Benjamin Roche, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
Project: Epigenetic regulation of cellular quiescence by RNA-binding proteins
Mentor: Benjamin Roche, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
Location: Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine & Health Sciences
Description: Most cells in nature exit the cell cycle and exist in a non-dividing state—including important cells in the human body such as stem cells and memory lymphocytes. What are the mechanisms that allow non-dividing cells to stay quiescent and viable? Are they conserved across evolution? Are novel epigenetic mechanisms ‘hidden’ in the quiescent state? The Roche lab aims to answer these questions by studying the fundamental biology of quiescence, in particular in the model organism Schizosaccharomyces pombe (fission yeast)—a system ideally suited for the genetic and molecular characterization of quiescent genes. The lab has several projects focused on RNA-binding proteins. We aim to (i) understand how these RNA-binding proteins participate in the reprogramming of quiescent cells, and (ii) discover novel RNA factors involved in this process. To do so, the REU student will be introduced to a multidisciplinary approach, with the opportunity to learn both the fundamentals of molecular biology and genetic analysis, including micro-manipulation of single fission yeast cells, as well as an introduction to key computational methods in biology and epigenetics.
