The Class of 2018's Andrew Kuo is one of two Wayne State University School of Medicine medical students awarded a summer research scholarship from the Foundation of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers.

(Click here for a story on fellow summer research scholarship winner James Malleis).

Kuo began working May 12 with WSU Professors of Neurology Joyce Benjamins, Ph.D., and Robert Lisak, M.D., on the "Effect of ACTH on the Oligodendroglia Differentiation Pathway with Regards to Myelin Formation."

"I am very honored and grateful that I was selected by the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers for their research scholarship. I definitely could not have achieved this without help from Dr. Benjamins and Dr. Lisak," Kuo said.

He plans to continue conducting research several hours per week in the fall. Before attending the School of Medicine, Kuo worked as an engineer in China, California and Michigan. He hopes to incorporate his engineering and medical experience into designing medical devices that advance future neurological treatments.

"This research scholarship will enable me to gain a deeper understanding of MS as well as try to develop a treatment to help cure the disease," he said. "In addition, the scholarship will provide a glimpse of what academic medicine is like, which is where I see myself in the future."

Multiple sclerosis destroys brain cells called oligodendrocytes, which protect nerve cells from damage and produce insulating membranes called myelin that promote communication between nerve cells. While there are several treatments to regulate the immune system to slow disease progression in MS, there are no effective treatments to stop the ongoing death of nerve cells or repair damage within the brain.