My name is Allison Shildt, and I am a Biology and Chemistry major in Fulbright Honors. I work under Dr. Nagayasu Nakanishi in Biology, and this is my third research semester in this lab. I plan to defend my thesis this Spring 2021 and attend medical school this fall to pursue a career as a surgeon.
In the Nakanishi lab, we look at evolutionary biology through the ancient sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis. My research looks at a gene in the FoxP family in this species, to see if the gene evolved before sea anemones or after. The Fox genes are transcription factors that affect many types of development and functions in many animals. The FoxP genes, in particular, have been studied to an extent in mammals and have been found to aid in the development of the nervous system. In humans, a point mutation in the FoxP2 gene causes a disease called verbal dyspraxia, which affects the orofacial movements and thus speech. The FoxP genes are highly conserved among species, but its evolutionary origin is unknown.
When I was looking for a research mentor, I didn’t really know what I wanted. I spent time looking at the biology faculty and each professor’s research interests, emailing a few to explore opportunities in the following semester. Admittedly, Dr. Nakanishi’s work studied a field within biology that I had not really learned about until then. In our first conversation, he explained to me why he studies the sea anemone and how it relates to humans and other mammals today, providing a big-picture application of his work. When I joined the lab, Dr. Nakanishi showed me a gene from the genome of the sea anemone that he suspected could be part of the FoxP family in this species, and I was able to take up this research as my topic.
Biology research can be difficult. While each step of a protocol is laid out, the researcher must interpret the results of a PCR gel, Nanodrop, or gene sequencing. I am very grateful to have such helpful and knowledgeable peers in my lab that I could consult if I had trouble with my data. Whenever I ran into troubles in lab with the machines or steps in a protocol, I always felt comfortable asking my professor or any other lab members questions. Along with this, the weekly lab meetings allowed me to understand other aspects of evolutionary biology research through journal club meetings, presentations of my other lab members, and group academic conversations.
Obviously, Spring and Fall 2020 semesters have been stressful. Unfortunately, because my physical time in the lab was cut short, my initial hope of exploring the expression of the FoxP gene in the sea anemone and the eventual creation of knockout mutants would not be feasible. Instead, this year I have worked on writing my thesis, as well as preparing and presenting at a virtual conference. In November, I attended the virtual Arkansas INBRE conference; here, undergraduate students from around the region presented research in biology, chemistry, and physics. Through this experience, I learned from my peers and their research and attended a keynote speech on relevant applications of the intersections of these sciences. The speaker discussed the development of the SARS-CoV2 vaccine and the issues with vaccinating throughout the world due to poverty and lack of resources. I was very grateful for the opportunity to attend this conference and share my research experience with others in my field, as well as improve my presentation skills for my thesis defense and future talks as a medical student.
Over the next semester, I will continue some analytical work through the computer program Geneious in order to better understand my gene data. This will aid in my thesis writing and give me further insight into the possibilities of the gene in the sea anemone. Finally, I plan to defend my thesis in April 2021 and graduate in May, hopefully utilizing the research techniques and content I learned under Dr. Nakansihi in my future medical practices.