BBI Intern Victoria Mabatah (left) and her supervisor Ivan Woo: 'I feel I’m learning how to think like a scientist.'
It’s likely that few, if any, young scientists can claim their careers were inspired by studying a recently deceased icon of heavy metal music.
Two years ago, BBI summer intern Victoria Mabatah, in her first year as an undergrad at The Ohio State University, enrolled in a course promising to “investigate the genetic evidence of past human drug use, the genetic revelations and techniques involved in therapeutic drug use and addiction behavior today, and the role of genetics in the future of therapeutics.”
But rather than the description, it was the course’s clever title that attracted Mabatah: “Drug Culture and Genetics: Revelations from Otzi to Ozzy.”
“Ozzy” as in Ozzy Osbourne.
“This class really sparked my interest in diving deeper into precision medicine,” said Mabatah. “The instructor, Dr. Leslie Newman, was very engaging.”
“Engaging” also describes 20-year-old Mabatah.
Spend a few minutes with her and it is evident she has an enthusiastic “passion and drive” to study – and eventually practice – precision medicine combining her interest in pharmaceuticals, cardiology, and molecular genetics. She intends to apply to M.D. – Ph.D. programs after finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in two years.
Toward that goal, she also takes advantage of opportunities to glean insights and advice from others at the university, including Richard Gumina, M.D., Ph.D. He is a professor of Internal Medicine and Physiology and Cell Biology, who also serves as the director of the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and is a practicing cardiologist.
“It was inspiring to meet with another person, who is doing what you aspire to do,” Mabatah said.
His advice, she said, was helpful to put her career goals in context, especially given the number of years required to finish both degrees.
“He said, ‘When you’re doing something you really like, it’s not that long if you’re reaching toward something you really want to do,’” Mabatah said.
In the meantime, during the academic year, Mabatah is working part-time as a research assistant in the lab of Christine Cucinotta, Ph.D., at the University’s Department of Molecular Genetics. The lab conducts research on chromatin reprogramming during cellular dormancy. She started the position in May of last year; her duties include performing molecular protocols and learning bioinformatics techniques for genomic data analysis.
At BBI, she is working in the lab of Dr. Lea Starita, Ph.D., under the supervision of Ivan Woo, who is pursuing a graduate education in the biological sciences.
“Victoria is curious and always willing to learn,” he said. “She is never scared to ask me questions.”
In the Starita Lab, her projects involve applying chemotherapy treatments to increase the sensitivity of the Saturation Genome Editing assay, which evaluates whether single letter changes in DNA result in a gene losing its function.
“I find interest in learning how to critically evaluate and refine experimental approaches in response to unexpected outcomes,” Mabatah said.
It is likely Mabatah will encounter many more “unexpected outcomes” when her internship ends August 23 and she returns to Columbus, Ohio to finish her undergrad degree, and later, begins charting the next course of her studies. The UW experience and working in the Starita Lab, she said, has led to an invaluable skill she will carry for her rest of her career.
“I feel I’m learning how to think like a scientist,” she said.
