It was certainly a formative experience for Pritish Tosh, BS ’99, MD ’03, who returned to Columbia this week just to serve as a judge for Show Me Research Week.
“I remember presenting my own poster at a similar event when I was an undergraduate and coming away with a sense of excitement for research and discovery,” Dr. Tosh said. “I thought this would be a great opportunity to foster that same spirit in a new generation of scientists.”
Dr. Tosh, who studies infectious diseases at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, studied self-incompatibility in flowering plants in Bruce McClure’s biochemistry lab. McClure is now an emeritus professor in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources.
“My time as an undergraduate researcher at Mizzou was foundational to my development as a physician-scientist,” Dr. Tosh said. “The mentorship I received from Dr. McClure inspired and nurtured my spirit of discovery. Although I am no longer studying plant sexual reproduction, I would not be the academic I am today if it wasn’t for my research experience as an undergraduate at Mizzou.”