I am a graduate student working in the Melissa Harris lab, my current research involves studying the effects of overexpression of transcription factor sox10 on melanocyte stem cells in mice. Sox10 is a transcription factor involved in the process of melanogenesis, the production and differentiation of melanocytes. The overexpression appears to cause early graying in mice, which is exasperated when the immune system is under stress from the viral mimic Poly(I:C), my aim is to elucidate the mechanism for the loss of melanocyte stem cells in these mice. This leads to me also working on studying the effects of elevated immune responses on melanocyte stem cell populations. In my free time I enjoy sitting back with music, reading, and creative writing.
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Melissa Harris