Emily has worked as an Undergraduate Researcher in the Hawley lab since January 2018, under the guidance of Dr. Katie Billmyre, a postdoctoral researcher. Recently, Emily completed a published project investigating how genetic background affected synaptonemal complex (SC)maintenance in Drosophila melanogaster. Surprisingly, the genetic background effect worsened when heterozygous for a c(3)G null allele (the transverse filament component of the SC). Additionally, she is working on characterizing a corolla mutant with three deletions in cyclin dependent kinase binding sites. Working as an intern in Dr. Hawley's lab has been an invaluable experience, allowing Emily to fully appreciate the process of scientific discovery. Being able to conduct independent experiments with terrific guidance and mentorship has fostered her curiosity and love of science. Emily would recommend the experience to others who are eager to become closely involved with the research process. She notes that she has gained an abundance of knowledge and skills that will continue to benefit her in a future career in biomedical science.  Emily asserts that the Hawley lab was the best place to begin her career in science and the experiences she has had will serve as a foundation for achieving future goals.

Press
‍ Pre-Med Biology Student Publishes Article in Scientific Journal
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Elizabeth’s time in the Hawley lab prepared her to think critically and independently about science, which was a huge part of the application and interview process for graduate school. After her stint as an undergraduate researcher in the Hawley lab, Elizabeth started graduate school at MIT, where she is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Biology in the lab of Mary Gehring. Scott and Dr. Stacie Hughes, Elizabeth’s mentor in the Hawley lab,  patiently taught her everything from the basics of biology and wet lab work to how to think about the direction of a project in a “big picture” sense, all of which has been invaluable for her graduate studies. The skills and experiences she gathered in the Hawley lab propelled her to her current studies, and she notes she is incredibly grateful for the opportunity to work in the Hawley lab as an undergraduate.

While in the Hawley lab, Danny used next generation sequencing to study how crossovers and gene conversions are distributed during meiosis, which revealed that unlike crossovers, gene conversions are insensitive to interference and the centromere effect. Separately, he helped determine the structure of some of the most commonly used balancer chromosomes in Drosophila—balancers are multiply inverted and rearranged chromosomes that are used to maintain deleterious alleles in stock and in complex stock construction. The results of these projects allowed the lab to investigate the mechanism behind the interchromosomal effect, or the shift in crossover distribution that is seen when one or more inversions are present during meiosis. This revealed that double strand breaks fated to become crossovers can instead be repaired as gene conversions when those breaks happen near inversion breakpoints and that gene conversions on those chromosomes that can undergo exchange are instead repaired as crossovers.

Danny Miller currently is a combined pediatrics and medical genetics resident at Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington. Clinically, he is interested in unsolved genetic disorders and how long-read sequencing might be used to both increase the rate of genetic diagnoses and decrease the amount of time it takes to make a genetic diagnosis

Nicole Nuckolls grew up visiting Kansas City and fell in love with the city. Because of this, she chose Rockhurst University for her undergraduate degree. While at Rockhurst, she developed a passion for biology and research. Thankfully, there was a world-class research institute right next door to Rockhurst: the Stowers Institute. She joined the Hawley lab as an undergraduate, in her junior year at Rockhurst University. Nicole worked on characterization and identification of new meiotic mutants. In the Hawley lab, they completed a screen, with heavy mutagenesis, to find flies that had low fertility and/or high levels of chromosome segregation errors. Her mentor, Cori Cahoon, taught her the principles of genetics, using Drosophila as a model system, and helped her to fall in love with laboratory research. She became fascinated with the process of meiosis, a fascination that continued to grow in the lab of Dr. Sarah Zanders. She enjoyed studying meiosis in the light of genetic conflict and completed her Ph.D. program at the Graduate School of the Stowers Institute in August 2020.
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‍Working with Scott Hawley was a dream come true for Nicole. She has noted that she would not be the scientist she is today without the experience in his lab. She still uses genetics as her primary tool of research and is still studying the principles of cell division and meiosis, now as a postdoc. She is currently working as a postdoc at the University of Colorado in Julia Cooper's lab, studying fission yeast telomeres and centromeres.  The training she received in the Hawley lab, not only in scientific method and experimental procedures, such as microscopy and genetics, but generally as a scientist, have lasted her throughout her studies. She notes these skills and preparatory learning will continue to guide her in her future career. Scott taught her to think critically and how to mentor the future generations of scientists (and truly enjoy it), while instilling a love of meiosis, genetics, and science, in general.

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Nazanin was an undergraduate researcher in the Hawley Lab during her junior and senior at University of Missouri - Kansas City. She earned a B.S. in Biology and Chemistry from UMKC in 2015 and started training at the Mayo Clinic Medical Scientist (MD-PhD) Training Program. Nazanin is currently a sixth-year student in the program. She is completing a Ph.D. in Immunology and will be serving as a Fulbright Scholar, conducting research at the University of Geneva, this year. The skills learned in the Hawley Lab continue to serve in her current research, and Dr. Hawley has been an incredible resource as she explores more opportunities in training.

Scott worked as an undergraduate researcher in the Hawley Lab under the mentorship of Dr. Stacie Hughes. Together, they conducted a genetic screen using Drosophila. They identified a novel missense mutation in γ-tubulin that caused chromosome segregation defects and sterility in female flies. This discovery helped resolve a long-standing controversy in the field over the role of γ-tubulin in Drosophila oocytes. Their studies established the role of y-tubulin in bipolar spindle formation and thus in maintenance, chromosome positioning and morphology, and formation of kinetochore microtubules during meiosis I. The two years Scott spent in the Hawley Lab opened his eyes to a career involving research and, ultimately, led him to pursue training as a physician-scientist. The experience gave him the opportunity to discover his passion for biomedical research, learn how to conduct scientific experiments, and develop leadership skills through mentoring new undergraduate researchers. Scott completed the Vanderbilt University Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), earning a PhD in Biochemistry under the guidance of Dr. Jennifer Pietenpol. His dissertation research focused on the developmental and homeostatic roles of the p53 family of transcription factors. Scott is currently an internal medicine resident at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital. He plans to specialize in hematology and oncology and focus his clinical and research career on malignant hematology.