-authored two papers investigating the influence of sex hormones on flow-mediated dilation. While conducting her experiments, Ninette mastered the deceptively complex technique of measuring FMD and navigated some unpredictable situations with study participants. It was an APS Connect job posting that led Ninette to her current post-doc position, in which she has expanded her skill set by studying pulsatile load and connections between heart and brain function in kidney disease. Ninette speaks with refreshing honesty and wisdom about a pivotal moment early in her PhD when she wondered if she could trust her data, and the choice she faced to either stay discouraged or “find a way to get better.” Clearly Ninette chose the latter. This podcast will resonate with every trainee. We cover the importance of becoming affiliated with a professional society in your area of research, thinking two steps ahead of your current position, and perhaps the most valuable take-away: developing expertise which round out your skill portfolio to make you uniquely marketable. Oh, and #ScienceRomance is a thing. Listen now.

 

Ninette Shenouda, Stacey E. Priest, Vanessa I. Rizzuto, Maureen J. MacDonald Brachial artery endothelial function is stable across a menstrual and oral contraceptive pill cycle but lower in premenopausal women than in age-matched men Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, published August 8, 2019. DOI: doi.org/10.1152/ajpheart.00102.2018

 

Stacey E. Priest, Ninette Shenouda, and Maureen J. MacDonald Effect of sex, menstrual cycle phase, and monophasic oral contraceptive pill use on local and central arterial stiffness in young adults Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, published August 8, 2019. DOI: doi.org/10.1152/ ajpheart.00039.2018