How Are RIC Students Spending Their Summer? – Try Cancer Research
Rather than lob a volleyball over a net at the beach, chemistry majors Ivy Par and Sydney Green prefer to spend their summer in a research lab trying to discover the cause of cancer.
The two work under the watchful eye of principal investigator, Jamie Towle-Weicksel, associate professor of chemistry. The room is small and airless, filled with vials and test tubes.
“Ivy and Sydney are exploring an enzyme involved in repairing damaged DNA,” explains Towle-Weicksel. “When the DNA in a cell is damaged, the cell recruits enzymes to fix the damage. If the damage isn’t repaired properly it can lead to life-threatening illnesses like cancer. We’ve found mutations in the enzyme involved in the repair of damaged DNA in patients with melanoma. We’re exploring the activity of these mutations on a molecular level.”
This kind of work is Green’s happy place. “I love it,” she says. “I love reading scientific papers and figuring out what experiment we’re going to do next. Sure, I’d love to be at the beach. But for me this is the end game.”
As for Par, it’s all about learning new things. “Learning new things is fun for me. When you’re doing research, you get to try new experiments, figure out where you went wrong and where you want to focus next. Currently, I’m reading a scientific paper so that I can experiment with its protocol in our lab.”
At age 19, Par is RIC’s first RI-INBRE Special Fellow. This is a unique fellowship designed to promote underrepresented students in biomedical sciences.
Par graduated fifth in her class from Tolman High School and just completed her freshman year at RIC. She’s a RIC College Honors student, secretary of RIC’s Physical Sciences Club and plays tennis and swims for the RIC Anchor teams.
As for Green, this is her third summer in Towle-Weicksel’s lab. The 21-year-old senior is vice president of the Physical Sciences Club, a tutor for the Physical Sciences Department, a Departmental Honors student and a Hope scholar.
“I started out as a biology major, intending to go the M.D. route,” Green says, but that was before Green was asked by Towle-Weicksel to work in her lab.
“I didn’t even know research was a thing until I started working in her lab,” Green says. “I wound up switching my major from biology to chemistry. Biology is more about living things – it’s on the macro scale. Chemistry is everything smaller – the micro scale. I find that way more interesting.”
Last year, Green was invited to present her research in Boston at The Protein Society’s Annual Symposium, an international conference on biochemistry. This year she is one of the authors of a paper published by Towle-Weicksel in the American Chemical Society’s “Biochemistry” journal. Most recently, she presented a poster presentation in D.C. at the National IDeA Symposium of Biomedical Research Excellence Conference.
Green says of Towle-Weicksel, “She’s done so much for me. She’s given me opportunities I never would have had.”
“I don’t know to repay her for my fellowship,” adds Par. “She was the one who suggested I apply for it. It’s something that can lead to so many more opportunities.”
Both Green and Par advise new students to say “yes” to as many opportunities as they can.
“When I came to RIC, I was a bio major ready to transfer to a different school after my first year,” Green says. “I’m leaving as a chemistry major who has published and presented at conferences. Staying at RIC was the best decision I made. It’s been amazing.”