Graduate Students

    Our lab studies the human prenylated protein tyrosine phosphatase PRL3 and its role in promoting metastatic activity in cancer. My project is more specifically focused on the mechanisms of PRL3 regulation. The current work is focused on how…

At our last lab meeting, I updated everyone on my project that has thus far focused on designing nanobodies, derived from alpaca heavy-chain only antibodies, that specifically bind to PRL-3. One of the biggest caveats to studying PRL-3 is the…

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to participate in the University of Kentucky’s 3 Minute Thesis (3 MT) competition. The 3 MT originated out of the University of Queensland, and has become an international event. The idea behind…

Hello Dear Reader,     I would like to share the very belated, very happy news with you- I got married!! Woo!!! My husband and  I got married May 10th in Arenas de San Pedro, Spain (he is from Spain).…

Dear readers, I have a confession to make… graduate school is hard. Shocking, I know. If you think that you should go to graduate school because it will be an easy, interim step between undergrad and the “real world,” you…

Hello everyone! My name is Caroline Smith and I am the newest graduate student that has joined the Blackburn lab. I joined the lab in April, and I am now beginning to start my second year of graduate school. I…

Holy moly world! This semester has been a whirlwind of activity and emotions, both professionally and personally. I’ll try to update in chronological order: May: Presented a poster at the Markey Cancer Research Day. June: Attended the Midwest Zebrafish meeting…

I passed my oral exam this morning! And now I am a PhD candidate. Look at the beautiful flowers from my PI, Dr. Jessica Blackburn! I feel blessed in such a supportive environment in the lab.

Hey guys! I know it has been a while since I’ve posted a blog, but a busy graduate student has to prioritize, and unfortunately a blog post on the lab website is a pretty low priority when compared to data,…