Project 1: Localization and Expression Level of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor after Partial Hepatectomy of WKY Rats
Project 2: Regulation of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis by Tumor Secreted BMPs
I began doing research under a professor when I was a sophomore, and continued to do so until I was a senior. When I began, I did very remedial work under the instruction of another student. By the time I was complete, I was the lead researcher of my team and was able to present our work at three different conferences. This experience allowed me to develop the skills of original research and dissemination of results.
The first step of original research is to identify a research question. This question must have the goal of extending the knowledge of my field. As a biomedical sciences major, I am interested in anything in the medical field. My first project was a study on liver regeneration. I worked under the lead researcher, another student, and mostly did remedial work for him. I started with making liver slides for him using a cryogenic slicer, and was eventually allowed to learn some of the other basic procedures, like staining. Working under him allowed me to begin to see how the research process is done. Even though I was doing remedial work, he stressed the importance of me understanding what and why we were doing the things we were doing. He also taught me the basics of keeping a research journal and general lab rules. I also learned about presentation opportunities, and watched him through the process of submitting abstract proposals for research symposiums. He had the opportunity to present his project, Localization and Expression Level of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor after Partial Hepatectomy of WKY Rats, at the Undergraduate Research Symposium in Mankato in 2014, and he invited me along to see how poster presentations are conducted.
The first step of original research is to identify a research question. This question must have the goal of extending the knowledge of my field. As a biomedical sciences major, I am interested in anything in the medical field. My first project was a study on liver regeneration. I worked under the lead researcher, another student, and mostly did remedial work for him. I started with making liver slides for him using a cryogenic slicer, and was eventually allowed to learn some of the other basic procedures, like staining. Working under him allowed me to begin to see how the research process is done. Even though I was doing remedial work, he stressed the importance of me understanding what and why we were doing the things we were doing. He also taught me the basics of keeping a research journal and general lab rules. I also learned about presentation opportunities, and watched him through the process of submitting abstract proposals for research symposiums. He had the opportunity to present his project, Localization and Expression Level of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor after Partial Hepatectomy of WKY Rats, at the Undergraduate Research Symposium in Mankato in 2014, and he invited me along to see how poster presentations are conducted.
When I was a senior, I switched projects and started working under Dr. Cynthia Forsman, who was studying breast cancer and how it can metastasize to the bone. I was the only student working on this project during the first semester, but the second semester my professor promoted me to lead team researcher and hired on several more students to help us. Our research question for this project studied the process by which cancer, specifically breast cancer, preferentially metastasizes to the bone. This contributes to our field of knowledge in a practical way, because if we understood the process it would lead us one step closer to finding therapeutic interventions to potentially stop bone metastasis. The procedures for this project were much more complex than the ones I conducted for my first research project. I conducted experiments that included extracting the leg bones from mice, flushing out the marrow, growing osteoclasts, and using TRAP staining to analyze our results. We eventually obtained enough data to suggest that our hypothesis on how BMPs affected osteoclast development was correct.
After we had enough original data, we decided to disseminate our results. The first step of this was to find a venue. I prepared and submitted an abstract to three different symposiums for undergraduate research and was accepted to all of them. I presented my poster, Regulation of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis by Tumor Secreted BMPs, at the Minnesota Undergraduate Scholars Conference in Winona, Minnesota, the Undergraduate Research Symposium in Mankato, Minnesota, and the National Conference for Undergraduate Research in Asheville, North Carolina.
Both of my research experiences were extremely beneficial to me. Being able to work under another student and watch how things are done prepared me nicely for handling my own project. I was ready to do good research and was lucky enough to get results that could be presented on a national level. This was a truly unique experience for me that helped me grow as both a scientist and as a professional.
Regulation of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis by Tumor Secreted BMPs
After we had enough original data, we decided to disseminate our results. The first step of this was to find a venue. I prepared and submitted an abstract to three different symposiums for undergraduate research and was accepted to all of them. I presented my poster, Regulation of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis by Tumor Secreted BMPs, at the Minnesota Undergraduate Scholars Conference in Winona, Minnesota, the Undergraduate Research Symposium in Mankato, Minnesota, and the National Conference for Undergraduate Research in Asheville, North Carolina.
Both of my research experiences were extremely beneficial to me. Being able to work under another student and watch how things are done prepared me nicely for handling my own project. I was ready to do good research and was lucky enough to get results that could be presented on a national level. This was a truly unique experience for me that helped me grow as both a scientist and as a professional.
Regulation of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis by Tumor Secreted BMPs