LHSI Intern: research assistant in a lab studying traumatic peripheral nerve injury and regeneration

Program Summary:    

This internship is offered as a part of the Life-Health Sciences Internship Program (LHSI). This program connects 125 IU Indianapolis 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 May 2027 and are paid $14/hour for up to 10 hours per week. Work-study is accepted but not required.  

Supervisor: Dr. Erin Weber 

Department/Office: Medicine; Surgery 

Overview of the internship site: I am a hand surgeon / plastic surgeon with a lab that focuses on peripheral nerve regeneration after traumatic injury. I am interested in discovering how a nerve and the muscle that it attaches to signal, or "talk", to each other after a traumatic nerve injury.  We already know that muscles send signals back to the injured nerve in microscopic capsules, called exosomes.  But, we don't know what the signals are that are contained within the exosome and how those signals change from the uninjured to the injured state.  Knowledge of the signals (which could be DNA, RNA, microRNA, proteins) passed from muscle to nerve will help us figure out how to improve nerve regeneration after an injury so that patients will have better hand motion after nerve repair surgery. 

I have a second project which looks at the effect of a phytochemical, beta-caryophyllene, on nerve regeneration.  Beta-caryophyllene (BCP) is found in many common herbs and spices and has already been shown to reduce inflammation and improve pain, especially pain after nerve injury.  We think BCP binds to the Trk family of receptors which are very important for neuron development and regeneration after injury.  So, BCP could improve the speed or number of regenerating neurons after an injury and we are studying this phytochemical to see if it might be a useful treatment for patients with nerve injury. 

Website for more information:  

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: You will work together with my research tech to study nerve regeneration in both cell culture and animal (rat/mouse) models.  You will have the opportunity to learn techniques in cell culture, surgery, nerve and muscle dissection, PCR, Western blot, immunohistochemistry / immunofluorescent staining, exosome harvest, RNA sequencing, proteomics, and microscope use. 

Work Environment and Dress Code: The work is performed primarily in a lab setting with dress code: Lab dress code = long pants, closed-toed shoes 

Project-specific qualifications: If working with animals, will need to complete animal training at the start of the internship. 

I am looking for someone who is hardworking and dedicated, with attention to detail, as consistency matters when replicating scientific experiments. 

Hours per week: 10; flexible within regular work hours 

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 IU Indianapolis undergraduate in 2026-27 

minimum overall GPA of 2.0   

All majors welcome 

To apply: 

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