Beyond BU for the Summer: Alexandra Lion Completes Intensive Embryology Course
Alexandra Lion is a PhD candidate in the Bradham Lab, which studies pattern formation during embryonic development using the larval skeleton of the sea urchin Lytechinus variegatus as a model. Her projects focus on the role of the DEAD-box RNA helicase DDX6 in temporal regulation of development, and on the effect of per- and polyfluoryl alkyl substances (PFAS) on embryonic development and patterning.
Alexandra recently spent part of her summer attending the Marine Biological Laboratory course, Embryology: Concepts and Techniques in Modern Developmental Biology. The Embryology Course is an intensive six-week laboratory and lecture course for advanced graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and more senior researchers who seek a broad and balanced view of modern issues in developmental biology.
Alexandra describes her experience below:
I applied to the Embryology course at the Marine Biological Laboratory because I wanted to expand my knowledge and connections within the field of developmental biology, as well as get more hands-on experience with a greater number of model organisms. Through this 6-week course, I was exposed to a wide range of well-established models such as Drosophila, zebrafish and C.elegans, as well as emerging model systems like acoels, cephalopods and ctenophores. I was able to greatly expand my microscopy experience since we were provided dozens of microscopes from vendors including Nikon, Leica, Andor and Zeiss. Having access to such a wide range of tools and organisms allowed me to try experiments that were outside of my prior expertise, such as lineage tracing, photo conversion, laser ablation, tissue grafting and more. This course really reinvigorated my sense of curiosity and opened my eyes to just how many unanswered questions there still are to probe. It helped that the course directors and faculty were enthusiastic about our ideas, and encouraged us to try any experiment we wanted to no matter how out-of-the-box. The faculty and course assistants frequently stayed in the lab with us students late into the night to help troubleshoot our experiments, and really supported all of our efforts.
The course introduced me to many people in the field, from other graduate students and postdocs to faculty who have been doing research for decades. Getting to work with the faculty in close quarters for up to a week at a time was incredibly valuable; you really get a feel for how the faculty are to work with, and how they might be as mentors. I also made a lot of really incredible friends through my time at Embryology; spending 6 weeks in the lab together, sharing all of our triumphs and setbacks at the bench, but also doing non-science things like practicing for the Embryology vs. Physiology softball game together really bonded us all. I’m grateful to have these people as both my friends and colleagues, and am excited to reunite at future conferences and events.
My attendance at the course was funded in part by a Max M. Burger Endowed Scholarship in Embryology and by the Society for Developmental Biology. Thank you also to the Biology Department and MCBB Program for their support, and to my advisor Cynthia Bradham for her encouragement and support of my attendance.