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Chanyoung P

- Research Program Mentor

PhD candidate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Expertise

Biology of regeneration and stem cells, cancer biology, general biology

Bio

I am a graduate student at MIT where I study the molecular underpinnings of tissue regeneration and homeostasis in flatworms. My primary interest is to understand how stem cells, which form all the differentiated tissues in the animal, know what to become with correct timing and spatial precision. To answer these questions, I am applying newly developed techniques in spatial transcriptomics to understand patterns of gene expression across regeneration at single cell resolution. Outside of lab, I like to bake and bike around town. The Boston/Cambridge area has a lot to offer, and it is often easier to get around on bike than by car. I recently converted to an ebike, and have been exploring more ways to improve my rides even more.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

How does death help regeneration?

While many consider regeneration a largely proliferative event, it is often paired with waves of cell death that are vital to the process. Programmed cell death is also an important component of development in many species. However, the role of these controlled death events has not been fully elucidated, and the existing data has not been synthesized to provide a clearer picture. There are lots of unanswered questions that can be potentially explored through detailed literature reviews.

Credentials

Education

Amherst College
BA Bachelor of Arts (2016)
Biochemistry and Biophysics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
PhD Doctor of Philosophy candidate
Molecular Biology

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