The Carolyn Slayman Prize in Genetics recognizes students for remarkable scientific achievements and exceptional contributions to the scientific community. The prize is named in honor of Dr. Carolyn Walch Slayman, Sterling Professor of Genetics. This year, the prize has been jointly awarded to Dr. Rebecca Starble and Dr. Danielle Miyagishima.
Starble conducted her PhD research in Andrew Xiao’s lab. Her graduate dissertation reports the discovery of an unexpected mechanism regulating therapeutic resistance in lung adenocarcinoma. Her work identifies a new chromatin factor regulating amplification of oncogenes, which promote cancer progression, and shows that depletion of the chromatin factor prevents therapeutic resistance. This work suggests new approaches for preventing therapeutic resistance in lung cancer.
Starble served on the Graduate Student Assembly and the Graduate and Professional Student Senate where she represented graduate students. One of Starble’s goals throughout her PhD was to help decrease systemic barriers within academia that prevent many students from even considering a scientific career. One of the most meaningful aspects of graduate school for Starble was having the opportunity to work with and learn from students in the New Haven Public School district through science and educational outreach organizations that she helped spearhead. “In particular, I really enjoyed helping to develop and run BioScience Club, a high school program that aims to teach experimental techniques that can be directly used in the STEM workforce through hands-on laboratory experiments. This program has not only reaffirmed the impact of early exposure to STEM, but it has also illuminated the importance of forming long-standing relationships with the community.”
Next, Starble will begin as a YSM Science Fellow in the Yale Pathology Department, where she aims to further elucidate the function and mechanisms of oncogene amplification in tumor evolution. She is particularly interested in uncovering novel factors that promote structural variation in tumorigenesis with the eventual goal of exploiting these factors therapeutically. Ultimately, she hopes to establish an independent research program in the field of cancer epigenetics, combining her passions for cancer biology research and mentorship.
Of her time in the Genetics department, Starble says “I have greatly enjoyed being part of such a collaborative and collegial department. I received so much valuable scientific feedback throughout my PhD from many members of the department that greatly propelled my project forward. The department is also very scientifically diverse, which has really helped me to think about science from different perspectives and learn about fields other than my own.”
The joint recipient of the prize, Miyagishima conducted her PhD research in Murat Günel’s lab. Her graduate dissertation provides a comprehensive cellular and molecular examination of meningiomas, tumors that grow from the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. Her work uncovers spatial compartmentalization within meningiomas, identifies predominant signaling pathways active in meningiomas, and reveals complex hormonal regulation within the tumor microenvironment. This comprehensive understanding of the tumor ecosystem suggests a systems-based therapeutic approach.
Miyagishima is the co-founder of the Yale Cushing Society, whose mission is to foster a direct educational and research interface between Yale undergraduates and medical students and neurosurgery residents and faculty, and she contributed to efforts to enhance opportunities for members of underrepresented communities to pursue careers in medicine. During the COVID-19 pandemic she worked to combat vaccine misinformation and to help increase access to vaccines to refugees and low-income communities. Miyagishima was also involved in the founding of the New Haven Global Shapers Hub, which aims to provide opportunities to work with changemakers around the world on a wide variety of impact areas.
Reflecting on her service, Miyagishima says “that nothing good happens without a great team and that science can take us far but getting society at large to buy-in is equally important. I hope to continue to contribute to making sure that scientific knowledge and advancements are accessible to as many people as possible.”
Danielle is currently finishing her MD as part of the Medical Scientist Training Program and preparing to apply to neurosurgery residency programs. As part of her preparation, she will do sub internships at Massachusetts General Hospital and New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Campus this summer. Ultimately, Danielle hopes to emulate her mentors and become a neurosurgeon-scientist doing both basic and translational research.