CMU student compares worm and human genes for senior Honors project
Editor’s note: This is the second story following a student working on their Honors Program senior project.
Freeland senior Mariah Hanson knew the research she was conducting for her Honors project was not going to be a short process.
Not all students doing projects have the opportunity to continue research after the completion of the project paper. But Hanson does.
Because of the nature of her project, “Immunocytochemistry of several RNP granule components in an inx-14 mutant strain of Caenorhabditis elegans,” Hanson is able to continue with research if she desires. Hanson has passed the planning stage and is now working on identifying specific genes.
“I think it’s really interesting research,” Hanson said. “You really have to have an interest in the research you’re going to do, otherwise you’re not going to be driven to complete it.”
Hanson’s goal is to understand more about viability of human eggs as a woman gets older.
The chance to continue research after completing her project allows Hanson to take her time and focus on every detail.
Lab work
The Honors Program suggests students not worry too much about mastering everything mentioned in a proposal, but instead take a little part of the proposal and learn the process completely, said Honors Program Director James Hill.
Hanson is working with other student researching various aspects of the lab work.
The first goal for Hanson and her colleagues is to work on identifying genes in the C. elegans, which can help them figure out which genes pertain to reproduction. Along the way, they can find out what genes are homologues to human genes, which means they serve a similar purpose.
The lab Hanson is working in has the opportunity to identify up to 1,000 of the roughly 20,000 individual genes of these microscopic worms throughout the semester.
“We’ve successfully identified between 20 and 30 genes so far. In this case, we are looking for genes that allow the eggs to maintain viability,” she said.
Within the eggs of these worms are ribonucleoprotein granules, and what Hanson is trying to find out is how they got there and if they affect the fertilization of an egg.
Hanson’s adviser and associate professor of biology Jennifer Schisa has been with Hanson for the gene identification process thus far.
In previous semesters and summers, Hanson discovered RNP granules do not assemble normally in the worms, Schisa said.
Hanson also has discovered other genes involved in the granule formation process, Schisa said.
Hanson and her fellow researchers are continuing to identify genes. The more genes they identify, the better the chance they have of figuring out which genes exactly have an effect on the viability of this model organism.
The next step in her project, she said, is to compare the worm and human genes.
