1.6 Apply knowledge of biology to one or more contemporary issues in society.
An Analysis of Ecuador from an Economical and Environmental Standpoint
In the summer before my senior year, I was lucky enough to be able to travel to Ecuador to study the economic and environmental effects of oil drilling in the Ecuadorian amazon rainforest. We traveled through Ecuador, spoke to locals, and learned about the real effects that these citizens have to face on a daily basis as a result of outside groups drilling in their forests. They are victims of the “resource curse”, meaning that their access to natural resources prevented them from developing their economy successfully. The drilling has also caused oil to leak into water systems and caused significant health issues. I got to present my findings and thoughts on this topic in a presentation format.
In my toxicology elective, I further used the Ecuador topic to delve deeper in to the toxicity of the oil that is getting into Ecuadorian’s water systems. I explained what hydrocarbons are and how they can be detrimental to human health. They can cause many health problems including cancer. I presented this with a partner in a presentation in the Fall of 2019.
Cancer Mutations Alter the Coactivator Activity of p300 Core
For several semesters, I have been working on a research project with Dr. Erin Shanle in which we have been investigating the effects of cancer mutations in the protein p300. I used a gRNA-Cas9 system to target specific locations on the genome of human cancer cells. p300 core mutations were made through site directed mutagenesis and transfected into 293T cells. Gene expression if IL1RN was quantified through qPCR and analyzed. Eight mutations were successfully created and several were found to have severe inhibitory effects on the gene expression levels of p300core. I have gotten the opportunity to present my findings at several Longwood Showcases and plan to present at the ASBMB conference in San Diego this April.