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Research Lab Alumni |
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Evan Sheppard '09 joined the lab in Spring 2008, working on constructing transgenes that will be used to assay function of various domains of the transcriptional coactivator ADA2b. He continued his work in the summer of 2008 (with support from Merck-AAAS) as well as in the 2008-2009 academic year. Evan entered medical school in the fall of 2009. | |
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Audrey Tiong '10 (left) carried out an Independent Study in Spring 2008. In collaboration with Dr. McCain, she used scanning electron microscopy to assess trichome type and number on Arabidopsis leaves. Zachary Kuschner '09 (right) was awarded a Student Summer Grant for 2008 from the Dean of the College for Academic Life. This competitive award supported Zach’s 2008 summer study of GCN5 localization within the developing flower. Zach continued this collaborative work with Dr. McCain during the 2008-2009 academic year. Zach matricualted into medical school in the fall of 2009. |  |
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Ross Cohen '09 (left) and John Schocken '09 (right) worked on a collaborative project with Dr. Elizabeth McCain, in which they employed scanning electron microscopy to analyze gcn5 mutant flowers. The goal of this project was to determine when and where alterations in floral development first arise, as a step towards understanding GCN5's role in executing this developmental program. Their work identified defects in floral bud initiation and stamen development. |
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Ross worked on the project from Spring 2007 through 2008, with his summer work supported by FIPSE. Ross matriculated into a D.O. program in the fall of 2009. |
John initiated his work during an Independent Study in Spring 2007 and continued his work in the summer of 2007, with support from FIPSE and the James R. Vaughn '52 Student Award. John began his Ph.D. studies in the fall of 2009. |
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Angela Jablonski '08 conducted research as an Independent Study in Spring 2006 and continued her work in the summer of 2006, funded by a grant from Merck-AAAS. Angela employed bioinformatics tools to explore and assess genomic sequence data available for other plant species as one way to further study ADA2 and GCN5. These collected sequences will influence our decisions about which other homologs to pursue for further study. Sequence alignments also inform the lab’s thinking about which domains of ADA2 are functionally significant. Angela also investigated growth conditions under which ada2b mutant plants could survive throughout their development. Angela graduated with a Neuroscience major and will begin graduate studies in Fall 2009. | |
| John Santa Maria '08 participated in the Muhlenberg Summer Research Program in summer 2005. His research used scanning electron microscopy to characterize floral defects in Arabidopsis plants harboring mutations in a variety of transcriptional coactivators. John's work was carried out in collaboration with Dr. Elizabeth McCain and supported by a grant from Johnson & Johnson. John presented his work at the Eighth Annual Undergraduate Research Sympoisum held at University of Maryland, Baltimore County in October 2005. John, who was awarded a Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship in 2006 in recognition of his potential for a productive career in the sciences, will begin his doctoral study in chemical biology in Fall 2008. |  |
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Hillary Gordon '07 (left) and Nora Hudis '07 (right) joined the lab in Fall 2005. They engaged in molecular cloning projects designed to construct chimeric transgenes composed of both ADA2a and ADA2b coding sequence. These transgene constructs will then be introduced into Arabidopsis and tested for their ability to complement an ada2b mutant plant. Interpretation of these results will provide information about what sequences or domains of ADA2b are required for biological function. Hillary also investigated the response of Arabidopsis plants to the stress of waterlogging, which served as a second experimental component of her department honors project. Hillary received a Student Summer Grant from The Dean of the College to support her work in the summer of 2006. Hillary and Nora presented their work at the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 2007 annual meeting held in Washington, D.C. Both Nora and Hillary matriculated into medical school programs in August 2007. |  |
| Sumana Rao was a Visiting Scientist in the laboratory. She investigated the phenotype of ada2a and other mutant plants in response to abiotic stresses. She also worked on assessing the phenotype of plants that are double mutant for gcn5 and ada2a and contributed to the cloning of chimeric transgenes. | ||
| Sunny Saxena, a local high school student, worked in the lab in summer 2005 characterizing a new mutation in the ADA2a gene. In the spring of 2006, Sunny was awarded first place in his category at the Lehigh Valley Science Fair, and advanced to the Delaware Valley Science Fair, where he presented an extension of his summer work. | ||