{"id":3261,"date":"2017-02-07T15:37:23","date_gmt":"2017-02-07T20:37:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter\/?page_id=3261"},"modified":"2017-02-07T15:37:23","modified_gmt":"2017-02-07T20:37:23","slug":"nsf-grant-for-cell-study","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/along-the-walk\/nsf-grant-for-cell-study\/","title":{"rendered":"NSF Grant for Cell Study"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"NSFgrant\"<\/a>
Kunwei Yang \u201917; Trinity College Assistant Professor of Chemistry Michelle Kovarik; Pamela and Nicholas Lazares \u201973, P\u201908, P\u201910 Scholar and Allen M. Thomas Scholar Kathy Rodogiannis \u201917; and Arthur N. Matthews \u201921 Scholar Allison Tierney \u201917 in Kovarik\u2019s lab<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cells, the building blocks of all biological life, can be chemically different even when they are genetically identical. While this heterogeneity has been studied in mammalian cell lines, particularly in human cancer, it has not been explored in other types of organisms. Trinity College Assistant Professor of Chemistry Michelle Kovarik recently received a $212,253 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to adapt existing biochemical and bioanalytical tools to study cellular differences in the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum.<\/em> By isolating and measuring levels of the enzyme protein kinase B, Kovarik\u2019s research will add to existing knowledge of the causes and impacts of cellular heterogeneity, providing a valuable context for future research on the subject.<\/p>\n

Kovarik\u2019s research also will establish a methodology for testing chemical differences in social amoeba at the single-cell level. Kovarik\u2019s postdoctoral research, focused on developing these tests for human cancer cells and the adaptation of two tools \u2014 microfluidics and peptide substrate reporters \u2014 will expand the application of these technologies to other organisms.<\/p>\n

In the summer of 2016, Kovarik worked with three students to test and refine the methodology. Of the 10 students whom Kovarik has employed in her lab over the past three years, seven have been involved with various aspects of this project. Kovarik said that working with students is one of the most rewarding aspects of her job, and she is deeply committed to their success. \u201cMy undergraduate mentor changed the course of my career and my life,\u201d she said. \u201cOne of the reasons I came to a small undergraduate institution was because I wanted to make sure that more students have a similar experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kovarik\u2019s NSF grant will fund two student researchers in her lab for the next three summers. She is looking forward to this work and the opportunity to mentor future practitioners. \u201cI am very passionate about my work,\u201d she said. \u201cDoing undergraduate research can be life-changing for those who decide to be professional scientists.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cells, the building blocks of all biological life, can be chemically different even when they are genetically identical. While this<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":0,"parent":1466,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-full-width.php","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3261"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3261"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3261\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/reporter-winter2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}