LHSI Intern: Research intern, implant associated complications

Program Summary:  

This internship is offered as a part of the Life-Health Sciences Internship Program (LHSI). This program connects 125 IUI undergraduates per year with internships on campus with faculty and staff in a variety of health and science related campus areas/programs. All LHSI internships start in August 2026 and end in April 2027 and are paid $14/hour for up to 10 hours per week. Work-study is accepted but not required. 

Supervisor: Dr. Mithun Sinha

Department/Office: Medicine; Surgery

Overview of the internship site: My laboratory investigates implant associated complications. The work is funded by NIH. My laboratory at the Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering (ICRME) focuses on surgical implant associated immunological complications.

My team focusses on (A) Breast implant-associated complications like breast implant illness (BII) and breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL). (B) Orthopedic implant-associated complications which includes connective tissue disease. Current line of study aims to decipher lymphocyte activation via lipid mediators formed by implant-associated bacterial biofilm. The laboratory collaborates with surgeons in the division of plastic surgery, department of orthopedic surgery, Indiana University school of medicine and community plastic surgeons to address this problem. The research is funded through peer-reviewed grants from NIH/NIAID and Plastic Surgery Foundation (PSF).

Website for more information: https://medicine.iu.edu/faculty/42909/sinha-mithun

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: PCR, Histology, Cell culture, animal and human tissue processing, data analyses and data entry

Work Environment and Dress Code: The work is performed primarily a lab setting; with dress code laboratory dress code as approved by IUSoM environmental health safety (EHS)

Hours per week: 10, scheduling is flexible within regular work hours

Project-specific qualifications: We will train the interns on the techniques

By the end of the LHSI program, you will:

·        Carefully consider, explore, and articulate your career goals, including an analysis of how you arrived at that path and what steps you need to take next. (Community Contributor, Communicator)

·        Understand your role and strengths on a professional team and analyze who you would like to become as a professional. (Communicator)

·        Gain and strengthen skills relevant to next steps after graduation, such as communication, collaboration, teamwork, analysis/synthesis/evaluation, independence, confronting/challenging failure, problem-solving and perseverance, and constructive criticism. (Problem Solver, Communicator)

·        Convey ideas and knowledge effectively through an ePortfolio and presentation of your internship work. (Problem Solver, Communicator)

·        Set and meet your own additional learning goals identified with your supervisor.

LHSI Qualifications  

·        Must be graduating May 2028 or after (usually a current freshman or sophomore in Spring 2026)   

·        Current full-time IUI undergraduate

·        minimum overall GPA of 2.0 

·        All majors welcome

To apply:

LHSI accepts at least 125 interns per year. Complete the application for LHSI at lhsi.iupui.edu and select 3-4 internship sites on that application. All available sites are listed in Handshake and will start with the position title “LHSI Intern.” You will meet with at least 2 of these if selected for interviews.