An Aberdeen scientist has secured a scholarship which will take her to the US to further her investigations into colorectal cancer.
Dr Georgina Hold, from the University of Aberdeen’s Institute of Medical Sciences is being funded by a Fulbright Award, one of the most prestigious and selective scholarship programmes operating worldwide.
She will spend 11 months at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, collaborating with academics to develop her findings into how bacteria contribute to the development of the disease.
The US-UK Fulbright Commission is the only bi-lateral, transatlantic scholarship programme, offering awards and summer programmes for study or research in any field, at any accredited US or UK university.
The Commission is part of the Fulbright programme conceived by Senator J William Fulbright in the aftermath of World War II to promote leadership, learning and empathy between nations through educational exchange.
Dr Hold said: “I am honoured to receive this scholarship which will allow me the opportunity to work collaboratively with other experts at the Harvard School of Public Health to further develop and maximise the output of my research.”
“The objective of my work is to understand the impact of microbes in human diseases. My main focus is colorectal cancer, the incidence of which is unusually high in the North East of Scotland.
“Developing greater understanding in this area could help in the future development of therapeutic strategies to maintain the health, which will help protect the body against disease.”
Dr Hold will begin travel to Boston on Wednesday (July 23) to begin her scholarship.