Elizabethtown College School of Sciences students immersed themselves in their fields of study, putting their talents and skill sets to use alongside working professionals during various internship experiences during the summer of 2022.

A few highlights of these exceptional student experiences can be found below.

Brinley Beveridge ’23 (Biology & Neuroscience)

Internship: Research Assistant at the University of Pennsylvania, Stellar Chance Laboratories

While serving as a research assistant, Beveridge worked directly with a PhD candidate on various experiments and performed multiple PCR reactions, TeSLA assays, Co-FISH and other immunofluorescence experiments.

“This summer gave me the opportunity to expand upon the laboratory techniques learned here at Elizabethtown College,” Beveridge said. “This also gave me the opportunity to better my resume for veterinary school!”

Brooke Charria ’23 (Biology, Pre-Medical)

Internship: Summer Undergraduate Internship Program Intern at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine in the laboratory of Carl June.

At UPenn, Charria expanded her laboratory skillset through contributions to a project on phosphatase signaling in CAR-T cells. There, she also learned cell and molecular biology techniques, worked with CRISPR/Cas9, and performed a wide variety of in vitro assays to test CAR-T cell effector function.

“Having the opportunity to learn from some of the best in the field has allowed me to cultivate a passion and understanding of immunotherapy, and more specifically, CAR-T cells,” Charria said. “As someone that wants to pursue both research and medicine as a future career, being able to work in the field of translational research has allowed me to gain a deeper appreciation of how lifesaving therapies are developed.”

Emma Miller ’23 (Biotechnology)

Internship: Jefferson Institute for Bioprocessing

During Miller’s internship, she worked with her intern group to culture and harvest induced pluripotent stem cells, neural progenitor cells, and mesenchymal stem cells to study the success of commercially available DMSO-free formulations on cell viability following cryopreservation. She also assisted with factor assessments using primary literature sources, writing SOPs, and creating a DOE for an in-house study of principle cryoprotectants.

Outside of the lab, Miller had the opportunity to learn about the business dealings of the biopharmaceutical and bioprocessing industry by sitting in on meetings with the company funding our project.

“Through this internship, I was able to meet and make connections with individuals currently working in the industry,” Miller said. “I also learned how to use important machines within the industry such as a flow cytometer to visualize the viability of cells after cryopreservation.”

Darci Ott ’23 (Biotechnology)

Internship: Research Intern at the University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus

Ott completed independent research in a virology lab, working on determining the presence of a specific tumor suppressor protein (p21) in gamma-herpesvirus infected cells; the process involved infecting cells, then running Western Blot Assays on them to investigate the presence of this and other proteins.

Ott’s work was in contribution to cancer research, diving into the regulation of cell division and immunosurveillance in response to viral infection.

“Through this internship, I have found that I am much more comfortable doing full-time research and I embrace all that comes with that – including failure,” Ott said. “In these 10 weeks, I have been met with roadblock upon roadblock, yet the knowledge that I’m contributing to an important cause powers my resolve to troubleshoot and continue forward. My problem-solving skills have drastically improved, giving me the greatest skill of all: perseverance.”

Interested in a School of Sciences program at Elizabethtown College? Our School of Sciences engages our students in the scientific study of biology, chemistry, environmental science, psychology, and their intersections all while fostering your skills and knowledge to improve the health and well-being of people, animals and our environment. Discover more.