NSU student Abigail Poe, far right, was among 10 participants from across the nation taking part in the LSU Health Shreveport Department of Microbiology and Immunology’s Undergraduate Biomedical Research Fellowship Program. Poe is with fellow research fellowship program participant Erin Holcomb, far left, and graduate student mentor Julia Myers.
NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University senior Abigail Poe of Natchitoches was one of 10 participants from across the nation taking part in the LSU Health Shreveport Department of Microbiology and Immunology’s Undergraduate Biomedical Research Fellowship Program.
Poe worked in Associate Professor Rona Scott’s lab to research HPV’s influence on retinoblastoma protein and EBV’s influence on host cell differentiation.
“This program fully immersed us in grad school life,” said Poe, a biology major with a biomedical concentration. “Having participated in research at NSU gave me a good foundation in basic techniques that I was able to build on. Some new skills I learned included cell culturing, organotypic rafting, Western and Southern blots and immunofluorescence.”
During the fellowship, the students attended weekly seminars, workshops, journal clubs and social events. The fellowship ended with a poster presentation and a party. Poe was invited to continue her work in Scott’s lab over the coming year.
Northwestern State’s School of Biological and Physical Sciences offers several comprehensive programs that prepare students to enter into the job market competitively at the bachelor level or to further their education in either graduate or professional school. For more information, go to sciences.nsula.edu.
