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Lauren L

- Research Program Mentor

PhD at University of Wisconsin

Expertise

General Biology, Bacteriology, Human Gut Microbiome, Environmental Microbiology, Metabolomics/Lipidomics

Bio

I am a postdoctoral researcher with a PhD in Microbiology (the study of microorganisms). I study bacteria in the human gut to learn how those bacteria modify metabolites produced by the human host. Mentoring students has allowed me to combine my love for microbiology, my love for learning, and my love for teaching all into a single activity. Here's the link to a recent paper I've published: https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mSystems.00805-21 Outside of the lab, I love to go rock climbing, biking, kayaking, hiking, and foraging! But I also love crafting, playing with my cat, and reading books =]

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.

We Are Living in a Microbial World

In this project students will explore microbial metabolisms that take place in a chosen ecosystem. This ecosystem may be the human gut, a favorite fermented food or drink, or even a deep sea hydrothermal vent. You will draw and label the ecosystem with which microbes are present, what they're doing, and how they're interacting.

Write a review paper on a topic that interests you!

Together we can choose a topic that's narrow enough to research, but broad enough that it contributes to a scientific field. Then you will perform research to refine the topic and define the organization of the paper. I will teach you how to use Zotero or Mendeley as a citation tracker and notetaker. Using what you've learned from your research, you will outline, write, and revise so that by the end of our 10 sessions you should have a publishable review paper. Key aspects of review papers: synthesis of information, critiques of data and data interpretation, identification of future areas of study that would contribute to the field. Because I have a lot of experience performing research and writing reviews, I am comfortable advising mentees on a broad range of review paper topics, including but not limited to those I list below. Potential topics for review: -Private university vs public university graduate student stipends -Gut bacterial metabolism of [insert topic of interest] -Role of gut bacteria in onset of [insert disease of interest] -Applications of natural pH indicators to reduce environmental impact -Your unique idea!

Coding skills

n/a

Languages I know

Spanish, beginner

Teaching experience

Mentoring: I have mentored 6 students in wet lab procedures. I try to identify students who are most in need of wet lab experience in order to pursue their desired graduate schools or medical schools. I work with each student individually to ensure proper training, identify short-term and long-term goals, and to provide academic and professional development support. Teaching: I have been a teacher's assistant for a college class on bacterial physiology. In that role, I graded assignments, hosted office hours, lectured, and served as a liaison between students and the professor. In addition, I have developed a 3-week unit as part of a larger, 13-week course that I taught remotely. I had 16 students and covered core concepts in biology and discussed the plethora of major and career opportunities for students in STEM.

Credentials

Work experience

UW-Madison - Amador-Noguez Lab (2017 - 2023)
Graduate Student
UC Berkeley - John Coates Lab (2013 - 2017)
Research Associate
UC Berkeley - John Coates Lab (2011 - 2013)
Undergraduate volunteer
UW Madison - Federico Rey and Daniel Amador-Noguez Labs (2023 - Current)
Postdoctoral Researcher

Education

University of California Berkeley (UC Berkeley)
BS Bachelor of Science (2013)
Microbiology (B.S.) and Integrative Biology (B.A.)
University of Wisconsin
PhD Doctor of Philosophy
Microbiology

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