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NEI Summer training fellowship students
NEI
Summer training fellowship students
[Email]
Brian Petracca (Summer 2005)
I am originally
from New Mexico, and before entering this fantastic summer program I
completed a B.S. degree in chemistry at Montana State University and
one year of optometry school at Pacific University. This summer I will
be designing and developing an animal model of elevated intraocular
pressure (IOP) in the chick. This model will later be used to study
the effects of increased IOP (a common symptom associated with glaucoma)
on the health of retinal ganglion cells. This model is unique among
glaucoma models because the chick has han avascular retina and thus
it should be possible to isolate mechanical factors from anoxic factors
in pressure-related cell damage.
[Email]
Douglas
Lee (Summer 2002 - 2003 grad. 2005)
[Email]
Joyce Ing-Li Hsieh (Summer 2005)
After spending four years of undergraduate study in
economics and molecular and cell biology at UC Berkeley, I have decided
to extend my stay here by another four years to obtain a degree in the
field of optometry. With the chance to exploit a great research opportunity
given to first year students on the road to a clinical career, I have
chosen to spend my summer taking part in some of the research that has
helped pushed the boundary of healthcare so far forward. I am excited
with this chance to use both my background in molecular science with
my newly acquired knowledge of the eye and vision to work in the Gong
lab.
This summer I will study using molecular techniques the role of alphaA-crystallins
in the lens cells. AlphaA-crystallin proteins not only function for
maintaining lens transparency but also contribute as one of the structural
components necessary for the high refractive index of the lens. Recently,
three new point mutations of the alphaA-crystallin gene have been identified
that lead to distinct types of cataracts. Preliminary studies show that
each of these three mutated alphaA-crystallin proteins change the biochemical
properties of the protein although they affect the lens’ cellular
structures differently. Thus, we hypothesize that such mutatations alter
subcellular localization and interactions with other lens proteins to
perturb the normal functions of alphaA-crystallins. My summer project
will test this hypothesis by examining the subcellular localization
of these mutated alphaA-crystallin proteins tagged with a green fluorescent
protein (GFP) in the cultured cells.
[Email]
Annie
Chin (Summer 2003, 2004)
I completed
a Bioengineering degree (BSc) at University of California, San Diego
in 2002. During this time, I was involved in research in the Department
of Pharmacology of
UCSD Medical School, working on a project involving protein kinase C
expression.
As a summer research trainee, I am investigating the changes in collagen
composition and distribution in the scleras of MEK-1 and wildtype mice.
Analyses being performed include immunohistochemistry and western blot
technique. Changes in the progression of myopia and eye growth are to
be also monitored in vivo using A-scan ultrasonography.
[Email]
Nina
Tran BSc (Summer 2003; previously an undergraduate researcher)
I completed
a BA at the University of California, Berkeley, with a major in Molecular
& Cellular Biology in 2002 and am currently enrolled in their Optometry
doctoral (OD) program. As part of my undergraduate training, I completed
a senior honors thesis in the Wildsoet lab. I was awarded an NEI Summer
Research Training Fellowship to continue my research over this summer
(2003). My research is been centered around two questions:
- Is eye
growth modulated by retinal image contrast or do eyes simply respond
in an all-or-none way to maximize retinal image contrast?
- What
are the effects of form-deprivation and myopic defocus imposed locally
on the central and peripheral retina in chick eyes
Past
Presentations:
Tran N, Kuo K, and Wildsoet CF (2002). The effects of form-deprivation
and myopic defocus imposed locally on the central and peripheral retina
in chick eyes. UC Berkeley MCB Undergraduate Research Poster Session.
[PDF Poster].
Tran N,
Kuo K, and Wildsoet CF (2002). The interacting effects of form-deprivation
and myopic defocus imposed locally on the central and peripheral retina
in chick eyes. Journal of Vision. [Abstract].
[Email]
Min
Yi BSc (Summer 2002; volunteer in lab as an undergraduate)
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