In the struggle to find a cure for a dreadful disease, one med student who is studying the unknown effects of the disease got his start here at Prairie View. Nathan Lott graduated from Prairie View in May of 2002 with a degree in biology and a minor in chemistry.
He is now attending medical school at Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine. While many of us spent last summer on vacation, Lott was hard at work conducting research on one of our nation’s most deadly diseases.
“The research that I did was based on one of the more prevalent diseases in America today, diabetes.” Diabetes affects people by affecting the blood vessels, which can lead to heart problems.
And that’s why one of the leading causes of morbidity is death with diabetes, or some kind of vascular disease,” says Lott. Lott spent countless weeks during his summer break, studying diabetes in order to gain a better understanding about how the disease affects the heart.
He conducted his research by studying mouse hearts’ reaction to nitric oxide and endothelin-1, which are two chemicals that are found naturally in their hearts.
The results showed that in healthy mice, coronary arteries produced large amounts of nitric oxide which causes the smooth muscles of their blood vessels to relax.
However, in obese diabetic mice, Lott discovered that the blood vessels produced less nitric oxide and were more likely to have enhanced vessel constriction.
Although he is very pleased with his findings, Lott regrets that he won’t be able to continue his research any time soon.
“Unfortunately, I’ve got a lot of course work to do before I begin my work at the hospital. So I won’t be able to continue my research this year, but I do hope to pick it up again once I’m in my third or fourth year. I find the research to be pretty interesting,” says Lott, who credits his education at Prairie View for much of his current success in medical school.
“I believe that Prairie View has prepared me well. I went to the school and I feel very confident in the knowledge that I gained there. I’ve been complimented, time and again, on the level of preparedness that I’ve exhibited since I’ve been here,” says Lott.
Even with his current success in medical school, Lott still has the highest of aspirations for the future.
“I plan on being a cardiologist, preferably an interventional cardiologist, because I like working with people,” he said,”and I get much pleasure in ensuring that their hearts last as long as they can.