Lauris Dang ’24 moved from Vietnam to Stockton only six years ago. When she came to Pacific to major in biochemistry, she discovered her passion for laboratory research. This summer, thanks to Pacific’s Stauffer Charitable Trust Challenge Grant, she has been able to work full time in Professor Georgios Pantouris’s lab at Pacific researching ways to fight cancer.
Why I applied for Pacific’s Stauffer Charitable Trust Challenge Grant
Before I got into the program, I worked as a pharmacy associate to support my college expenses, especially my tuition. The Stauffer Grant allowed me to focus on my lab research full time while I’m still able to support myself financially.
To get into the program you need to have a professor’s recommendation and my professor, Georgios Pantouris, recommended that I should apply for the grant. You also have to write an abstract about how the grant is going to help you as a student. A good GPA is also important because the internship is not only selective about your skills in research but also your academic achievements.
My research
I’m investigating a protein called D-dopachrome tautomerase (D-DT) which is an immunomodulatory cytokine with an established negative contribution on tumor survival, proliferation and metastasis. In Dr. Pantouris’s lab, we are trying to understand better the functionality of D-DT in cancer which could help to develop anti-cancer therapeutics in the future.
What I do in the lab
In the lab, we all work independently on our own projects. My duties vary depending on the stage of my project and what my focus of the day is. For instance, I may have to express, purify, characterize or crystallize various proteins, prepare reagents for an upcoming experiment and assist with lab-related assignments.
How I collaborate with professors and fellow students
I am working closely with my graduate student Andrew Parkins and I discuss my project with Dr. Pantouris on a regular basis. Also, we have lab meetings every week. That’s when I have the opportunity to share my thoughts, project concerns and achievements with my lab mates.
The skills I’m learning
For each project, the Pantouris lab employs a multidisciplinary approach at the interface of chemistry and biology. Although I am not an expert in any of the techniques, I was fortunate to learn a lot. For instance, I learned how to express, purify, and crystallize a protein, characterize it biochemically using steady-state kinetics, and synthesize small molecule inhibitors. I also had the opportunity to get an idea of mammalian cell culture. I was also able to solidify my pipetting techniques.
“Self-doubt is a scary but magnificent tool. Doubting yourself is what makes a good scientist. You have to doubt your assumptions and hypothesis until you prove your doubts wrong with empirical evidence.”
Besides that, I grew confident in my problem-solving skills as I tackled new obstacles. Self-doubt is a scary but magnificent tool. Doubting yourself is what makes a good scientist. You have to doubt your assumptions and hypothesis until you prove your doubts wrong with empirical evidence. For example, when the results come out well, you cannot think “I didn’t do it right. It just came out like this by accident.” I think confidence is really important.
The next steps for my research
Ultimate goal is to produce a research paper. I will continue working on this project until we publish our work. Besides publication, I would also like to attend a national science conference. Discussing my research with other scientists would provide an unbiased evaluation of my work and help me to improve its quality. My lab really supports this idea, so I am looking forward to this opportunity.
My advice for students who are interested in studying science
Learn to be sure of yourself. It will come from experience. If you’re passionate enough, you will be noticed eventually and if you have a chance to work in a lab, accept it because you will have one-on-one interactions with more experienced graduate students. In a real lab, you can learn a lot of practical skills, like pipetting, that can be used in other science laboratory courses. More than that, you can also learn about life from your lab mates, graduate students and professors. Ultimately, if you are interested in science, continue delving into it no matter how intimidating it might be at first. With enough time and practice, you will learn more than you ever expected.