UCSD DevCoGx Research Group
Week One
January 7th-10th
Pre-Internship
I’m really excited to start my internship at the Developmental Cognitive Genomics Lab (DevCoGx) at UCSD. I hope this experience will help me decide if a career in science is the right fit for me, and whether I enjoy doing research in a lab setting. The research project involves studying human pluripotent stem cells and mouse brain tissue. I will perform immunohistochemistry experiments using antibodies to label proteins on prepared cells or tissue samples, and the results will be imaged using a Nixon AX confocal microscope. I worry that I might not fully understand some of the subjects we’re studying or the complex terminology, which could make it hard to follow the work we're doing. I’m excited to learn as much as I can, and I look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with my mentor, Armeen, and the rest of the team, knowing that this internship could be a great fit for my education and future career goals.
Daily Log
Wednesday: I got a tour of the Lab and my mentor told me about himself. He explained how some of the machines worked and showed me some of the images he has of cells from the microscope. I read and took notes on 4 articles in order to get some background info on some of the things we will be researching.
Thursday: We all went to a presentation. The presentation was about Alzheimer's and how different proteins affect it. After, I did some more research and took notes on Glial cells. I also watched and helped Grace stain cells and analyzed them under the microscope.
Friday: I researched and took notes on neurons and synaptic transmission. My mentor introduced me to an application called Fiji that we will be using when we analyze the microscope images. I also took a lab safety course so I could start doing more hands-on experiments next week. I can't wait!
Thursday: We all went to a presentation. The presentation was about Alzheimer's and how different proteins affect it. After, I did some more research and took notes on Glial cells. I also watched and helped Grace stain cells and analyzed them under the microscope.
Friday: I researched and took notes on neurons and synaptic transmission. My mentor introduced me to an application called Fiji that we will be using when we analyze the microscope images. I also took a lab safety course so I could start doing more hands-on experiments next week. I can't wait!
Blog Prompts
Prompt: Who is your mentor? Describe his or her life, education, career path and more.
Response: This is my mentor Armeen! He is getting his Ph.D. in the Biomedical Sciences program at UC San Diego. He has his bachelor's degree in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley After graduating, he joined the cell biology research group at Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston. Armeen's current research in the lab focuses on understanding the common factors behind different intellectual disabilities and how they affect the brain. Armeen is funny and laidback, he is really good at making sure we understand things and is overall a great mentor! Outside of the lab Armeen loves to hike and play soccer.
Response: This is my mentor Armeen! He is getting his Ph.D. in the Biomedical Sciences program at UC San Diego. He has his bachelor's degree in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley After graduating, he joined the cell biology research group at Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston. Armeen's current research in the lab focuses on understanding the common factors behind different intellectual disabilities and how they affect the brain. Armeen is funny and laidback, he is really good at making sure we understand things and is overall a great mentor! Outside of the lab Armeen loves to hike and play soccer.
Prompt: Choose an employee in your company and after a conversation with him or her, describe his/her education, overall career path and current job description.
Response: This is Grace! Grace is currently getting her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences at UC San Diego. She went to Elon university where she got a B.S. in Biology with a minor in Neuroscience from Elon University. After graduating college, she became a Research Associate at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Currently, she is researching Lamin-B1 in 3D genome organization and neurodevelopment. Grace is very outgoing and cheerful and she explains things super well! Outside of the lab grace is a big hiker and loves to weightlift.
Response: This is Grace! Grace is currently getting her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences at UC San Diego. She went to Elon university where she got a B.S. in Biology with a minor in Neuroscience from Elon University. After graduating college, she became a Research Associate at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Currently, she is researching Lamin-B1 in 3D genome organization and neurodevelopment. Grace is very outgoing and cheerful and she explains things super well! Outside of the lab grace is a big hiker and loves to weightlift.
Week Two
January 13th-17th
Daily Log
Monday: This morning, I took more notes on the brain, specifically the cerebrum. I also researched the nucleus and the nucleolus and refreshed my knowledge of cell structure and cell types. In the afternoon, Naijalee and I shared what we had learned this week with our mentor. He clarified key points and emphasized important aspects of our project.
Tuesday: In the morning, I started working on my slides for the iPOL presentation. I worked on introductory slides that covered concepts like the Central Dogma, glial cells, and Down syndrome. Later, we had a meeting with our mentor and the lab boss to finalize our project and timeline. The lab boss also taught Naijalee and me how to take images using the Nikon microscope and how to work with Fiji.
Wednesday: My mentor assisted us with coding in Fiji, and I spent the morning running the code to analyze images of the mouse brain. I analyzed images from the hippocampus and cerebral cortex, with each channel requiring a different code and taking 10–15 minutes to process. I compiled all the data into a spreadsheet.
Thursday: Today was exciting! We created a graph summarizing our data. The results showed that the nucleus in microglia contains about 3.5% nuclear matter, while in oligodendrocytes, it contains 5.7%. In the afternoon, Naijalee and I helped Armeen with pipetting.
Friday: In the morning, I examined actual images of oligodendrocytes and microglia. I observed that the microglia nucleolus appeared very faint in the images, which my mentor found interesting and wanted to investigate further. I spent the rest of the morning working on my iPOL slides.
Tuesday: In the morning, I started working on my slides for the iPOL presentation. I worked on introductory slides that covered concepts like the Central Dogma, glial cells, and Down syndrome. Later, we had a meeting with our mentor and the lab boss to finalize our project and timeline. The lab boss also taught Naijalee and me how to take images using the Nikon microscope and how to work with Fiji.
Wednesday: My mentor assisted us with coding in Fiji, and I spent the morning running the code to analyze images of the mouse brain. I analyzed images from the hippocampus and cerebral cortex, with each channel requiring a different code and taking 10–15 minutes to process. I compiled all the data into a spreadsheet.
Thursday: Today was exciting! We created a graph summarizing our data. The results showed that the nucleus in microglia contains about 3.5% nuclear matter, while in oligodendrocytes, it contains 5.7%. In the afternoon, Naijalee and I helped Armeen with pipetting.
Friday: In the morning, I examined actual images of oligodendrocytes and microglia. I observed that the microglia nucleolus appeared very faint in the images, which my mentor found interesting and wanted to investigate further. I spent the rest of the morning working on my iPOL slides.
Blog Prompts
Prompt: Describe your internship project.
Response: For my internship project, I will be analyzing the size of the nucleolus in brain cells. Specifically, I will be looking at the size of the nucleolus in glial cells, such as oligodendrocytes and astrocytes. I will compare the nucleolus size in a “normal” mouse brain to that in a Down syndrome mouse brain to see if there are differences. At my iPOL presentation, I will showcase the data I collected using various images and graphs. To conduct this experiment, I will analyze data and run codes. I am using FIJI ImageJ to analyze images of brain cells taken with the Nikon microscope. If we find significant differences in nucleolus size between Down syndrome and normal cells, the lab can investigate further. This research might eventually contribute to neural cell therapy developments for individuals with Down syndrome.
Response: For my internship project, I will be analyzing the size of the nucleolus in brain cells. Specifically, I will be looking at the size of the nucleolus in glial cells, such as oligodendrocytes and astrocytes. I will compare the nucleolus size in a “normal” mouse brain to that in a Down syndrome mouse brain to see if there are differences. At my iPOL presentation, I will showcase the data I collected using various images and graphs. To conduct this experiment, I will analyze data and run codes. I am using FIJI ImageJ to analyze images of brain cells taken with the Nikon microscope. If we find significant differences in nucleolus size between Down syndrome and normal cells, the lab can investigate further. This research might eventually contribute to neural cell therapy developments for individuals with Down syndrome.
Prompt: How do you see yourself growing or changing over the course of your internship?
Response: I feel like I am becoming more comfortable asking questions and making mistakes. In the first few days, I felt lost and pressured to know everything immediately. This week, I’ve grown more comfortable with not understanding certain concepts at first. I now see this internship as an opportunity to learn and grow, not to be perfect. I am also asking more questions, which allows me to learn as much as possible.
Prompt: How has or do you see your internship changing the way you consider the paths your future will take?
Response: I’ve enjoyed this internship much more than I anticipated. I really like the lab setting, where the work is a mix of experimental and data analysis. I’ve loved researching different cell types and learning about the brain just as much as I have loved doing hands on expiriments. Before the internship, I was undecided between a few different majors, but now I can definitely see myself pursuing a degree in chemistry or biology.
Week Three
January 21st-24th
Daily log
Tuesday: This morning, I started running the code and analyzing the data from the Down syndrome mouse brain. I ran into an issue where some of the brains still had blood in them, causing autofluorescence and skewing the data. Luckily, Armeen had already prepared new mouse brains to be imaged. I spent the rest of the day working on my POL slides.
Wednesday: In the morning, I finished analyzing the data for the Down syndrome mouse brain. I created graphs comparing nucleolus size in Down syndrome versus control samples. Honestly, I didn’t find much of a difference, but the blood in the brain could be skewing the results. In the afternoon, Armeen taught me how to use the microscope, and we spent a couple of hours setting it up to run imaging overnight.
Thursday: In the morning, we helped Armeen set up his next experiment. He let us follow the procedures, and we finished washing the cells and adding the primary antibody before they needed to sit overnight. In the afternoon, we took more images of the brain I’ll be analyzing, and I taught Naijalee how to use the microscope. We set up another overnight imaging job.
Friday: Naijalee and I helped Armeen in the lab. We finished the experiment from Thursday, washing the cells multiple times and mixing chemicals to make them fluoresce. It was a tedious but fun process. We also practiced gowning up to work in the hood, where live cells are handled. The experiment took most of the day.
Wednesday: In the morning, I finished analyzing the data for the Down syndrome mouse brain. I created graphs comparing nucleolus size in Down syndrome versus control samples. Honestly, I didn’t find much of a difference, but the blood in the brain could be skewing the results. In the afternoon, Armeen taught me how to use the microscope, and we spent a couple of hours setting it up to run imaging overnight.
Thursday: In the morning, we helped Armeen set up his next experiment. He let us follow the procedures, and we finished washing the cells and adding the primary antibody before they needed to sit overnight. In the afternoon, we took more images of the brain I’ll be analyzing, and I taught Naijalee how to use the microscope. We set up another overnight imaging job.
Friday: Naijalee and I helped Armeen in the lab. We finished the experiment from Thursday, washing the cells multiple times and mixing chemicals to make them fluoresce. It was a tedious but fun process. We also practiced gowning up to work in the hood, where live cells are handled. The experiment took most of the day.
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Blog Prompts
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Prompt: How is the project going? What challenges have you faced? One challenge I faced was that one of the mouse brains we imaged still had a lot of blood in it. This was a problem because, under the microscope on one of the channels, the blood automatically fluoresced and drowned out the signals from the cell I wanted to see. It also caused issues when we ran the code to count nucleoli per cell, as the blood was mistakenly identified as large cells, which messed up the data. This made the data unusable, but we backtracked and stained a new mouse brain with different markers that highlight the same cells. We ran the microscope overnight on Wednesday and Thursday to capture new images. Now, next week, I can redo the analysis and have accurate data to present for my project. The image at the top shows the oligodendrocytes, where each circle represents a cell. In contrast, the image at the bottom shows bright purple lines, which are blood. Because of the blood, the cells are not clearly visible.
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Prompt: Post the highlights from your mentor interview.
Response: During my mentor interview, Armeen shared how a DNA experiment in middle school sparked his interest in STEM and eventually led to a career in science. He spoke about overcoming challenges like imposter syndrome and emphasized embracing the unknown, saying, “Be comfortable not knowing. It doesn’t make you any less capable of becoming a great scientist.” This quote stood out to me because it reminded me that uncertainty is a natural part of learning and growing in science. He shared about his mother's journey as a mom and immigrant in the science fields and how he inspired him to not t be discouraged by challenges.
Response: During my mentor interview, Armeen shared how a DNA experiment in middle school sparked his interest in STEM and eventually led to a career in science. He spoke about overcoming challenges like imposter syndrome and emphasized embracing the unknown, saying, “Be comfortable not knowing. It doesn’t make you any less capable of becoming a great scientist.” This quote stood out to me because it reminded me that uncertainty is a natural part of learning and growing in science. He shared about his mother's journey as a mom and immigrant in the science fields and how he inspired him to not t be discouraged by challenges.
Week Four
January 27th-31st
Daily Log
Monday: Today was pretty chill. In the morning, my mentor presented during the lab meeting, which took up most of the morning. After lunch, I worked on analyzing more images and creating graphs. I also helped Armeen with some experiments in the lab.
Tuesday: Today was very hands on and busy. I spent most of the day working in the lab. Naijalee and I each got our own brain slices and started staining them in order to take pretty pictures later on. We added primary antibodies and washed the slides. When we weren’t staining, I worked on my IPOL.
Wednesday: Today was very busy. In the morning, I performed a mouse perfusion, which was terrifying but also fun. I had to cut it open, insert a needle into its heart while it was still alive, and then eventually cut off the head and extract the brain. It was a long and messy process. In the afternoon, we added secondary antibodies and mounted the brain tissue that I had started staining the day before.
Thursday: In the morning, we got to observe how the mouse brains are sliced and put onto slides in a process called cryosectioning. Naijalee and I had some time to play around with the microscope and image the slides we stained over the past few days. The pictures turned out really nice!
Friday: Today, I worked on creating more slides for our IPOL and added our data. I also met with Hiruy, who is like the head of the lab, and he helped us structure our presentation. Later, me and Naijalee watched Grace and Armeen prepare for Western blots and helped them out a bit.
Tuesday: Today was very hands on and busy. I spent most of the day working in the lab. Naijalee and I each got our own brain slices and started staining them in order to take pretty pictures later on. We added primary antibodies and washed the slides. When we weren’t staining, I worked on my IPOL.
Wednesday: Today was very busy. In the morning, I performed a mouse perfusion, which was terrifying but also fun. I had to cut it open, insert a needle into its heart while it was still alive, and then eventually cut off the head and extract the brain. It was a long and messy process. In the afternoon, we added secondary antibodies and mounted the brain tissue that I had started staining the day before.
Thursday: In the morning, we got to observe how the mouse brains are sliced and put onto slides in a process called cryosectioning. Naijalee and I had some time to play around with the microscope and image the slides we stained over the past few days. The pictures turned out really nice!
Friday: Today, I worked on creating more slides for our IPOL and added our data. I also met with Hiruy, who is like the head of the lab, and he helped us structure our presentation. Later, me and Naijalee watched Grace and Armeen prepare for Western blots and helped them out a bit.
Blog Prompts
Prompt: What are social interactions like in your workplace?
Response: There’s a good mix of social time and quiet work time in the lab. Most people are working on multiple projects simultaneously, so they’re often busy with those. However, many collaborate in pairs on specific projects so they conduct experiments and analysis together. Sometimes, people will help each other with experiments or analyzing data for fun. Lunch is a fun time, where everyone in the lab usually eats together. There’s also a weekly lab meeting every Monday that everyone is required to attend.
Response: There’s a good mix of social time and quiet work time in the lab. Most people are working on multiple projects simultaneously, so they’re often busy with those. However, many collaborate in pairs on specific projects so they conduct experiments and analysis together. Sometimes, people will help each other with experiments or analyzing data for fun. Lunch is a fun time, where everyone in the lab usually eats together. There’s also a weekly lab meeting every Monday that everyone is required to attend.
Prompt: Describe how experiences at HTHMA have prepared you for your experience at internship.
Response I feel like presenting at school has really helped me, especially when preparing for my IPOL and creating slides. My mentor’s boss is really pushing us to make a great presentation, focusing primarily on our project, and honestly, it’s one of the most challenging presentations I’ve ever had to make. This is also the most high-stakes POL or SLC I’ve done in my nine years at High Tech, but all the ones I’ve done before have prepared me well. Another way my experiences at HTHMA have helped is with managing my time. At school, we have a lot of open work time, which means I have to be good at managing my time and it’s the
same in the lab.
Response I feel like presenting at school has really helped me, especially when preparing for my IPOL and creating slides. My mentor’s boss is really pushing us to make a great presentation, focusing primarily on our project, and honestly, it’s one of the most challenging presentations I’ve ever had to make. This is also the most high-stakes POL or SLC I’ve done in my nine years at High Tech, but all the ones I’ve done before have prepared me well. Another way my experiences at HTHMA have helped is with managing my time. At school, we have a lot of open work time, which means I have to be good at managing my time and it’s the
same in the lab.
Week Five
February 3rd-7th
Daily Log
Monday: Today we had a really long lab meeting in the morning. Kenzie and Ashley presented, and it was really interesting to hear about the latest developments in their projects. After lunch, Naijalee and I had a meeting with Hiruy about our IPOL slides. He helped us format them some more, and we worked on organizing the content in a way that made it much clearer and more engaging.
Tuesday: In the morning, we had our practice IPOL presentation in front of the entire lab. Sadie came to watch, and it was really nice having her there for support. After the presentation, we had a long lunch with her, and it was great to chat about the lab and catch up. In the afternoon, I focused on editing my IPOL slides. I worked on adding more detail to the visuals and adjusted the flow to make the content clearer and more engaging.
Wednesday: Wednesday was fun and hands-on. In the morning, we watched Armeen and Grace do western blots. It was fun to watch and I learned a lot about the techniques involved which were very different from what we have been doing. Afterward, in the afternoon, while Armeen was working with the cells, Naijalee and I took on the task of washing and staining some of the other cells he was working on.
Thursday: Today was mostly focused on more practice for the IPOL presentation. We spent the morning reviewing our slides, practicing our talking points, and discussing how we could improve our delivery. It was helpful to go through it all again because it gave me a chance to fine-tune the presentation and build more confidence. We also helped Armeen with a few tasks in the lab. In the afternoon, I spent time working on my blog.
Friday: Presentation day! In the morning, I had my IPOL presentation, and it went really well. I was a bit nervous at first, but once I got into it, it got less nerve racking. It was so rewarding to present everything I’ve been working on. After the presentation, we gave a tour of the lab to the sophomores. It was fun showing them around and explaining the different areas and equipment. We had lunch with the whole lab afterward, and it was a great time. We played a fun Kahoot game, which included questions about what my mentor had taught us, as well as random science facts and trivia about the people in the lab. To wrap up the internship, I helped Armeen one last time with an experiment. We did a lot of micropipetting and dilutions, which was a great way to end the week on a hands-on note. I've had a busy, fun five weeks, and am so glad I interned here!
Tuesday: In the morning, we had our practice IPOL presentation in front of the entire lab. Sadie came to watch, and it was really nice having her there for support. After the presentation, we had a long lunch with her, and it was great to chat about the lab and catch up. In the afternoon, I focused on editing my IPOL slides. I worked on adding more detail to the visuals and adjusted the flow to make the content clearer and more engaging.
Wednesday: Wednesday was fun and hands-on. In the morning, we watched Armeen and Grace do western blots. It was fun to watch and I learned a lot about the techniques involved which were very different from what we have been doing. Afterward, in the afternoon, while Armeen was working with the cells, Naijalee and I took on the task of washing and staining some of the other cells he was working on.
Thursday: Today was mostly focused on more practice for the IPOL presentation. We spent the morning reviewing our slides, practicing our talking points, and discussing how we could improve our delivery. It was helpful to go through it all again because it gave me a chance to fine-tune the presentation and build more confidence. We also helped Armeen with a few tasks in the lab. In the afternoon, I spent time working on my blog.
Friday: Presentation day! In the morning, I had my IPOL presentation, and it went really well. I was a bit nervous at first, but once I got into it, it got less nerve racking. It was so rewarding to present everything I’ve been working on. After the presentation, we gave a tour of the lab to the sophomores. It was fun showing them around and explaining the different areas and equipment. We had lunch with the whole lab afterward, and it was a great time. We played a fun Kahoot game, which included questions about what my mentor had taught us, as well as random science facts and trivia about the people in the lab. To wrap up the internship, I helped Armeen one last time with an experiment. We did a lot of micropipetting and dilutions, which was a great way to end the week on a hands-on note. I've had a busy, fun five weeks, and am so glad I interned here!
Blog Prompts
Prompt: Describe what you are most thankful for in your internship experience?
Response: I am so thankful to have gotten to know everyone in the lab. My mentor, Armeen, is literally the sweetest guy. He always made sure that Naijalee and I understood what we were doing and why we were doing it. He also shared a lot about his life and gave us great advice. Grace was the same; she was always so kind and supportive. I just loved the whole environment and the people. Through this experience, I’ve learned to truly appreciate those around me and be thankful for them. On the last day, everyone in the lab had lunch together, and we all played Kahoot. It was so much fun!
Response: I am so thankful to have gotten to know everyone in the lab. My mentor, Armeen, is literally the sweetest guy. He always made sure that Naijalee and I understood what we were doing and why we were doing it. He also shared a lot about his life and gave us great advice. Grace was the same; she was always so kind and supportive. I just loved the whole environment and the people. Through this experience, I’ve learned to truly appreciate those around me and be thankful for them. On the last day, everyone in the lab had lunch together, and we all played Kahoot. It was so much fun!
Prompt: What ideas, skills, connections and so on will you bring back to the rest of your life? Will you continue working with your internship beyond February of 2025?
Response: I will hopefullt come back in the summer, which is exciting and made saying goodbye a little easier. I know I can take so many skills from this internship into other areas of my life. Now, I can confidently micropipette, create dilutions, and use parts of Fiji imageJ and Excel. I am also a lot more comfortable in a lab setting. I’ve learned so many valuable skills that I know will be useful in the future, especially if I continue down the STEM path which, after this internship, I most likely will!
Response: I will hopefullt come back in the summer, which is exciting and made saying goodbye a little easier. I know I can take so many skills from this internship into other areas of my life. Now, I can confidently micropipette, create dilutions, and use parts of Fiji imageJ and Excel. I am also a lot more comfortable in a lab setting. I’ve learned so many valuable skills that I know will be useful in the future, especially if I continue down the STEM path which, after this internship, I most likely will!
