Today for our spotlight we have grad student Hannah Brandon from the chemistry department! Check out more on her work with proteins our interview with her below.
What inspired you to pursue a career in STEM?
In high school, I took a college level biology class that was really challenging, and I loved it. I loved learning the details of how DNA was replicated or how cells turn food into energy, and I also thought it was interesting to learn the experiments that scientists had used to understand the concepts in biology we accept as facts today. I went into college pre-med, but realized I liked learning about science more than the medical applications of it, so I decided to go to graduate school instead.
How would you describe your work to the public?
I am trying to isolate a single protein called PCNA. Its role is to wrap around a molecule of DNA like a clamp and help other proteins that replicate DNA stay attached so that they can do their job. I’m trying to isolate PCNA so that it can be used to in experiments to study how DNA is replicated and repaired. In lab, that looks like growing bacteria cells that express this protein, lysing the cells so that I can isolate the proteins, and using different protein chromatography columns to separate out PCNA from all the other proteins.
What do you enjoy doing the most?
For school, I enjoy putting all of my work together in presentations. I like organizing the data and figuring out the best way to tell the story of what I’m studying. Outside of school I like decorating my apartment, cooking, and reading. Share an accomplishment that a younger you would have thought unachievable.
I think a younger me, who was not the most outgoing, would be proud of how independent I’ve become. I’m proud that I had the confidence to apply to grad school and pursue my goals that once seemed too hard to achieve.
If you could give a piece of advice to the younger generation, what would it be?
Be honest with yourself about what you want in life and pursue it. Don’t underestimate yourself, you can do more than you think. And be kind to those around you, that’s more important than any grade or accomplishment.
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