Two graduate students in the Yale Department of Genetics have been awarded three years of funding for both research and science outreach under the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Rebecca Starble from the Xiao lab and Cecelia Harold from the Baserga lab are this year’s recipients.
Both students focus their research on the role of genetics in disease and cancer development. In the Xiao lab, Starble explores how DNA methylation—the addition of methyl groups to DNA—can affect the behavior of cancer cells, specifically drug-resistance in lung cancer. “It is really remarkable that changes in epigenetic regulation, such as DNA methylation, can have such profound effects on the way that cancer cells behave. I hope that by understanding how epigenetic modifications affect genomic regulation at the molecular level we can further uncover how epigenetic mechanisms could be exploited for cancer treatment.”
The Baserga lab explores the effects of ribosome biogenesis—the process of making ribosomes—on the development of cancers and rare genetic diseases known as ribosomopathies. Harold focuses on researching the regulators of ribosome biogenesis, specifically studying the role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in this crucial process.
What further unites Starble and Harold is their passion for science outreach; both students have dedicated a significant amount of their time at Yale to furthering STEM education in the local New Haven community. “I strive to make science accessible and fun as early on in education as possible,” says Harold, who mentors middle school students through the New Haven Science Fair. She is also active on the board of the Yale Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) chapter and volunteers with the Girls’ Science Investigations through the Yale Department of Physics to promote underrepresented groups in STEM.
Starble similarly comments, “I hope to inspire young students to pursue scientific research similar to the way that so many of my mentors have inspired me. I am especially committed to increasing diversity in the sciences by mentoring students from underrepresented backgrounds.” Like Harold, Starble mentors students through the New Haven Science Fair. She also spearheaded a tutoring program connecting Yale graduate students with students in New Haven public schools, which she plans to continue leading as an NSF fellow.
Starble and Harold join last year’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program awardees Myles Alderman from the Xiao lab and Mark Noble from the Noonan lab. Through the support of both the Yale Genetics Department and the National Science Foundation, Starble and Harold continue their passions for both research and outreach.