2012 Summer Research Interns

2012 Summer Research Projects

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Summer Research Interns

Dandi Huang (BBMB major, 2013)
Project title: Bacterial Burden and Seminal HIV-1 RNA Shedding in Kenyan Men
Lab mentor: David Fredricks (Vaccine and Infectious Diseases Division)

My research was part of a  collaborative  investigation to study the    association between bacterial burden and seminal HIV-1 RNA  shedding in Kenyan men.  Previous work have shown that genitourinary infections can increase sexual transmission of HIV-1.  I  used quantitative PCR to assess bacterial DNA sequences in semen samples which were also evaluated for HIV-1 viral load.

Lori Mendelsohn (Biology major, 2013)
Project Title: Investigation of the role of p27 as an oncogene in the cytoplasm
Lab Mentor: Jim Roberts,  Basic Sciences Division

The focus of my research this summer was p27, a protein whose  tumor suppressor function is essential to proper regulation of the cell cycle through inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase activity.   However, other evidence suggest a role of p27 as an oncogene in HER2⁺ breast cancer cells.  My project focused on immunolocalization of p27 in HER2⁺ breast cancer cell lines during exposure to drugs targeting the HER2 protein.

On campus Summer Research Teams

Professor Marion Götz, Chemistry Dept
HHMI research fellows:  Zack Strater (Chemistry, 2012) and Fred Tomlin (Chemistry, 2013)
Project: Optimization of Novel Bimodal Proteasome Inhibitors

Professor Leena Knight, Biology Dept
HHMI research fellows:  Calvin Atkins (Biology, 2012) and Haley McLeod (Biology/Env Studies, 2013)
Project: Uncovering the role of insulin in the efficacy of the ketogenic diet

Professor Tim Parker, Biology Dept
HHMI research fellows:  Emma Oschrin(Biology, 2012) and Shelley Stephan (Biology, 2013)
Project: The complementary roles of moisture limitation and invasive species in causing the decline of an abundant native species

Professor Dalia Rokhsana, Chemistry Dept
HHMI research fellows:  Daniel Ellis (BBMB, 2013) and Gus Friedman (2014)
Project: Computational Modeling and Biomimetic Synthesis of the Active Site of Carbon Monoxide Dehydrogenase

Professor Dan Vernon, BBMB/Biology Dept
HHMI research fellows:  Kendra Klag (BBMB, 2012) and Geneva Scharff (Biology, 2012)
Project: Reducing Arabidopsis PIRL6 and PIRL9 gene expression by RNA interference