Central Arkansas Sweethearts from the American Heart Association visited UAMS October 24-25. The American Heart Association Sweethearts are high school sophomores who (from August through March) actively participate in a program designed to teach them about heart healthy lifestyles and about the prevention of heart disease and stroke through education and volunteerism. The mission of the Sweethearts Program is to empower a new generation with lifesaving knowledge while developing a genuine commitment to life-long heart health, community service and leadership. Sweethearts accrue volunteer hours, learn valuable leadership skills and the concepts of team building as well as fundraising and advocacy to support important research for heart disease and stroke.
Hosted by Professors Jerry Ware (Physiology & Biophysics) and Steve Post (Pathology), the Sweethearts were introduced to ongoing cardiovascular research on the UAMS campus. During the visit the Sweethearts were shown examples of protein structure and crystallography (Drs. K.I. Varughese and Bhaba Das, Physiology & Biophysics); thyroid biology and cancer (Dr. Aime Franco and M.D./Ph.D. student Caitlin Caperton, Physiology & Biophysics); and heart ultrasound technology (Drs. Kevin Phelan and Noor Akhter, Neurobiology & Developmental Sciences).