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My desire to do research led me to attend the Johns Hopkins University for my undergraduate studies. I decided to study Biomolecular Engineering at Hopkins as it combined engineering and biology, two subjects that interested me, and it was a unique way to study both. I started working with Dr. Marc Ostermeier in my sophomore year in his protein engineering lab. My research there focused on modifying an artificial protein switch his lab had developed and studying its mechanism of allostery, the regulation of protein activity through interactions away from its active site. At this point, I was hooked and certain that I would like research to play a prominent role in my career beyond simply attending graduate school. After three years of research, I was given the department's department’s best undergraduate researcher and Provost's Provost’s research award, as well as earned my Master's Master’s degree. In addition to research, I spent my nights working for the intramural athletics program officiating and managing various sports such as basketball and volleyball.
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Cellulose, or the material that structures plant cell walls, is the world's world’s most abundant form of biomass. As such, it is a popular target for researchers trying to break down this compound to serve as a precursor to renewable biofuels. Cellulases are used as catalysts to break down the recalcitrant cellulose into simple sugars. These sugars are fed to other organisms (e.g., yeast) to create ethanol-based biofuels. Cellulase enzymes are commonly produced from fungal extracts that are challenging to culture in large amounts and costly to grow. The bacterium E. coli (a non-pathogenic version of this species) is often used as a protein production host because it is easy to grow and for its ability to produce proteins at high titers. However, it does not typically make cellulases. The research of the DeLisa lab focuses on modifying E. coli to perform extraordinary tasks not normally found in these tiny cells; see http://www.cbe.cornell.edu/~md255/DLRG/Research.html
. The goal of my project is to utilize the natural pathways found in E. coli to expand the engineering potential of this organism for greater production of industrially relevant products, such as cellulases.
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