Pranav Kolluri
It is increasingly being recognized that diabetic bone disease, associated with an increased risk of bone fractures, cannot be detected effectively using traditional detection methods for osteoporosis. This is because patients with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), despite having normal or even high bone densities, are still prone to fractures. The Bone Quality Research Lab at UCSF has established that deficits in the cortical bone structure are associated with T2D and the increased fracture potential found in those with T2D. My research will further develop this finding by determining if T2D […]
Jennifer Lee
Understanding niche differentiation is fundamental for comprehending the complicated process of adaptive radiation, a process characterized by the rapid formation of many ecologically different species from a single ancestor. However, the way in which niche differentiation is achieved during the early stage of adaptive radiation is still highly debated among evolutionary biologists. On the one hand, through the process of character displacement, natural selection could facilitate differentiation and diversification between closely related species where they co-occur with no need for prior niche differentiation at the time of secondary contact. Alternatively, […]
Kenneth Loi
mRNA has proven to be a promising novel therapeutic class due to its programmability, low barriers to synthesis, and rapid translation into protein in vivo. mRNA as a platform technology has led to the development of broad applications such as vaccines, therapeutic protein replacement, in vivo genome editing, and in vivo cellular reprogramming. Despite growing interest in mRNAs therapeutic potential, it suffers from low delivery rates due to its instability and short half-life, thereby limiting its clinical adoption. mRNA transcripts are vulnerable to various degradation mechanisms in the cell, as […]
Sophia Ma
Population growth is set to exceed the capacity of modern agricultural yields, but innovations in agricultural technologies have the potential to meet global food needs. One promising area of basic research is involves improving the biology of photosynthesis so the plants themselves can grow more efficiently. At a fundamental level, it is easy to think that more sunlight equates to more photosynthesis. However, plants often receive far more sunlight than they can use, which can be damaging to the cell. Plants and algae have evolved ingenious mechanisms to dissipate […]
Madison de Vere
This summer, I will be traveling to Suva, Fiji with a research team from UCSF led by Dr. Deborah Dean. As part of a longitudinal study started in 2018, we aim to identify Ng antibiotic susceptibility patterns and determine current rates of resistance to antibiotics. With this in mind, we are also looking to determine the association of antibiotic resistance (AR) Ng strains with clinical signs and symptoms. In addition, we are looking at current Ng-Ct co-infection rates, in order to determine the longitudinal prevalence of Ng and STIs and […]
Zahir Chaudhry
Invasive breast cancer affects 1 in 8 women in the US, with over 270,000 new cases diagnosed annually. With significant advancements in diagnosis and treatment, approximatey 90 percent of deaths are related to metastasis, the migration of cancer cells from the primary tumor to peripheral organs. Here, a subpopulation of tumor cells relies on phenotypic transitions to gain traits that aid in migration and invasion. This rare population of cells exists on a spectrum of phenotypes and is more resistant to treatment, highlighting the importance of increased investigation. The goal […]
Jennah Brown
Mitochondrial function and metabolic flexibility (the ability to switch back and forth between carbohydrate and lipid utilization in response to changing physiological conditions) degrade as a normal consequence of aging. Metabolic flexibility is regulated by several mechanisms that are affected by the capacity for lactate oxidation and, therefore, mitochondrial function. Previous studies have demonstrated that endurance training improves metabolic flexibility due to improvements in mitochondrial function and the capacity for lactate oxidation. The purpose of my research is to assess metabolic flexibility in older and younger, trained and untrained individuals […]
Arjun Grover
If you have gone to a fast-casual restaurant within the last few years, you will be all too familiar with how the process of tipping works. After the cashier taps your order into the restaurant‚Äôs tablet device, they flip it around with tip options for you to select. The bubbles can range from percentages to dollar amounts, depending on the restaurant (e.g., 15%, 20%, 25%, $1, $2, $3, etc.). Unlike past studies on tipping, which look at situations in which the cashier leaves and returns to pick up your check, […]
Rocky Hughes
In recent years, the study of 2D materials consisting of atomically thin sheets of matter has exploded into a vibrant research area pursued by materials chemists and condensed matter physicists alike. The structures of these materials bring about many exotic properties which, in the near future, are projected to see groundbreaking applications in energy conversion and storage, as well as low-power computation. The behavior of electrons in 2D materials can be significantly altered by bringing flakes of differing chemical structures into contact. My project aims to better understand and exploit […]
Samantha Breuer
In the Ajoy Lab, we use a custom nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) apparatus that uses high-powered lasers and microwaves to hyperpolarize samples for signal enhancement. My project will work to optimize the microwave frequency, sweep rate, and bandwidth of our apparatus to increase the lifetime of a nanodiamond sample. Increasing the lifetime of the nanodiamond sample is beneficial to resolution, as it increases the amount of time we can collect data from milliseconds to minutes. This is relevant to the field as the optimization of the nanodiamond sample, and increase […]