黑料导航

Emma Koval, a student researcher from the College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM), has been awarded the American Heart Association鈥檚 (AHA) .

Each year, the prestigious $2,000 award recognizes student research related to cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, or stroke across basic, clinical, translational, or population science fields.

Koval is the sixth consecutive trainee from the laboratory of Associate Professor of Biomedical Sciences Maria Alicia Carrillo Sepulveda, Ph.D., BSN, to receive the honor. Her predecessors include Jac Lun Lin, expected to graduate in 2028; Nefia Chacko, expected to graduate in 2027; Nicole Maddie (D.O. 鈥�24); Risa Kiernan (D.O. 鈥�23); and Benjamin Kramer (D.O. 鈥�19). 鈥淭hat is not a coincidence,鈥� Sepulveda says. 鈥淚t reflects a sustained, structured research-training program for medical students that has now produced six nationally recognized cardiovascular scholars.鈥�

The Research

Working under Sepulveda鈥檚 mentorship, the second-year medical student is investigating 鈥淓arly Microvascular and Metabolic Alterations in Perimenopause: Implications for Cardiometabolic Risk.鈥� The award-winning project addresses a gap Koval sees clearly from her own training: most cardiovascular research and risk models were built around male physiology, despite heart disease being the of death among women in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Sepulveda lab studies perimenopause鈥攖he transitional years leading into menopause鈥攗sing a mouse model of gradual ovarian decline to track cardiovascular and metabolic changes as they emerge. Koval鈥檚 specific focus is on resistance arteries, the small vessels that govern blood pressure regulation. Using quantitative structural (mathematical size and shape) analysis, she is identifying vascular changes that precede clinical disease.

The lab鈥檚 next phase will use ex vivo (outside the body) vascular reactivity studies to test how these vessels respond to specific physiological triggers, aiming to define the mechanisms behind Koval鈥檚 observed structural changes. 鈥淎ltogether, this work is aimed at finding a window where we can catch vascular dysfunction early, before it becomes irreversible,鈥� Koval says. 鈥淚f we can pin down the earliest changes, we open the door to catching risk years earlier and preventing the development of disease instead of just treating disease once it鈥檚 there.鈥�

Beyond The Research

Koval鈥檚 interest in advocating for women鈥檚 health extends beyond her work in Sepulveda鈥檚 lab. On the Long Island campus, she is president of NYITCOM鈥檚 chapters of both the (ACOOG) and the (AOCOPM). Through ACOOG, she works to expand student education in women鈥檚 health. Through AOCOPM, she develops programming that emphasizes disease prevention, public health, and the environmental and occupational factors that influence health across the lifespan.

Koval is also a training and development co-leader for NYITCOM鈥檚 student ambassadors, where she shares perspectives gained from her first year of medical school, helps applicants navigate their journeys, and equips ambassadors with the tools to help prospective students envision themselves as future physicians.

While busy in school, Koval already looks to her post-grad future with excitement. She envisions her early career at an academic institution that supports research, mentorship, and forward-thinking clinical care. If all goes according to plan, she will follow in Sepulveda鈥檚 footsteps and lead a laboratory of her own that is dedicated to advancing women鈥檚 health. 鈥淥ne of my deepest career goals is to become the type of mentor that I have been so lucky to have throughout my training,鈥� Koval says. 鈥淒r. Sepulveda and my previous research mentors have poured into me as an aspiring physician-scientist, and I want to give this same support and guidance to the next generation of physicians.鈥�