In the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, our professors and researchers are pushing the boundaries of scientific knowledge, and our students are experiencing the excitement of scientific discovery through their coursework, and through hands-on experience in our research laboratories, as Sarah VanDiependos can attest. As an undergraduate, she did research on C. elegans (represented on her mortarboard) with Professor Gyorgyi Csankovszki. Since graduation in 2019, she has continued in the MCDB master’s program, pursuing her passion for research as well as biology outreach. Your donation helps provide opportunities for research for our students, a key part of our mission.
An enthusiastic biologist who would like to see Biology Week become a national phenomenon, Sarah says:
"I’d love to tell about my research in the Csankovszki lab!
I started working in the lab as a sophomore. I wanted to write an Honors thesis, and I was always really interested in learning about DNA in high school.
I didn’t really understand what I was getting myself into when I started in lab, and it was a steep learning curve at first. Fortunately, I had a lot of great graduate students and a very patient PI to show me the ropes and help me troubleshoot my experiments.
Now, I’m about to defend my master’s thesis on C. elegans dosage compensation! My research studies the formation of heterochromatin on the X chromosomes in hermaphrodite C. elegans and how transcription of the sex chromosomes is regulated. I’m applying to Ph.D. programs right now, and I hope to work as a research scientist in an industrial lab dedicated to studying antibiotic resistance."
Her principal investigator, Gyorgyi Csankovszki, was recently named a Thurnau Professor, the University's highest recogntion for excellence in undergraduate teaching. She also participates in outreach through the University of Michigan Museum of Natural History.
We are privileged to be able to share with our students and the public our passion for biology. Your donations have already made a tremendous difference in our ability to promote cutting edge research, and to train future professionals and life scientists. With your continued involvement and support, we will remain among the leaders and best in the field of molecular, cellular, and developmental biology. Thank you, and Go Blue!!
