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Our Trainees
| Brad Bolling, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison Dr. Bolling's graduate work involved the isolation and identification of cancer chemoprotective agents from soybean. His work is positioned at the interface of food and health. Under Dr. Jeff Blumberg in the Antioxidants Group at the Jean Meyer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, he is investigating age-related changes in the metabolism of health-promoting flavonoids. Dr. Bolling plans to pursue an academic career when he completes his postdoctoral training. |
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Mark Carlson, Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Carlson’s graduate work involved gene expression profiling to compare cervical cancer cell lines to cervical cancer biopsies to identify which cell lines were better models of the in vivo disease. Under the direction of Dr. Jonathan Garlick, Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Mark is studying the regulation of microRNA in skin epithelial cells. Using a novel 3-D tissue engineered skin, he hopes to identify mechanisms of microRNA induced cancer. |
| Monica Hall-Proter, Ph.D., Wake Forest University. Dr. Hall-Porter's thesis work investigated the effects of estrogen on inflammation and cholesterol metabolism. She also taught at Winston Salem State University. This experience served as the catalyst for her interest in research and teaching. Monica is currently working with Dr. Richard Karas, Professor of Medicine and studying the molecular mechanisms responsible for the estrogen-mediated protection of cardiomyocytes from apoptosis. Ultimately, these studies should contribute to better understanding of the protective role of estrogen in the pathogenesis of heart failure. |
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Ayana Hinton, Ph.D., Wayne State University. Dr. Hinton's dissertation thesis work focused on molecular chaperones necessary for assembly of the respiratory chain protein critical for energy production during oxidative phosphorylation. She has always been involved in mentoring and training students and plans to pursue an academic career that combines research and teaching. In the lab of Dr. Michael Forgac, Professor of Physiology, she is focused on the role that a pH regulatory membrane protein plays in cancer metastasis and screening small molecule libraries for novel inhibitors of the protein. This work should help us understand the mechanisms involved in metastasis and also lead to new therapeutics for metastasis. |
| Jennifer Kowalski, Ph.D., Harvard University. Dr. Kowalski's thesis work examined the way cells move normally and how this process is altered in cancer where it contributes to metastasis. She has been involved in teaching and training since her high school days, and seeks an academic career that combines research and teaching. She is training in the laboratory of Dr. Peter Juo, Assistant Professor of Physiology, where she is investigating the molecular mechanisms that regulate synaptic transmission at neuromuscular junctions and other neuronal synapses in the nematode C. elegans. The processes she hopes to uncover will contribute to a better understanding of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's Disease. |
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Jason N. Kuehner, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Kuehner’s dissertation research focused on the regulation of eukaryotic gene expression, a fundamental process that is critical to our understanding of both normal and abnormal cellular development. In addition to studying the mechanisms of transcription initiation and termination, he trained as an HHMI teaching fellow in mentoring and classroom teaching. Under the direction of Dr. Claire Moore, Professor of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, he is working to clarify the molecular role of RNA 3’-end processing factors in transcription termination. Dr. Kuehner ultimately plans to pursue an academic career where he can combine his interest in research and teaching |
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| Christopher LaFratta, Ph.D., University of Maryland. Dr. LaFratta's thesis work focused on microstereolithography and the creation of micron-sized polymer-based devices made using ultra-fast lasers. He plans to pursue an academic career and is working at the intersection of chemistry and biology under the direction of Dr. David Walt, Professor of Chemistry. Chris is developing a microbead-based sensor that uses electrochemiluminescence for multiplexed analyte detection. This extremely sensitive technique can detect very low concentrations of biochemical analytes, such as oligonucleotides and antigens, and will lead to rapid and precise disease diagnosis. |
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Yan Lin, Ph.D, University of Colorado, Boulder. Dr. Lin's thesis work was focused on developing hybrid free-radical/cationic photopolymers for use in dental restorative and biomedical material applications. Under the direction of Dr. Hyumin Yi, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, she is fabricating biosensors for biomedical or environmental applications. Using tobacco mosaic viruses as a template, she hopes to develop high throughput biosensors made from biocompatible polymeric particles with controlled size, shape and spatially segregated chemical properties that can be used in medical diagnostics or environmental and biological threat detection. Dr. Lin plans to pursue academic career after her postdoctoral training. |
| Jane Liu, Ph.D., Harvard University. Dr. Liu's dissertation examined the ways in which molecules called sRNAs regulate cell function. By uncovering new and novel mechanisms by which cells perform processes fundamental to their survival and function, her work can eventually help in the design of better therapeutics. In addition to her scientific accomplishments, Dr. Liu has been teaching and tutoring students since her undergraduate years at Swarthmore College . She is studying with Dr. Andrew Camilli, Professor of Molecular Biology & Microbiology, and investigating the molecular mechanisms by which Vibrio cholerae, the bacterium that causes cholera, induces disease. |
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Jessica McCready, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. McCready’s thesis work examined a effects of a single nucleotide polymorphism on gene transcription in brain tumors. She has been tutoring and mentoring students since she was an undergraduate and seeks an academic career that combines teaching with research. Training in the laboratory of Dr. Charlotte Kuperwasser, Assistant Professor of Anatomy & Cell Biology, she is studying the relationship between tissue remodeling during pregnancy and breast cancer metastasis. She hopes her research will lead to a better understanding of breast cancer metastasis and lead to better treatments for the disease. |
| Amanda Murphy, Ph.D, University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Murphy's thesis research focused on developing new polymers for use in transistors and sensors. She was an active tutor and also introduced young students in the local schools to chemistry. Working with Dr. David Kaplan, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Dr. Murphy is using her strong training in chemistry to attack a biomedical problem. She is developing materials that will support stem cells and control their behavior, steps that are critical to realizing the therapeutic potential of these cells. Dr. Murphy plans to pursue an academic career when she completes her postdoctoral training. |
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Irvin Pan, Ph.D., Yale University. Dr. Pan's thesis work focused on evolution and development, examining the role of a transcription factor in regulating tomato fruit ripening. His work revealed functional diversification of this transcription factor in different plant species. In the laboratory of Dr. John Coffin, Professor of Molecular Biology & Microbiology, he is studying the diversity of murine leukemia viruses in wild mice species and the role of an mRNA editing enzyme in host defense. He is most interested in undergraduate education and developing laboratory research programs that can both provide useful learning experiences and accomplish meaningful research goals. |
| Joe Sorg , Ph.D., University of Chicago . Dr. Sorg's thesis examined Yersinia type III secretion machines and how they determine when to recognize and secrete components and effectors. Investigating how the machinery is assembled and how effector molecules are secreted provides insight into how this pathogen evades the host’s defenses. He is training in the laboratory of Dr. Linc Sonenshein, Professor of Molecular Biology & Microbiology, where he is analyzing sporulation and the roles bile salts play in the spore germination of Clostridium difficile, a pathogen that causes antibiotic-related diarrhea in humans. |
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Last updated December 2008
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