Bilgay Izci Balserak
Email Address: bilgay@uic.eduCollege: Nursing Department: Biobehavioral Health Science
Title: Associate Professor
Office: 638 Phone: 9962718
Webpage: https://nursing.uic.edu/profiles/bilgay-izci-balserak/
Participating in the Chancellor’s Undergraduate Research Awards program: Yes
Research Interest:
Dr. Izci Balserak’s research focuses on women's health (including childbearing and midlife women) with an emphasis on sleep disturbances, circadian rhythms, clock genes and their relevance to adverse health outcomes (i.e. cardiometabolic health outcomes). Her specific research attention is dedicated to (1) assessing the sleep-related determinants of adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes (i.e. pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes and intrauterine growth retardation), (2) identifying the risk factors for sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), (3) producing a screening tool for SDB in the pregnant population, (4)identifying circadian genes associated with adverse health outcomes and (5) using a behavioral sleep intervention called "BETTER" to prevent sleep-related metabolic adverse health outcomes.
She currently is performing a Randomized Control Trial (RCT), which is the best study design. This RCT aims to improve sleep and prevent adverse pregnancy and infant outcomes including gestational diabetes mellitus, pre-term delivery etc. These are associated with circadian genes, SDB, short & long sleep duration, and low percentage of delta power (slow wave sleep). The secondary aim is to examine whether intervention is associated with decreased inflammatory biomarkers such as IL-6 and CRP. Minimum time commitment in hours per week: ~6 Qualifications of a Student:
Nursing, psychology, biology, premed and biomedical engineering students are encouraged to apply for this unique position; however, any serious applicant will be considered. The most preferred qualification is reliability and paying careful attention to details. Prefer experience with proficient computer skills (e.g., Microsoft office, RedCap, R, MatLap); experience interacting with pregnant women; and good communication skills. This student will work closely with the research coordinator and Dr. Izci Balserak to support the activities of the project. Brief Summary of what is expected from the student:
You may be able to take part in a number of research activities, including:
• Screening subjects using online medical records
• Evaluating, syncing our wearable devices including Fitbit smartwatches, and Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) tools and scoring sleep studies
• Interacting with research subjects and sending online RedCap links
• Cross checking online study surveys and wearable tools
• Power spectral analysis of EEG (a widely-used and popular method employed in various medical fields)
• ...and more
In addition, you will be expected to perform some of the more basic tasks that are crucial to any research operation, including: recruiting subjects, working with the Institutional Review Board for the protection of human subjects, literature review, scanning documents, preparing research study tool, etc.
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