BAR HARBOR — Thirty-two summer fellows participated in the MDI Biological Laboratory’s 2017 summer fellowship program for undergraduates, including 24 from Maine colleges and universities.

The summer fellowship program provides undergraduates with hands-on research training in an advanced laboratory environment. On-campus co-curricular and residential life programs extend the impact of the programs, helping students develop professional skills and fostering connections within the research community. Each student works closely with a faculty mentor and other researchers on a specific research project in the biomedical field.

The Maine INBRE fellows worked at the MDI Biological Laboratory in Bar Harbor, and on the campuses of INBRE partners statewide including Bates College in Lewiston, Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Colby College in Waterville, The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor and the University of Maine in Orono. One student worked at Eastern Maine Medical Center Cancer Care at the Lafayette Family Cancer Center in Brewer.

Ten summer fellows, including six who come from or are studying in Maine, were funded through the National Science Foundation’s Research Experience for Undergraduates program. All the REU summer fellows worked at the MDI Biological Laboratory.

Below is a list of the local MDI Biological Laboratory 2017 undergraduate summer fellows, along with the funding sources for their fellowships, the names and affiliations of their scientist mentors and the titles of their research projects.

Students funded through the Maine INBRE program:

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• Rebecca Fernandez, of Monmouth; a University of Maine at Machias student, the research site was Bowdoin College and her mentor was Patsy Dickinson, Ph.D., Josiah Little Professor of Natural Sciences, Bowdoin College. The research topic was a comparative study of the stomatogastric nervous system in related crab species Pugettia producta and Libinia emarginata

• Cameron Fudge, of Farmingdale, a student at Southern Maine Community College, researched at MDI Biological Laboratory. The mentor was Voot P. Yin, Ph.D., assistant professor, MDI Biological Laboratory. The research topic was defining the role of IFT88 in Danio rerio caudal fin regeneration

• Jessica Kozachuk, a University of Maine at Fort Kent student, had Eastern Maine Medical Center Cancer Care, Lafayette Family Cancer Center, Brewer, as research sites. Her mentor was Lindsay Shopland, Ph.D., director of education and the research topic was stimulating proliferation of primary mantel cell lymphoma cells using a combination of MegaCD40L and IL4

• Liesel Krout, of Fayette; a student at the University of Maine at Farmington, used Colby College for the research site. Joshua P. Martin, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, Colby College was the mentor and the research topic was RNA sequencing and analysis of gene expression in Tenodera sinensis

• Jacob Montgomery, of Waterville, a University of Maine at Farmington student did his research at MDI Biological Laboratory, his mentor was Andrea Tilden, Ph.D., J. Warren Merrill associate professor of biology at Colby College. The research topic was analysis of gene and protein structure configuration and evolution in claspin using comparative functional genomics

Students funded through the national Science Foundation’s Research Experience for Undergraduates program:

• Benjamin Garthoff, of Whitefield and a student at the University of Maine at Augusta, mentored under Dustin Updike, Ph.D., assistant professor, MDI Biological Laboratory. The research topic was a study of the auxin-inducible degradation (AID) system in the germlines of C. elegans.

• Stephan Jackson, of Bingham and a University of Maine student. mentored under Vicki P. Losick, Ph.D., assistant professor, MDI Biological Laboratory. The research topic was determining the role of myosin in wound-induced polyploidization

For more information, visit mdibl.org.


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