Johnson C. Smith University News October 12, 2020 JCSU student works on COVID-19 clinical research with Davidson College Johnson C. Smith University student Dana Battle '21 is getting a head start at saving lives. The senior who aspires to become a doctor, worked on COVID-19 clinical research during her summer internship with Davidson College. "I was originally supposed to do a research internship with the University of Virginia, but it was canceled due to the pandemic. Luckily, I was able to do research with Davidson virtually," she said. While Battle was grateful for the opportunity, doing clinical research virtually presented challenges. "It was hard in the beginning. I had to use computer software that I had never used before, but once I learned what I was doing, I was able to excel," Battle explained. Using computer software, Battle researched the chemistry of the then stage 3 clinical drug Remdesivir, used to treat COVID-19 patients. "The drug works but it doesn't work on everyone, so my job was to try and see if I could replicate a structure similar to Remdesivir and compare the two," Battle said. Battle credits JCSU with the foundation for her success and hopes other students have the opportunities to pursue internships despite the challenges created by the pandemic. "Although I had not planned to do research on COVID-19, I am extremely grateful that I was given the opportunity to conduct research on a drug that could help save lives across the world." SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> Honor the ancestors, honor the children and those yet to come. Building Capacity for Humanities Special Collections at HBCUs - Become an ally and partner with us to protect, preserve and share a more authentic record of American history. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/humanities-2019.html for more information. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/ and click on the Donate Now button to invest in this project. Your support is appreciated. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter at https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/